My Grey Won't Eat Kibble

[Guest clodagh]

Hello Friends,

I've come to you again for advice. How can I get my 12 year old greyhound to eat kibble? She USED to eat it with a little wet food mixed in and a little water to soften it but now she'll eat only canned dog food AND doesn't eat (or want to eat) very much of that. We put some kibble into the canned food but she won't eat that, either. Every meal is a struggle with her. I've tried salmon oil - doesn't work. Any other ideas? (BTW the kibble is Gain retired and maintenance). Help, please!

[Guest Kaila]

If she used to eat kibble and then suddenly stopped, I would DEFINITELY take a look at her teeth. Do you brush her teeth or use an oral spray? I can recommend Leba III (it works a little better than the second one I will recommend, but costs about $50). To save some money I just switched from the Leba III to PetzLife (I use the peppermint oral spray and oral gel). If you can see hard yellow/brown buildup around her gumline, especially on the back molars, then that's probably your culprit. Greyhounds (from what I've heard, I don't have one yet) are notorious for having bad teeth, so you should get into a habit of brushing regularly.

 

My dog's oral routine is 2 sprays of PetzLife in the morning as soon as I get out of bed. I go about my morning routine, and after 30 minutes I brush his teeth lightly with a soft-bristle human toothbrush and water (no toothpaste). Then in the evening, if I remember, he'll get another 2 sprays of PetzLife with no food/water 30 minutes before or after.

 

http://www.amazon.co...ywords=leba iii

http://www.amazon.co...ywords=petzlife

 

Brushing will make it go faster. And no, other toothpastes and water additives don't work -- at least, I've never had any success with them. Liver flavored toothpastes, enzymatic toothpastes, etc. all failed to clean my dog's teeth. But both of the products I linked you have done a tremendous job keeping my Chihuahua's teeth white and his breath fresh.

 

Here's what his teeth look like now (he's going on 4 years old):

 

Also, I had stopped using the spray for about two months. His gums started getting a little red around the gumline and some funky yellow gunk was building up on his teeth, so I decided to take daily pictures to show how just using the oral spray (Leba III) improved the health of his mouth. Here's the album with those pictures:

 

http://s1184.beta.ph...her/Teddy Teeth

Edited October 21, 2012 by Kaila

[philospher77]

With a 12-year-old dog that suddenly changes eating habits, my first stop would be the vet. It could be her teeth, or liver or kidney issues. Or.... you get the idea. Rule out medical issues first, then start messing with the foods. And, at the end of the day, if she will eat wet but not dry, at that age it might not be a battle worth fighting, and I might just go with the wet food.

[TheFullHouse]

I have learned over the years that some seniors, healthy seniors, get picky. It takes more to get them to eat. I have two now that miss meals and they are healthy, just old. The one thing that will stimulate their appetite is Wellness Beef canned food. I mix it with moistened kibble and it will get them eating every time. If your hound is healthy, my motto is give them anything you can get them to eat. I've used cottage cheese, yogurt, egg whites and tuna and so far they are still eating.

[PatricksMom]

Vet check (I'd start with teeth and senior blood work), then if everything is normal, try mixing in something she'll have trouble picking out--yogurt, finely grated cheese, ground beef you've really broken up with a fork.

[Guest greytone]

My greyhound is almost 12 and he sometimes gets picky. But I know that is just how he is. For me, to get him to eat I sometimes put a little chicken or beef broth or yogurt or grated parm cheese on his kibble to get him to eat.

[Guest clodagh]

Thank you everyone for your advice!!!

[Guest SealDogMermaid]

If she used to eat kibble and then suddenly stopped, I would DEFINITELY take a look at her teeth. Do you brush her teeth or use an oral spray? I can recommend Leba III (it works a little better than the second one I will recommend, but costs about $50). To save some money I just switched from the Leba III to PetzLife (I use the peppermint oral spray and oral gel). If you can see hard yellow/brown buildup around her gumline, especially on the back molars, then that's probably your culprit. Greyhounds (from what I've heard, I don't have one yet) are notorious for having bad teeth, so you should get into a habit of brushing regularly.

