# My dog does not eat breakfast!



## fedfan (Jun 20, 2017)

My little guy Alfie does not eat breakfast. We aren't sure what to do. He is almost 11 months old and we have been offering him breakfast, lunch, and dinner. He only eats lunch and dinner now. We have been hoping to switch to 2 meals a day but we don't know how to just feed breakfast and dinner since he never eats in the morning. We are switching to homecooked food soon and we are hoping that will entice him to eat in the morning. Thoughts?


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## LovelyLily (Mar 26, 2013)

I imagine once he tries the homecooked food the problem will be over. : )

You may want to also consider dropping the middle meal and only feeding him breakfast and dinner? I don't remember when it was that I transitioned Lily down to the two meals a day. Perhaps he is still too young? Funny how I forget the puppy day details, even though it wasn't all that long ago.

Linda


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## fedfan (Jun 20, 2017)

LovelyLily said:


> I imagine once he tries the homecooked food the problem will be over. : )
> 
> You may want to also consider dropping the middle meal and only feeding him breakfast and dinner? I don't remember when it was that I transitioned Lily down to the two meals a day. Perhaps he is still too young? Funny how I forget the puppy day details, even though it wasn't all that long ago.
> 
> Linda


Thanks Linda! Unfortunately, he does not want to eat anything besides treats in the morning. He eats canned food now and refuses it in the morning. With the homemade food, I think he'll eat it but I worry that he will stop eating it in the morning when he gets used to it. We are starting with the chicken recipe which he'll eat for a few weeks so I'm really hoping he won't get bored of it. 

For dogs that eat 2 meals a day, what do you give them mid-day? I'm really hoping the homemade food will help him get used to eating breakfast. Alfie goes to daycare a few days a week, and I was planning on packing him a small snack for midday. I send his lunch with him now and he often doesn't eat it at daycare (although he eats it at home). I was thinking of packing a few veggies, yogurt, cottage cheese, or fruit or the occasional scrambled egg.


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## Aviannah's Mom (Apr 28, 2017)

fedfan said:


> My little guy Alfie does not eat breakfast. We aren't sure what to do. He is almost 11 months old and we have been offering him breakfast, lunch, and dinner. He only eats lunch and dinner now. We have been hoping to switch to 2 meals a day but we don't know how to just feed breakfast and dinner since he never eats in the morning. We are switching to homecooked food soon and we are hoping that will entice him to eat in the morning. Thoughts?



Not that this will help you much but my girl is 5 months old and has been down to two meals per day for a while now. She does not like to eat early in the morning at all and she eats the best at her 2nd feeding. I was worried she was not getting enough food and nutrients throughout the day so I consulted my vet during one of her check ups. I was told it was perfectly fine for her and the schedule/routine we keep. She is doing very well with her weight gain, growth and her hair is looking good as well. She is not a finicky eater by any means, she simply does not like to eat when she is not hungry I guess. :blink:


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## maggieh (Dec 16, 2007)

fedfan said:


> Thanks Linda! Unfortunately, he does not want to eat anything besides treats in the morning. He eats canned food now and refuses it in the morning. With the homemade food, I think he'll eat it but I worry that he will stop eating it in the morning when he gets used to it. We are starting with the chicken recipe which he'll eat for a few weeks so I'm really hoping he won't get bored of it.
> 
> For dogs that eat 2 meals a day, what do you give them mid-day? I'm really hoping the homemade food will help him get used to eating breakfast. Alfie goes to daycare a few days a week, and I was planning on packing him a small snack for midday. I send his lunch with him now and he often doesn't eat it at daycare (although he eats it at home). I was thinking of packing a few veggies, yogurt, cottage cheese, or fruit or the occasional scrambled egg.


I know it's hard when they look at you with big eyes, but don't give him treats in the morning. That's why he won't eat - he's holding out for the treats. 

For all but the very young puppies, twice a day feeding is sufficient.


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## fedfan (Jun 20, 2017)

Good news! Alfie loves his homecooked food so he ate all his breakfast today. Around 1 pm, we gave him a frozen pineapple and a 2 baby carrots and he seems fine.  I think he will get used to 2 meals a day.


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## Aviannah's Mom (Apr 28, 2017)

fedfan said:


> Good news! Alfie loves his homecooked food so he ate all his breakfast today. Around 1 pm, we gave him a frozen pineapple and a 2 baby carrots and he seems fine.  I think he will get used to 2 meals a day.




Great to hear! :thumbsup:


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## fedfan (Jun 20, 2017)

It's been over a week and Alfie is regularly eating breakfast and dinner. We weaned him off lunch and he is doing great! He is loving the JFFD recipes which makes me so happy. With canned food, he would smell his food and turn around and now he loves it and wants more! I'm planning on ordering the lamb and brown rice recipes as I found a place where I can buy lamb liver!


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## fedfan (Jun 20, 2017)

So after over a month of homecooking, Alfie is starting to turn his nose up at breakfast again. I think I am going to try tough love from now on--no snacks or treats until dinner. He is going to daycare in about 2 weeks so we NEED him to eat breakfast consistently because he doesn't like eating his food there. Today, he ate 75% of his breakfast when I hand fed him and I will not give any treats or snacks until dinner. Is this ok for a 10 pound puppy to go 9 hours without any more food? I am so worried that he will be too hungry but I really don't know what to do. I would free feed if I fed dry food but I do not want to feed dry food.


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## fedfan (Jun 20, 2017)

Also, I was planning on taking him on a walk today but I'm worried he will get too hungry with too much walking. I know I worry too much but I just want him to be healthy and eat his food. Sigh.


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