Quick Question, Dry Kibble Only

[cleptogrey]

the greyhounds are the only dogs that i have owned whose food i soak. my salukis & terriers- they all ate dry kibble. my salukis were such picky eaters that when i tried a kibble mixture they sucked the good stuff off the kibble and spat it out! ever since i've been of the feeding school of hard knocks, well...until now.

 

now getting to my question. felix, whose diet was changed drastically when he was diagnosed w/ pancretitis has been eating a low fat kibble and might expensive canned ID low fat food and rice or pasta, yams, potato to keep up his weight. well, he's not eating the mixture. is it the heat? duh, our house is air-conditioned, he's not out that much to feel it. last night after nosing his food for 2 days i finally put out a dry bowl of kibble and he devoured it! this morning he's eh...

 

i do sorta remember my adoption rep. telling me to always soak the kibble- to avoid bloat. is this a tried true fact?

 

also, i took him off of meloxicam since one of the side effects can be loss of appetite. i thought the metacam/meloxicam could have been the culprit. as to doing something about his arthritic lower back i figure that out once he starts chowing down again. i keep my dogs on the thinner side, he's 29.5" at the shoulders and was weighing in around 75# tops. he does look like 72-3 # right now. that low fat kibble makes it difficult to maintain weight.

[JAJ2010]

I have never heard about wet kibble preventing bloat. Sounds like one of those old wives tails?

 

I say feed him whatever he wants (within reason) because of his dietary restrictions.

 

Not sure what restrictions, but maybe try a tiny bit of green tripe? Tuna?

 

Hope he eats better soon!

[Time4ANap]

When Trolley stays with us she only eats dry kibble. I made the mistake of putting water on it the first time and she walked away. As I found out, she will only eat it dry. She's never had any issue from doing so.

[greysmom]

Soaking the kibble beforehand is supposed to "pre-expand" the nuggets, so they don't swell once they are in the stomach. But it's not expanding food that causes bloat. Excess gas is what drives a bloat incident.

 

I put water on my dog's food because she's a *really* fast eater. When she's eating dry kibble, it gets stuck and she chokes. The water helps it go down easier and she doesn't end up coughing her food all over the floor. Lots and lots of people feed dry kibble only with absolutely no problems, so I say, whatever works for your dog, given any medical restrictions, is what you should feed.

[cleptogrey]

thanks, dry it will be....i am always careful not to run them after they eat. btw, the dogs i know who had bloat were danes and it was just unfortunate situations, stress, eating, stress, unusual circumstances. if anything felix will keep his pearly whites even whiter!

[3greytjoys]

In my experiences, aside from bloat possibilities, I still would not feed dry kibble. We've had scary emergency hospital visits for hounds choking on kibble.

The most horrific experience was a dog whose body became paralyzed while choking on kibble, which eventually lead to death by euthanasia.

 

Seems a lot of dogs don't care for "add-in" foods to their kibble meals; simply moistening plain kibble with a little water can help them eat more safely.

[Fruitycake]

I also add water just to slow down our dogs. It doesn't even soak for long - it is just that it makes it slippery and and he chases it around the dish instead of 3 gulps and he's done...except for the horking it onto the floor to eat again. He doesn't hork it up anymore. Also, the smaller dog, who gets about a third of the grey's portion size, is done slower because she gets closer to soup and she is no longer able to help him clean up his 'horked' food.

[Hubcitypam]

20 years and hundred + dogs passing through and no one has ever done more than hark up pieces of too quickly consumed kibble. When Poodle had to take insulin I started mixing in a bit of canned to make sure he'd eat and have just stuck with it. Only time I ever added liquid was broth for Cody who was hard to get to est.

[greyhoundlady]

I have never had a problem with any of mine eating dry. Once in a rare moment a hork might take place, but it is then scoffed up. I remember reading that if you wanted to test the expansion of the kibble, put a few in a bowl with water and see what happens. I haven't noticed a big expansion in the kibble I use, and mine never appreciated soggy kibble. Some dogs prefer it as it is soft for them to eat. I can't see either way being a problem, if they like it a certain way.

 

Then, of course, you have the picky eater - either created (by their keeper) or by their own greyhound mystery persona. I have been known to entice dry kibble eating with canned food mixed in, or other desirable ingredients.

Edited June 2, 2016 by greyhoundlady

[GeorgeofNE]

There is no reason not to feed dry kibble. I just put a little warm water in and feed it immediately. I don't soak it. Why? Well, that's what my dad did! No real reason. I bet Buck would eat it dry, wet, or anywhere in between!

[cleptogrey]

Thanks for the input, basically I never did anything aside from some water and add in carbs. I temporarily cut out his metacam and will try it at the lowest effective dose. Basically if he eats dry biscuits,what's the difference?

[Banjoman]

When Chancey came to me the adoption lady/racing trainer said that she soaked her dogs' kibble so that they digested it quicker and it didn't lie in their stomachs for when they raced.