 

My dog's oral routine is 2 sprays of PetzLife in the morning as soon as I get out of bed. I go about my morning routine, and after 30 minutes I brush his teeth lightly with a soft-bristle human toothbrush and water (no toothpaste). Then in the evening, if I remember, he'll get another 2 sprays of PetzLife with no food/water 30 minutes before or after.

 

http://www.amazon.co...ywords=leba iii

http://www.amazon.co...ywords=petzlife

 

 

 

thanks so much for this! Have been reading reviews on the Leba in particular - we are def going to try it for our older male grey :-) Some of the reviews have said it even cuts down on the existing build-up, not just as a preventative - was that your experience? (I tried looking at the album of daily teef pics but it says the album is private)

[vjgrey]

Every meal was a struggle with my five year-old Lucy until we started cooking whole chickens in the crockpot. You cook it on low over 24 hours, and it all turns to mush - even the bones can be smashed with a fork. I freeze huge batches, and before meals, I heat it with a little water. It makes a chunky "gravy" that she LOVES, and it coats the kibble, so she can't just pick out the chicken. We started making it regularly over a year ago, and since then, she hasn't once refused to eat.

[Brandiandwe]

Another option is to heat the kibble a bit. I tend to use boiling water into the kibble and leave it to cool (this is important!). My vet, after scoffing at me when I told them Paige would probably not eat after the first day of being there (such a little princess and only really eats for me!), ended up microwaving it after trying numerous other methods. That worked for one meal before she was back refusing food.

[Guest clodagh]

Thanks, again, for all the advice. Unfortunately, Clodagh won't eat the kibble when it's soggy so hot water won't do.

I've started putting about 2 tablespoons of gravy (reduced salt-.30g salt per 50mls). Plus, of course I have to mix it in with her wet/canned food. Do you think that's okay? She still gets a larger amount of wet food compared to her dry food........?????

[CherylB]

Another tooth gel to try is Tropiclean. We have used PetzLife, and this works better for us and is cheaper. Can't say how it compares to Leba III because I haven't tried it.

 

http://www.amazon.com/Fresh-Breath-Clean-Teeth-Gel/dp/B00379KT66/ref=sr_1_1?s=pet-supplies&ie=UTF8&qid=1351869699&sr=1-1&keywords=Tropiclean

[PatricksMom]

She's 12--do whatever you have to so she eats. They can get really finicky and hard to keep weight on at that age and the last thing you want is for her to get sick and already be underweight.

[Guest WhiteWave]

What about homecooking? I cooked for Linus most of the last year of his life. I didn't necessarily follow recipes just used common since from all the reading I have done on dog nutrition and added a few natural supplements like kelp and alfalfa. He like red meats over poultry. Fair amounts of organs. Eggs, yogurt, cottage cheese, can mackeral or salmon. He tended to prefer pasta over rice or potatoes. Mac and cheese was one his favorites. He also still enjoyed knawing on raw bones despite not having many teeth left. Also canned tripe was another favorite. He liked lamb over beef. Sometimes it was just trial and error.

[Brandiandwe]

My picky one will also always eat boiled chicken and rice/ pasta. If you have a rice cooker, chop the chicken up, stick it in with the rice and cook. Then I mix through some yoghurt, sprinkle some cheese on top, or some scrambled eggs and let her at it.

[Guest snoopycomehome]

Raviolis are doggie crack for our two greys!

[Guest 2dogs4cats]

I usually feed only canned food when they are 12 or 13. They just seem to like it better and I think the extra moisture is good for the seniors.

[a_daerr]

I second the teeth post. I'd do a vet check to make sure there aren't any dental issues.

If you can rule out teeth issues, she's either getting pickier or has been trained that if she holds out, you'll give her better food.