Do Dogs Get Sick Of Their Own Food?

[Guest laura150]

We've had Ernie for a little over four months and he's been a healthy eater. He could hardly wait until I put the bowl of kibble down before devouring it. The past week or so (before the pit bull incident) he hasn't been jazzed. He'll eat some, then walk away or not at all. Sometimes when I hand feed him, he'll eat a bit.

 

He's not exhibiting any other strange behaviors and doesn't appear to be sick and he eats any other treats we give him with gusto!

 

Could he be sick of the same food? Has this happened to anyone else?

[Guest greybookends]

Yes.

[Guest snowmo18]

Yes, our girl Polly was just like him..shed pick at it a little and then just walk off..treats no problem, we tried switching to different brands or flavors in that brand (Earthborn..love the stuff, very good food and our foster dog loves it), but she would get bored after a month and pick at it agin. I finally switched them to a RAW diet and have them on Big Dog Natural and she cant be more excited to eat now...6 months now and she loves it. She knows when dinner time is and paces from one kitchen door to the other just waiting and trying to get us to hurry up hehe.

[Guest Liz_in_PA]

What we've also found is that Bonnie's happiest when we buy it in 15 pound bags. Near the end of the bag, she isn't as excited. We think it might get stale. She loves the first servings from a new bag of the same stuff.

[krissy]

Perhaps. Some dogs tend to be pickier. Personally I avoid giving in to that if I can. Maybe I'm just a mean mom. ha ha. But seriously, I pick foods for very specific reasons. Also, it is always possible for a dog to be diagnosed with a condition that requires a prescription food that the dog MUST eat to stay healthy, so I make it a point that the dogs eat what I give them to wean down the pickiness I get from them. Basically the way it works in my household is... if you don't eat it promptly you don't eat at all. Summit often wouldn't eat breakfast when we first got him but that resolved once he settled in (and with the "don't eat, don't eat at all" philosophy in place). Kili also went through a funny phase around the age of 10-12 months where she was often leaving food or not eating at all. She learned pretty quickly though that if she didn't want to eat she was going to wait another 12 hours for the chance to eat. Every so often when food goes down now and something else exciting is happening (visitors, we hear our downstairs neighbour coming in, etc) I see her have a moment where she thinks about checking out the excitement and then you can almost see the lightbulb of "oh wait, I'd better eat this first".

 

Anyway, that's just me. Lots of people just rotate foods. But as I said, I try to impress on the dogs that they eat what I give them. There is nothing more frustrating at work than telling a client their dog has urinary stones and has to eat a special diet to reduce the amount of crystals being formed... and then the dog is picky and doesn't want to eat it, the owners stops feeding the food, dog gets stones again....

[Remolacha]

I think they can get bored, and i see no problem with rotating flavors, as long as they have no food sensitivities. That said, I also subscribe to the 'eat what I give you or you don't eat model' It won't hurt a healthy dog to miss a meal or two. Of course, if they pick at or refuse several meals in a row, that is a different story!

[Guest laura150]

I've been leaving it in his bowl and he'll eat it before noon. Should I just pick it up and make him wait until dinner time? I have no problem switching out his food (gradually of course) for something else but don't want him to become pickier!

 

I also thought about only giving him his food for a few days (with his cookies after his walk) and no fruit (we give him a few slices of oranges and apples as treats) for a few days and see if he settles and eats his food.

[Hubcitypam]

Do you just feed him once a day in the morning? Might switch it to the evening - some dogs just aren't crazy about breakfast. If he is an only dog you could just leave the bowl down and free feed. Some people don't like it but it is pretty easy to see what's up with an only dog.

That said, I am dealing with this right now with Barkley. It's been going on for several days. I gave him Poodles food last night and this morning and he ate it just fine.

[Guest grey_dreams]

Have you recently opened a new/different bag? Sometimes the ingredients change between lots.

 

That said, yes, they can definitely get tired of the same food all the time. Nothing wrong with rotating between different flavors or different brands that you know he will do well with.

(Would you eat the exact same meal two times a day, everyday, for months on end?)

My own doggies get lots of different things to eat, and that has not caused them to become picky eaters.

[Riverhound]

If there's no reason not to leave the food down all day, maybe consider free feeding? Mine eat what they want, when they want, just like cats, and are doing very well.

 

That's after making sure he's healthy, and the food agrees with him, of course.

 

When we first got Joe, I tried to set regular mealtimes and got all freaked out when he wouldn't eat when I thought he should. Then I started adding olive oil, cheese, and all sorts of wonderful things to the kibble. The add-ins (or top layer of food) would get eaten, and the rest would sit. The vet laughed at me when I described what was going on! Joe and I worked out a compromise -- food's available all the time, sometimes he gets a bit of what we're eating, sometimes not.

 

When we got Brees, I worried that I'd need to get Joe on a regular schedule again, but she does fine with free feeding, and they aren't at all possessive over the kibble bowls. It's always there, there's always more. Even when we dump leftovers on top, they can eat out of the same dish (we do have separate feeders, they just don't alway choose to use them!)

 

Good luck. It'll work out!

[Guest Giselle]

I think they can get bored, and i see no problem with rotating flavors, as long as they have no food sensitivities. That said, I also subscribe to the 'eat what I give you or you don't eat model' It won't hurt a healthy dog to miss a meal or two. Of course, if they pick at or refuse several meals in a row, that is a different story!

