Thanks, Connie. You have been a Godsend in my new experience.

When I fed her this am, I just ignored her and let her go at it.

Even tho I am home most days, my work involves field work a couple of days a week. I take her with me in the car. She loves car rides. While traveling, I sometimes pick up a sandwaich for lunch and eat it in the car (I hate all the fast food places). I had been working on eating first and then feeding her (as per Ed's ebook) and this week it paid off. I ate my sandwich and she laid quietly in her seat. When I was finished I saved her a little treat from the sandwich and fed her.

When I got her, the guy she came from told me she had a real bad problem of begging when you eat and he couldn't get her to stop. Well, with Ed's ebooks, and all this helpful information on the web site, I did.

Day Six.

Everything is going great. No poop problems, no throw up problems, no nothing. Just great eating for my dog.

Should I go ahead and start the supplements, now?

If so, I will start her on them tomorrow and then close this thread.

Thanks.

 Quote: nora ferrell

... I had been working on eating first and then feeding her (as per Ed's ebook) and this week it paid off. I ate my sandwich and she laid quietly in her seat. When I was finished I saved her a little treat from the sandwich and fed her.

When I got her, the guy she came from told me she had a real bad problem of begging when you eat and he couldn't get her to stop. Well, with Ed's ebooks, and all this helpful information on the web site, I did.

'Zackly. Begging is done because someone "trained" the dog to do it (by paying off in food when the dog begged).

The dog didn't have a begging problem. The guy she came from had a problem.

 Quote: Nora Ferrell

Should I go ahead and start the supplements, now?

If so, I will start her on them tomorrow and then close this thread.

Yes!


I would begin 1/2 dose of the fish oil, working up to the full dose of ... I forget now.... was it half of a 1-gram gelcap? (the liquid is easier, btw) .... over a couple of days.

Fish oil and vitamin E is an exception to the one-addition-at-a-time rule because she needs the E to process the fish oil (and protect the Omega 3 fatty acids).

Then you will want to start the organ meat very slowly, ultimately making it 5% to 10% of the diet.

Then you might expand the protein sources with a little of another meat and/or fish (and just a little to start if you use, say, canned mackerel or salmon, because while it's a very good source and even has nice soft bones in it, a lot at once can trigger diarrhea).

Then you might begin to give a little plain unsweetened live-culture yogurt for the probiotics..... and maybe a little of the baby food vegetables I think we talked about (cheap for such a small dog; not cheap for big breeds ).

Good job. You have done a very good thing for this dog's health (including oral health) for life, IMO.

Thank you, Connie.

Yes, it was 1/2 capsule of the fish oil and about 1/4 of the vit E.

Tonight, after she ate, she is lying quietly at my feet. No chewing on chews, no playing with toys, she seems completely contented to lie quietly. This is the first time she has been quiet like this. She is usually still wanting to play. And I think it is all due to the better quality food. It is just unbelievable how much she has changed in the past week. Calmer and everything. I don't know if that is all attributable to the food or not, but she sure is nice, now.

My boxer that died a few years ago from old age had no teeth. Many of them had been pulled. The last few years of her life, I was having them cleaned and treated every three months. She was on Purina Dog Chow all her 12 years. (That is until, she couldn't eat anymore.) I am certain the teeth problems were from the dog chow. So if anyone reading this thinks that kibble is good for your dog, get in touch with me and I will tell you how expensive it was to take care of her teeth. Just her teeth and how sick she was from them.

Are sardines and tuna OK?

I already got the baby food (green beans and butternut squash to start), and I will get the yogurt this week.

Thanks, again.


ps

Bill O'Reilly is on in my time zone and has an excellent segment on positive dog training. Worth the watch if he comes on out there.

 Quote: nora ferrell

.... if anyone reading this thinks that kibble is good for your dog, get in touch with me ... Are sardines and tuna OK?

Kibble "cleans off plaque" about as well as crunchy crackers do for humans. You are absolutely correct.

Tuna (especially albacore) is not so hot; it's loaded with salt, and even the no-salt-added versions are still one of the highest mercury-containing fish of all. (It's no safer for humans than for the dog.)

Canned sardines and salmon are much better choices. Both are much lower in heavy metals. Wild salmon is far better than farmed (and, in fact, I will not buy farmed fish), and canned is wild.

I was already to stop this thread.

Then, this morning my pup didn't eat.

Anything to worry about?

She just chewed a minute or two and then didn't want to eat, although she did gather her toy and chewie from her crate and put them with her chicken wing. (She also snagged a dirty sock and underwear for the pile, why do they get the underwear?)

After about 30 minutes, I took it up and put it back in the fridge.

No worry unless she still doesn't eat tonight. Is she happy, happy, active?

Socks and underwear are like kleenex and TP -- they want the most scented items -- items worn close to sweat, etc.

Yes,she is still happy and active. Playful with her toys and chews, also.

As I think about it, after she was eating, she had to take a potty break (I've finally learned her look, she just stops what ever she is doing and stares intently at me). Took her out to potty and when she came back, she chewed just a minute or two and that was it. She also had to poop again. Maybe this got her rhythm wrong or something. We are in the middle of another rain/sleet storm so she was in and out real quick this am and kept having to go out. I took an umbrella for her and she tried to get under it with me but it's still difficult to shield the rain.

Maybe that is all it was.

Thanks for any advice.

Yes, I would just watch for appetite next meal, no lethargy, and food going in and out regularly.