So What Do You Do With A 15 Yo Who Wants To Eat

[Madeara]

Darius is turning into a very picky eater. He has me trying most everything to keep his weight up. LAst week I cooked him a leg of lamb, this week it is whole chickens. One day he likes his kibbles mixed with something, then no as he stands at his station and looks at me " what else do you have?" "I don't want this, I'll beg until I get what I want" I have him checked every 6 months, he still gets goofy and can run across the yard and is very proud. I don't know what to do except give him a menu everyday and have him pick. Maybe I created this, but he was losing weight when he had that e-coli, that is cured and he wants to eat yet he is putting me through hell worrying, after all he is almost 15.

 

Any thoughts??

Edited January 16, 2008 by Madeara

[Guest lotsahounds]

My Trevor is turning into a picky eater too and he's only 11. I cook up some chicken livers, chop them up and sprinkle them on top for incentive. It works for him. Maybe Darius might like it too.

[Guest MorganKonaAlex]

Kona was doing that same picky eater routine. One food would work for a few days, then it wasn't good enough. A check at the Vet's found she was in partial kidney failure. When we addressed it, she started eating kibble again.

[Guest lat41065]

If any of mine live to 15 I would give them anything they want. how about cooking things for him and freezing in portion sized bags so if he gets picky you can give him something else. maybe add things like cheese or tuna to whatever you already have fixed. also jsut putting a spoon or two of rice or potato will peak thier interest.

[Batmom]

I'm sorry you're worrying. He *is* magnificent.

 

It may be that at his age, you may have to give up making every meal the healthiest, KWIM? You don't want him eating junk for days on end, but maybe there is a balance between Weird, Not So Healthy things and Appropriate Foods that will keep him interested.

 

When B was ill (and therefore picky), he would usually eat the following: Tripett (canned green tripe); a cooked mix of ground beef, chicken, spinach, peas, and molasses or honey; chicken livers; vanilla ice cream; scrambled eggs; Pepperidge Farm Cinnamon Swirl Bread; graham crackers; spaghettios; plain or vanilla yogurt ..... Never tried salmon or tuna or mackerel as he was allergic to fish. Oh, those processed cheese slices -- those tended to go down *very* well . Some dogs also like cottage cheese.

 

I would usually offer 3-4 things and put them in quadrants in his dish -- sort of like a divided platter -- in case he wanted one thing but not the others. If people were cooking/eating, that tended to get him interested in food, so you might try feeding Darius when you eat.

[Madeara]

Oh I would do anything for him, cook and freeze sure! He could very well be starting some kidney issues, I should try the Hills kidney food, but I am afraid he won't eat it. He stands his ground when he wants something or doesn't want something. Should I do blood again or bring in a pee sample?

[Batmom]

If he doesn't have kidney issues, there'd be no reason to feed him a prescrip food. If you think he does have a kidney issue, blood sample would probably be more useful.

[Madeara]

I would usually offer 3-4 things and put them in quadrants in his dish -- sort of like a divided platter -- in case he wanted one thing but not the others. If people were cooking/eating, that tended to get him interested in food, so you might try feeding Darius when you eat.

 

yes he ca'nt wait to lick our plates he has turned into a horrible begger I can't get mad of course. I like the quadrant idea.

 

I have been for the past month feeding him lunch when I come home to let them out at lunch. I figured just like old people they might not want to eat 1st thing in the morning and of course they eat less. that worked for a while, the roasted chicken from A+P also worked today.

[retiredracers]

Our nearly 14 year old is the same way. She will eat something like she absolutely loves it one day and then turn her nose up at it the next. We keep about 4-5 different kibbles for her and she also gets to "try" any of the raw food that Elphie may be eating.... raw beef, turkey necks or any of the raw mixes from Oma's Pride. We also leave Flake in our bedroom during the day and leave kibble down for her. She then grazes through the day as she wants to.

 

Good luck. It's hard seeing them get older!

[Madeara]

Another horrible thing is that Asia thinks she isn't "good enough" Darius gets everything and she cannot understand why she is left out. She has gained so much weight, she gives me terrible stink eye and I cave in

[MP_the4pack]

Mine have gotten picky (a 10 yr old with lots of meds and a 12 yr old).

 

So, they pretty much get the same kibble and wet food mix they've always gotten. But I keep the weight on by giving them eggnog. High calorie, high protein and the LOVE it.

 

So if they don't feel like eating, they'll still get their late evening snack of eggnog. Eventually they'll have a meal or two, then nothing again. (drives me nuts). But I'm not having weight problems.

 

 

 

[Batmom]

Audrey, when B was ill I cut back Zema's and Rocco's (the whippet) regular food a little so that every time B got fed, they got one small bite, too. That way nobody fussed, nobody felt guilty, etc. If he was having something I didn't want to give them, I'd just give them a bit of yogurt or an apple slice instead.

