Picky - and why not?
louise1966
Posts: 4,012 Forum Member
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I feed my boxers James Wellbeloved fish variety. It is quite a lot more expensive but, from the smell of the kibble, it is more tasty for my babies. I have, in the past, fed them harringtons natural food and, as it was on offer at morrisons, I bought some to have in. Filled their bowls this morning, added the glucosamine and waited for them to wolf it down, as usual. It was a case of 'when you've had the best, forget the rest', as they wouldn't touch it! When I added a bit of meat to it, they did eat it. Mum said they were ganging up on me! They are certainly not daft, my two. I suppose dogs are just like humans; they like to be fed tasty food. They won't be having the other food again - it's not cheap if they won't eat it. Plus, I want them to enjoy their food - and they do, the expensive one anyway! But they are worth it!
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Oh yes. Does any lab owner know of anything these canine hoovers won't eat? In the rare and stupid times I forget to close the baby gate into the kitchen - I get home to find rubbish strewn all over the house - including anything he can reach in the cupboard.
OK - I take that back - he leaves tea bags.
I am surprised at hearing of a picky boxer though. Never owned one - but have friends who have and they also seem to be one of the breeds that will eat anything.
It's all good decent food, and what they need.
That's exactly my attitude too, molliepops
OK - before getting shot down in flames here - as a dog owner of over 25 years, I take care of their physical welfare and diet.
For example - having adopted a lab three years ago - two weeks ago I finally got the seal of approval from my vet - he has shed 30% of his body weight and is now officially healthy - having been fed pie and chips for most of his early years. Gleaming coat - a waist and healthy teeth. I love him dearly and want to keep him for as many years possible.
He is not my "baby" but he is the most wonderful canine companion.
Sounds like I need to follow his diet myself!
this is very true.
set meal times are the way forward too.
a friends dog is very picky.
(she gave in to her at 8 months by mixing wet food in with her, perfectly fine and high meat content, kibble just to get her to eat it... nothing like making a rod for your own back!)
had she waited until the next meal time, or even the next day - no doubt the dog would have eaten the food.
but now she gets wet food smothered over her complete kibble and if she doesn't eat it -it's no skin off her nose as it gets left down all day until she eats it :rolleyes:
unless there's a medical reason, i'd never free feed again.
older dog had a bowl of biscuits down to shack on at all times as an empty stomach would have her bringing up bile, but 2 separate home cooked meals.
Harringtons is a decent food though, especially when considering it's a supermarket brand.
it's one of the few on the shelves that aren't packed with cheapo grains and unlabelled ingredients. - my dog is on a mid range purina brand which was once pegged as the bees knees by breeders, i'd prefer to still be feeding harringtons to be honest though, it's made locally (-ish to me) and everything is named on the packet.
food dog is on:
Composition: Cereals (wholegrain 20%), Meat and animal derivatives (meat 14%, chicken 4%), Vegetable protein extracts, Oils and fats, Derivatives of vegetable origin (dried beet pulp 1.1%), Vegetables (dried chicory root 1.1%), Minerals.
harringtons:
Maize, Turkey Meat Meal (15%), Porridge Oats, Meat Meal, Rice, Peas (4%), Beet Pulp, Poultry Fat, Digest, Linseed, Minerals, Kelp (0.2%), Yeast (0.1%), Citrus Extract (0.04%) & Yucca Extract (0.01%).
the OP's dogs probably weren't all that interested in the Harringtons as it doesn't have a very strong smell like the JWB would have, especially in a fish flavour.
When I gave them Harringtons, it was salmon and potato, as fish is extremely beneficial for dogs. So I wasn't really changing the main ingredient - fish - and I do concur with Harringtons being a natural food, good composition, etc. If I persevered with the Harringtons, then I'm sure they would eat it; dogs do not choose to starve themselves. I just believe the JW is tastier, and more digestible, which they need because, as is the case with the boxer breed, they do have sensitive stomachs.
Loves raw carrot. Steals apple cores. Been caught with a nose in a mug of coffee :eek:
tonight he decided he wanted to see what our daughters school books tasted like :mad:
luckily for him he is fluffy and fun and hard to stay too cross with !
Now I feed my lab with Iams light for sterlised dogs - and he woofs it up in about 30 seconds and snuffles around later just in case. A winalot biscuit when we get up in the morning and a dental rask at night - and that is it.
I've had a mutt and two springer and then the lab - and so grateful for him., In my experience - spaniels are the very worst for allergies. Still have no idea of the best way to feed them.
My Labra-Staff - or is that Staff-Rador, LOL...?? - is very picky about dog food.
He'll eat well enough, so long as it's the 'right' brand.
With 'human food' though, he's not so fussy. He'll eat leftovers of just about anything except strong-tasting veg.
wasn't having a dig at you OP, hope you didn't think that
it's just i've noticed between two brands of the same flavour food (beta light + turkey, harringtons turkey) that the harringtons has much less of a smell than other foods seem to have, meaning it's probably a lot less attractive to the dogs who work more on scent than taste.
we have a border collie who has/had a sensitive stomach (nothing agreed with him when he was younger, it all just went straight though and he was skinny as a rake) in his life he's been on Beta (where the gut problems started), from that he went onto burns (made him hyperactive), then a cheap brand i don't recall because it was absolutely horrendous, multicoloured and purchased by an idiot (because it was cheap - men :rolleyes: this came out literally like water.) wagg worker (suited him beautifully), bakers adult (our other dog ate this, apparently it was easier just to buy the one type of food), wagg original (no artificial colours like bakers, unfortunately no longer suited him, terracotta mousse like poos), harringtons (brilliant, but did make him gain weight) and back now to beta (was on light following his neuter*, now on senior, thises sured up his poops while still being affordable)
have to admit, i've not ever smelt or seen the salmon and potato harringtons
we can't give ours a fish based diet, he's not a lover of fish and when he has eaten it, he's either vomited it up about 30 minutes later, or we've had trouble at the other end, so we stick to animal protein/flavours over fish to err on the side of caution.
he can have cod liver oil capsules though, thankfully, so that helps to keep his coat glossy and his joints moving.
(*= would not recommend this food to anyone, we got this, thinking that our boy would lose the weight he gained after his neuter, but this never happened. in fact, he was irritable towards other dogs and became possessive/defensive over food. since the switch to senior though, he has been much happier, more social, had a lot more energy AND he's lost weight. never been so happy to have somewhere stop sticking one of our regular foods forcing a switch!)
One being James Wellbeloved and the other Bob and Lush (only available on the internet) - she gave me a leaflet detailing all the ingredients of other dogs foods which was quite scary. The breeder of my dog recommended Royal Canin but it made her itch and gave her a patchy coat - this company will not reveal exactly what it is in their food!
Asha is now on the Bob and Lush, loves it and she no longer itches, her coat is looking better as well.
Noise fear etc again no link with food it's the loud bang they don't like.
And change food as much as you like a seperation anxiety case is just that not linked to food at all.