Hi, We have had an amazing first week with our little lab. She is now sleeping alone downstairs with no protests and seems very happy. She has loads of energy, looks bright and is gaining weight slowly. I am a little concerned as she doesn't like her kibble. She has pretty much stopped eating it and isn't even getting half of her recommended daily amount. She has not lost her appetite as she loves the small amounts of chicken I have given her. I tried mixing in some wet food which initially she liked but isn't even fussed with that anymore. I have never known a lab not want to eat! I am back at the vet on Friday with her for her first jabs but just wondering if anyone has any advice on how to get her eating? It is so important for a puppy to get the nutrients it needs that I don't want to play the waiting game with her. I really am not concerned about anything being wrong with her just that she is a fussy eater! Thank you!!
It's not unusual for a puppy to appear to go off their food once in their new home, as they no longer gave any need to compete with siblings when foid us available. Just keep offering her the kibble. You could try adding a little warm water to it as it helps to bring out the flavour and smell more. I would definitely not offer any more bits of chicken - I would be surprised if she didn't like it but it can encourage your pup/dog to refuse plain kibble and wait for a better offering.
My latest pup wasn’t that interested in food from a bowl so I scatter-fed her (scattering the food over the floor) which she enjoyed and made her use her brain. I also liked to hide the food around the room for her to hunt out. This game worked on her learning to use her nose and problem-solving, as well as building relationship when I helped her out. It was great fun, kept her entertained for twenty minutes and, added bonus, wore her out! It’s worth a try. After scatter-feeding for a few days, I was in a rush one morning and so fed her in her bowl. She looked at it, then blatted it with her paw to send the food flying, before hoovering it off the floor
My pup doesn't seem interested in her food either I have changed her good twice and I thought this current one was perfect she was scoffing it down and is now not interested in it anymore. I hate seeing her not eating
Have you tried having her work for it? It's called "contrafreeloading" and some dogs really prefer to earn their food rather than being given it for free. So things like hunting it out in a snuffle mat, using a Kong wobbler, simply scattering it on your lawn, using it as training treats etc etc can really work to get a pup eating when they're not interested in kibble from a bowl
Thank you all for your responses. She will currently eat some kibble if it is flicked across he floor like a game! It's very time consuming ha. She won't touch it in her bowl although had a very busy time the other day and ate the lot! I'm hoping once she gets out for walks and goes down to 3 meals per day she'll be so hungry she'll eat it all! She'll train for carrots and thinks an ice cube is a real treat but isn't interested in the kibble then either! Bless her. She's great!
Have you tried just dumping it on the floor? It seems mean to make them eat it off the floor, but about once a day I just toss the pup's food on the kitchen floor (it scatters about under the cabinets, behind the stools, etc). Might be faster than flicking piece by piece. My guy loves his food, this just extends feeding time from 2.5 seconds to almost a full 5 seconds (slow feed bowl arrives tomorrow).
You could try feeding on an piece of fleece or a snuffle mat. It really shows them down and makes it more fun.
