What's the deal with my 12 week old GSD. He's very active and happy. Good health with good stools.

He's the most pickyest eater I've ever seen! The breeder feed him hamburger and IAMS. I now only feed it IAMS, but he rarely eats. I'm trying to get him to only eat the IAMS.

It looks like he's losing weight. He's very thin at 26 lbs.

Ed says that's not too thin. THat maybe the case but he never eats! He only wants to play. When we feed him in the crate, he'll just doze off.

I think he may have eaten 1 cup of IAMS kibble in the last two days.

Today I caught him eating shit! He was scolded for this, but I don't think it's the culprit to the eating problem.

He is rarely out of our sight. I have never seen him eat crap before. When we are gone, he goes in a dog run. WHen we return, his stools are everywhere. So we know he's not eating it when we're gone.

Will the dog eventually start eating more often? Is this a common trait in picky dogs? They will obviously not starve themselves, but I'm afraid by me waiting for him to eat, I'm sacrificing his health.

Any suggestions without telling me to put him on a all natural diet($).

I thought about mixing some soft food with the kibble and weaning him off of that.

OK, I know you said not to tell you to put the pup on an all natural diet but that's the best for the pup and not any more expensive than regular dog food in the long run.............BUT, if you really don't want to do the raw diet then at least get that puppy off of Iams. It is one of the worst kibbles out there!!!

Try Canidae, Wellness, Innova, Flint River Ranch or Eagle Holistic if you MUST feed commercial dog food.

I wish you would get the book Ed sells on his site http://www.leerburg.com/935.htm

You may change your mind about the natural diet and your pup will benefit GREATLY from it.

just my 2 cents!! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

Great post Cindy.. I second everything she said..
If you are insistant on keeping your pup on kibble .. use one of the brands Cindy recommended..but also add some raw ground hamburger or raw ground turkey to his meal daily.
Also important is Vit. E, Vit. C and Kelp.

I appreciate the responses and agree totally.

Let me be totally frank, the ONLY reason for me not puting the dog on an all-natural diet is money and time.

Now I know most would say ,"if you don't have time to mix and make the natural diet, then you probably don't have time for a dog."

I know I'll hear that one. Admit it, giving your dog a scoop of kibble is the easy way out.

Being a working career orientated profesional in Oregon, it's obvious to see the benefits to an all natural diet as opposed to commercial food.

I know that's what I should be feeding my pup, but I know the diet must be expensive.

If you both can prove to me that the costs are comparble, then you've sold another dog lover to the all-natural diet. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

Jinx,

I wouldn't worry too much about your dog - mine was just the same when he was a puppy. Food is the last thing on his mind. It got so bad that I would sit on the floor in the kitchen while he ate as if I moved he would just follow me.

My dog is now 41/2 years old and is solid muscle - no fat whatsoever. He is lean but I like him this way. To this day I doubt if he has ever cleared his bowl in one go.

I feed him a premium kibble but supplemented with frozen tripe, canned tuna, canned mackerel and he even likes corned beef. He gets left overs mixed in when we have a roast dinner.

Crap eating is quite common in puppies - mine did the same and then would try and give me a kiss Mine also ate gravel from our garden.
It is a phase they grow out of. I found the only way to stop the poop eating is to clear it up straight away.

We went on holiday to a cottage by the sea last year and took our dog. I took all his usual food but I doubt if he ate more than 2 meals the whole time we were there! I think he existed on Bonios given to him in the pub! Routine is very important to my dog and he hates change. He hardly went to the toilet while we are away as he likes to go on grass but there was nowhere available <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

I have owned several dogs and until you have a picky eater you don't realise what a pain it can be! Sometimes I think I've cracked it with something he likes but very soon we are back to square one.

The thing is - the dog will eat when it's hungry.
No domestic dog will starve to death when there is always food available <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

I know people will say - give the puppy his food and if he doesn't eat it in say 10 minutes- pick it up. Well that certainly didn't work with my boy - he still wouldn't eat the next time or the time after. Now his food is left down all the time and he eats when he decides to. Sometimes it can be 6 o'clock at night sometimes he'll get to it by about 10o'clock.

My other dog - a Gt Dane Mix is a dream to feed - you just put the bowl down and it's gone!! Heaven.

Gwen

For what it's worth, I have been feeding Innova puppy kibble for six weeks now. I'm very careful on how much I feed to avoid excess weight, but this 13 week old pup gobbles it down.
Since it is a complete diet, I don't supplement -just give him training treats. He is 30 lbs and as strong as a bull. He looks a little thin, but I think that's normal for puppies, e.g., I can clearly feel his ribs and backbone, etc.

He has had no problems - has firm stools, no allergic reactions that I know of, etc. He has enough energy to light up the city of St. Louis.

Disclaimer: I, nor any of my family have any financial interest in the company that makes Innova dog food.

Doyle

i just startted feeding an allnatural diet and i love it. i feed the cheapest chicken parts i can find .33 cents a pound one egg a day at .50 cents adozen one piece of jack mackrel ,theres usually 3 or4 pieces in a can at .68 cents a can. i buy my alfalfa at the feed store in 50# bags and put a couple pelletsin there feed or you can buy rabbit pellets at walmart just make sure it only has alfalfa in it. i get all the other stuff at walmart. it takes about 20 minutes to prepare and feed 25 dogs. you should be able to feed a pup for under 10.00 a week, and your dog will love you to death for it.mine sure do .my dogs you use to love to play haha you can not catch me! now i can not beat them off with a club . just kidding about beating the dogs part. you can always try it for a couple weeks and go back dog if you do not like it.

Dogs like meat and I bet your puppy would eat if you presented him with some! Have you tried giving him a chicken neck or back? Puppies need the satisfaction of chewing something and something chewy, gristly,boney and tasty can stimulate their appetite wonderfully.

Yes, the puppy loves meat! So why don't I give him any?........$.

I'm just ignorant to the all natural/supplemental diet.

The breeder, fed his pups with IAMS kibble and lean hamburger. Naturally, the puppy wouldn't eat the IAMS by itself.

He will eat when I mix the hamburger in it or other varieties of meat, but he will just pick out the good parts and leave the rest.

By adding supplements to his meals, how do I know how much to add? i.e..hamburger,chicken....

My 4 1/2 week old pup started eating his own feces too. The vet said reasons why dogs eat their own feces could be anything from a lack of vitiams to being emmick (spelling) which is a lower blood count. I got some forbid from the vet and it appears to be working. The vet told me a few days of using forbid should solve the fece eating problem. I also got some supplements too.