# My puppy is finally eating but...



## Mzkyie (Apr 25, 2013)

My new 13 week old puppy is on Day 2 in his new home, he didn't eat at all yesterday. Today he is eating but he takes one piece of kibble from the bowl at a time. Does anyone else's Maltese do this? Should I be worried that he will not eat enough. I was not planning to free feed him, I prefer to make a schedule as soon as he adjusts to his new surroundings.


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## mdbflorida (Feb 28, 2013)

Mine did that too he is adjusting I put one teaspoon of wet food for a few days because I was worried and that did the trick


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## eiksaa (Jun 8, 2012)

I think it should be fine as long as he is eating. IMO, it is more important to make sure the puppy eats at this stage, even if the setup is not ideal (free feeding vs. meal times). Like you said, you can definitely switch to set meal times in a week or so when he is more settled in.

Alternatively, you can also hand feed him (with him having to work for each kibble, nothing fancy, sitting nicely is good enough). I know some people think it will create a picky food monster but that's what we did with Gustave and it worked great for us. I think it helped him bond with us faster, and laid a good foundation for good manners.

Either way, very important that the puppy eats at this age.


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## Mzkyie (Apr 25, 2013)

eiksaa said:


> I think it should be fine as long as he is eating. IMO, it is more important to make sure the puppy eats at this stage, even if the setup is not ideal (free feeding vs. meal times). Like you said, you can definitely switch to set meal times in a week or so when he is more settled in.
> 
> Alternatively, you can also hand feed him (with him having to work for each kibble, nothing fancy, sitting nicely is good enough). I know some people think it will create a picky food monster but that's what we did with Gustave and it worked great for us. I think it helped him bond with us faster, and laid a good foundation for good manners.
> 
> Either way, very important that the puppy eats at this age.


I will give hand feeding a try as well. Right now he takes one piece of kibble, walks away from his bowl and eats it.


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## eiksaa (Jun 8, 2012)

Mzkyie said:


> I will give hand feeding a try as well. Right now he takes one piece of kibble, walks away from his bowl and eats it.


I think that's fine. He comes back for more, right? As long as he is eating his food it should be OK.


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## Grace'sMom (Feb 22, 2012)

We say Grace eats like a bird.... she gets one bite of food and runs to her bed to eat it, then goes back and gets another bite.... 

Sometimes I think she burns more calories than she is eating!

As long as he keeps eating, it is fine. Some little dogs just do that... he may not outgrow it lol


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## Mzkyie (Apr 25, 2013)

He's eating from his bowl now! Still taking small portions and walking away but he has gotten over seeing his reflection at the bottom for the dish.


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## Cyndilou (Jan 24, 2013)

Make sure he's drinking good too.


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## Mzkyie (Apr 25, 2013)

Cyndilou said:


> Make sure he's drinking good too.


Yeah he is drinking plenty, and the breeder did an exceptional job with crate/paper training. He only had one accident yesterday. This morning he woke me up barking, I let him out of his crate and he made a b-line to the paper.


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## Bailey&Me (Mar 8, 2010)

eiksaa said:


> I think it should be fine as long as he is eating. IMO, it is more important to make sure the puppy eats at this stage, even if the setup is not ideal (free feeding vs. meal times). Like you said, you can definitely switch to set meal times in a week or so when he is more settled in.
> 
> Alternatively, you can also hand feed him (with him having to work for each kibble, nothing fancy, sitting nicely is good enough). I know some people think it will create a picky food monster but that's what we did with Gustave and it worked great for us. I think it helped him bond with us faster, and laid a good foundation for good manners.
> 
> Either way, very important that the puppy eats at this age.


Totally agree with this. As long as he is eating, that is the most important thing right now. You can establish your desired eating routine later when has settled in. 

Now, let's see some pictures!!


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## mrsmediauph (Feb 19, 2013)

When I first got Lily I was so anxious and obsessed about her eating enough. She just didn't want to eat her dry food out of the bowl. I used to measure it out (1/4 cup) and then put it in her Kong toy and she would gobble it up but wouldn't eat it out of the bowl. I would always put the food in her bowl and give her some time to eat it but if she didn't I would put it in the Kong. She now gobbles up her food as soon as I put it in the bowl. :chili:


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