[ZoomDoggy]

Audrey, I know all too well several times over what you're going through. Sissy, Chancy and Marla all went through the uber-picky eating thing. Drove me to tears and rage and back to tears on many occasions. I had an entire fridge dedicated solely to various food options for my dog. :

 

When all else failed, I did discover that syringe-feeding wasn't as hard or an unwelcome as I'd feared. And it did effectively keep weight on without upsetting their bowels (because it was their normal diet, liquefied) even when they were very sick.

 

Good luck, try to stay patient, and give that gorgeous golden boy a big gentle hug from me.

[Madeara]

Audrey, when B was ill I cut back Zema's and Rocco's (the whippet) regular food a little so that every time B got fed, they got one small bite, too. That way nobody fussed, nobody felt guilty, etc. If he was having something I didn't want to give them, I'd just give them a bit of yogurt or an apple slice instead.

 

 

yep that is what I try to do, I cut her food in half and then when I feed Darius extra or at lunch( she hawks terribly) she gets a taste. SHe has a jelly belly now and with winter there isn't much exercise these day

[Madeara]

Audrey, I know all too well several times over what you're going through. Sissy, Chancy and Marla all went through the uber-picky eating thing. Drove me to tears and rage and back to tears on many occasions. I had an entire fridge dedicated solely to various food options for my dog. :

 

When all else failed, I did discover that syringe-feeding wasn't as hard or an unwelcome as I'd feared. And it did effectively keep weight on without upsetting their bowels (because it was their normal diet, liquefied) even when they were very sick.

 

Good luck, try to stay patient, and give that gorgeous golden boy a big gentle hug from me.

 

Oh you hit that on the nose, tears and frustration and a bit of rage.

 

Tell me more about this syringe-feeding. I emailed my vet for more advice maybe to take blood again and I will weigh him on Saturday. I swear Darius is just doing this to be difficult, yep now I have her in my complete control!

 

Guess it is my turn everyone he is old and things change.

 

[silverfish]

Another thing to wonder about is if he is losing his sense of smell. If you cook one day and try feeding the same thing cold the next day, it could simply be that he can't smell it so well.

 

Have you tried warming his food?

[Madeara]

Judy that is a very good point! I will work on that to see if he is losing his smell.

[Guest greytbookert]

When Booker was being his picky-self, we used the Smoothies that you find in the yogurt isle of the grocery store... the Mixed Berry from Stoneyfield Farms was his favorite. Then when it got real bad, we used Vanilla Ensure to help entice him to eat. We had lots of trial and error and the thing that always worked was Tripe, yep very stinky but he loved it!

 

 

[Remolacha]

When Sugar was being picky, one thing she never turned down was vanilla Ensure. I shuddered when I read the ingredients, but it gave her some calories and something in her stomach. Usually, she would take the Ensure and either a turkey neck, or some cat kibble (she is raw fed, so kibble is a "treat" ). Not a good diet long term, but it got her through the rough patches.

[Madeara]

Ensure sounds good. I was thinking of some kind of puppy food for the calories but maybe the Ensure will help. He can have that for breakfast.

 

[Burpdog]

Feed him what he wants. I believe they eat what they need. Stock up on kibble samples

[Guest nerak254]

Jessica was like this the last year or two and made me crazy. She ate: Dintey Moore Beef Stew, Spaghetti O's, Mac and Cheese, a mixture (rice, ice cream, eggs, kibble, canned dog food), kibble with gravy on it, millions of sample bags of dog food, plus stuff I can't remember right now. She did the same thing, I'd buy $$$ food for her and she'd eat it one day and turn her nose up at it the next. The only thing she never turned her nose up at was the mixture I made.

Edited January 15, 2008 by nerak254

[Guest nerak254]

After reading through this whole tread, I did all of these things for her except the syringe. We did use one for Goody when she was sick towards the end. I went to the coop and got one for horses. I put baby food in it. I guess I decided that I would do what I could while they were showing me they weren't ready to go yet. It's been a little over a year and I still find myself looking at things in the grocery store and wondering if Jessica would have liked it.

Edited January 15, 2008 by nerak254

[Madeara]

It's been a little over a year and I still find myself looking at things in the grocery store and wondering if Jessica would have liked it.

 

ahhhh

[gazehund]

Ensure sounds good. I was thinking of some kind of puppy food for the calories but maybe the Ensure will help. He can have that for breakfast.

 

Audrey, Future will be 13 this year, but there is NO way he is picky. He has always been a begger though and he IS getting worse at that. Stinker! I feed Raw as you know. Since raw is a very lean diet, I have had to resort to feeding Da Bones kibble a few times a week to keep weight on him. I feed him Califronia Natural Lamb and Rice Puppy Chow. A whopping 591 calories per cup. The Chicken formula is less calories. He loves it and it does the trick.

 

I found Jey's list to be interesting. Sweets and carbs. Things I LOVE, but if he eats it who cares? Oh and Judy made a good point. I always warm the dogs food in the microwave, no matter what they are eating. Always have, even when they were younger.

 

Good luck with Darius the magnificent!