One question, if I add yummy smelly stuff to his food, he eats almost all of it now, but today we had little time, so I just put some water on it to make the food smell a bit, and he wouldn't touch it, is he food wise?
When doing a bit of training while walking with the kids, he seemed to crowd me quite a bit, his head was in my knee, and he had his body touching mine, it was a bit of a pain walking like that in the snow, but bumping him lightly to move him over only had him crowding me more? I had him do a sit wait, which he did but than went straight back to the knee, this is not new, he does do it a few times on our walks, but this was the first time he has done it while I pulled the kids in their sled..what do you make of that?
Maybe he is trying to tell me and 8 and 9 year old should be pulling me lol!

Mara, he has in the time he has been here, puked up bile, I am not sure why, I was assuming it was the pigs ears, it has only happened maybe 3 times in the time we have had him, and it has never been more than once in a week or two. Its always a small amount, maybe a 1/4 of a cup, and after that he seems fine. His poo is a bit wetter this week, but that can be due to the treats maybe?

I just read this thread. I am with Mara. This dog needs a solid vet exam, complete with a candid discussion about how dogs tolerate and display (or NOT DISPLAY) pain. IMHO, many of your dog's problems could be related to broken teeth. You can withhold food and change foods, and starve him into eating, but the act of eating itself can still be miserable. He might force himself to eat, but he will still eat only when he has to, and he may make himself sick in the process.

Tooth pain can prevent a dog from acting normally. It can cause a dog to lay around more than usual, and to avoid activity that the dog might usually find enjoyable. You might be surprised at how different a dog can act when he is pain free.

in the GSD world, prey drive does not always equate to chasing other animals. Some GSDs have very strong prey drive but are desensitized to small animals. Usable prey drive in a GSD is toy drive; his willingness to chase a ball, and his desire to posess specific objects.

All JMO.

We are def going to have a full exam from the vet, most importantly for the teeth, I will add more wet food than dry for now, and see if he can put on some weight, he did very well today, and I have been soaking his food in water to soften it also, I will keep you updated, all of your opnions are valued! Does anyone have a good recipe that I could cook up to add to his food? Make it more appealing? Our options out here is just canned dog food, and I honestly don't like feeding him that, I would be open to buying him beef or cooking up some chicken breast, maybe boil it and add the juice and meat to his food? I don't keep his food away, just offer it again a few hours after

We passed by geese, a barking dog, a rabbit and he stuck with me the whole time, all while dragging the line! Since he has had the harness on he has been doing 90% better, and is very much enjoying the soft liver treats he gets during marker training he has learned yuck, leave it, over here and stay settle, all in short bursts this past week, and all enjoyed by the both of us!

Hi Becky,

Can you get a good dehydrated food that mixes up with water to a mush? I like Honest Kitchen http://www.thehonestkitchen.com - you can mail order it. Might be easier on his broken teeth?

You could also try soaking the kibble to soften it and stirring in a little cooked ground beef or scrambled egg. A can of salmon or mackerel in water (well drained and rinsed to get rid of the salt) mixed with half a cup of vegetables (grated carrot or zucchini, thawed frozen beans or peas) is another of my go-to mushy foods for picky eaters with tooth problems. GSDs are notorious for sensitive stomachs - many cannot tolerate grains - so don't overwhelm him with too many different foods at once, though.

I second previous posts about getting a thorough vet exam, especially for those teeth. I have fostered a couple of senior dogs with broken and infected teeth who acted miserable and were reluctant to eat - getting their teeth fixed transformed them. It sounds like he is perking up, which is great, but dogs are good at hiding chronic pain, especially if it has been part of their lives for a long time.

He is a lucky dog to have found you.

Sarah

Should the ground beef be drained? Or is the fat okay for him to have? I boiled a chicken breast and shredded it and added a cup of the water/broth and a tsp of the chicken to his food, let it soak for 10 min, and it was a hit, he ate every last bite!
We are lucky to have him! He is such a pleasure to walk with, he is a behaved boy in the house and he is really sweet to the kids!

The only down side to making his food to tasty is he'll get used to it and then you get "food wise" as you commented.

If you can make those choices with the food then no problem.

That can also add a bit of variety.

I think he is already a bit food wise, as he would rather starve a day than eat only kibble, his weight the day we got him was 70lbs, and you could see his ribs and spine, so I don't mind making it taste good, he had a rough enough life! Now you can't see his ribs, but you can still clearly feel them, so I would like to pack a few pounds on him, average size I read online should be 80+? Or am I wrong?
Tho in the end, its no bother to add a tsp of something and keep the kibble a bit soft. We are approaching bear season right away, so I need this boy healthy and happy, as marker training won't be done outside anymore once May comes around!

Duane Hull, I am not sure if he has a prey drive or not, I was told before receiving him that he was a squirrel/ cat chaser and to never have him off leash without a remote collar.. I have the dogtra but have yet to put it on, as he has seen other dogs and made no move towards them, ignores the squirrels/ arctic hares/whiskey jacks that are in our yard all day, and comes to my side on his own when cars or people are around. I have had him retrieve a ball a few times, but he does not get excited with it, and he ignores the kids soccer ball when they are kicking it around..
I do not mind if he does not want to chase/play like that, he seems to prefer being petted and just being with us, and running with the kids, I always supervise, and he never bumps them or mouths them, just runs beside them wagging his tail, I am big time into supervision, as where we are is basically the backyard of wildlife, with no fence, so I am the one standing there with the gun and my ears and eyes open..
With all of you suggestions, he has become a new dog, and I can see him living his years here happy and soon to be healthy! All suggestions will be tried, all opinions taken as words of the wise, I want this boy to be my happy wonderful companion, no matter what it takes!

I would eliminate teeth problems before I played with making food more appealing. Finding something he will eat may make life miserable for him if eating is painful. Just me.

You may find that he has more drive after he is pain free (if that is the problem).