This is essentially what I think, too. I purposefully rotate foods because I see strong validity in a varied, changing diet for dogs. But I only give 10-15 minutes for an animal to eat. If s/he doesn't eat all the food in that sitting, I will pick up the bowl and try again at the next meal. Eventually, they learn that they should eat... or else they'll go hungry. It is important for me to have this structure because I train with food, so I need to control access to food to keep it motivating.

[Guest k9soul]

I too think it depends on the dog. Rudy and my lab mix could probably happily eat the same thing every day and be just as eager every time, but my senior girl has always been more finicky and it has only gotten worse as she has gotten older. Mine get quite a variety and I also switch up kibble formulas and flavors, and they get raw meals too. As long as there are no allergy or digestive issues, I think it can actually increase their ability to tolerate changes and more varied additions. Since I have done this over the past 10 years or so, all my dogs have seemed to have very healthy digestive systems and it is extremely rare that they have issues.

[Feisty49]

Every once in a while, Annie goes into a don't-want-breakfast mode. She won't even approach the bowl and then, just as I'm getting ready for our first walk of the day, she'll eat a few mouthfuls. On our return, she might eat another mouthful or two and then I pick it up. Of course by supper, she's starving. This behavior lasts four or five days and she returns to loving her b'fast.

[Guest SueG201]

i switch up the food every few months, they do get bored with food. I would not to eat the same thing every night, so I figure my dogs don't want to either.l I switch between Fromm and Natures Domain. I no longer have a greyhound, I lost my last grey to old age 4 months ago, but I still have two 8 yr old whippets that get picky. I really miss having a greyhound after having them for 20 yrs, but for now I can only handle smaller dogs due to a elbow injury that will not allow me to lift up a greyhound into the car

[duncan41]

I don't disagree with anything that has been posted but would like to offer some food for thought - pun intended.

 

1. Had one dog turn up her nose to a previously loved food only to have it recalled shortly thereafter. Stale or tainted, there was "something" wrong with the food.

2. In case of a recall, natural disaster or another reason that would interrupt the supply chain, having a #2 and even a #3 choice will save time, money and distress for the dog and owner.

3. Combining two or three different foods in various proportions can provide interest and hold off boredom.

4. And my favorite; would you be satisfied with eating the same food every day for the rest of your life?

[Guest sirsmom]

I agree with the above poster. I think if a dog doesn't eat a certain food, its for a reason; doesn't taste good to him, is off or he has a tummy ache. If its a bland script food, adding some cheese or other enticements would be necessary. Dogs should enjoy their food and eat with gusto. They do not challenge their humans like a toddler; they're dogs.

[Guest KsFrets]

We went through this several years ago. I can't even remember who told us this, but someone said ad yogurt to their food. So we started slapping a spoonful of yogurt on top of their food every meal. They dove right in the first time, and still do every day, every meal since, and it's been several years, and the same food.

[Guest Giselle]

 

2. In case of a recall, natural disaster or another reason that would interrupt the supply chain, having a #2 and even a #3 choice will save time, money and distress for the dog and owner.

Yup. That's exactly why I just started to rotate around. After moving cross-country, I realized that some things need to change and sometimes it'll happen out of my control. So, I might as well explore & see what my dog can tolerate so that I have options. There have been times when money gets tight and I need to switch for a month or when my car can't make it out to the store in the snowy weather, so we make do. I never realized how useful it was to have multiple kibble options before, but I really do think it's useful now. Flexibility = survival, right? It's been the name of Nature's game since the dawn of time!

[Guest k9soul]

I agree too that sometimes it can be a learned thing. They ate one time and got sick later and they don't want to eat that food anymore. Or it tasted badly once and is unappetizing to them afterwards. I was giving my girl Tasha her medications in liverwurst for a good while, but one day she decided to chew it more and bit into a bitter pill. She has refused ANY liverwurst ever since. She turns her head away if I offer a bit on my finger. Before she loved the stuff. But after that experience with the pill it became "poison" to her.

[JJNg]

My dogs are all chow hounds and I haven't had any simply get tired of a food for no reason. One other thing to consider... How is Ernie's weight? Has he gained weight in the 4 months you've had him? Some greyhounds will be less interested in their food if they get a little heavy.

[Guest greybookends]

Every dog is different. What applies to one will not necessarily work for another. Ginny can be a problem sometimes but if I just leave her be she will eat and if not, I pick up her food and the next day she'll eat it. I feed raw once a day. Bill was the exception to every rule I ever encountered and tried. For 8 years it was a daily battle of wills. He usually won. I think he sometimes felt sorry for me and let me have a small victory just to encourage me a little. I tried the wait him out and eventually he'll get hungry and eat routine, however I am willing to take that just so far. When it became unhealthy I blinked and gave in. With Bill in was a battle of wills and he was made of better stuff then me. I win with every other dog I have ever loved but Bill was the clear winner when he was here. Hopefully your solution is much simpler.

[GreyhoundGirl]

Mason loved his Pro Plan and I loved it as well. We house sat and they had different food and suddenly his wasn't good enough. I changed foods and now I'm kicking myself because I haven't found one he has done as well with. I'm thinking of trying Pro Plan again. I'm feeding Fromm's now and he loves it but I don't love his poops.