how bad is it to keep changing dog foods?

[Starhouse]

I have an extremely picky 2yo female Ridgeback. I have to coach her through her breakfast and dinner every day. She’s in good weight but she doesn’t seem to like any food we buy her for more than two weeks. In the morning, she’ll look at the food, maybe sniff it, then walk away and pick at it through the day. This is normally not a problem because she’s our only dog, so she just can graze as the day goes on, but lately we’ve been dog sitting a 6yo Lab for a friend a few times a month and he is a canine vacuum. Anything left on the ground gets hoovered up instantly, and he does NOT need the extra calories!!

We’ve tried Blue Buffalo, Taste of the Wild, and Blue Seal (local dog food - we’re in New England). She likes each new food for the first week or two, and will eat it when I put it down for her, but once she gets used to it, she just doesn’t seem excited to eat any of the food we’ve tried! She also gets a can of wet food per day; currently we’re feeding Merrick and she’s the same with that even though we switch between all the different varieties of that food. She does occasionally get table scraps but not regularly enough that she’s relying on that for her dinner and not her dog food.

She is an extremely active dog and gets two walks a day, sometimes bike rides in place of the walk and those are 4+ miles at a good pace. She also goes out on 2+ hour trail rides with me a couple times a week. I am a worry wart so I just want to make sure she’s getting enough nutrition. I’ve asked my vet and she was not a big help at all. My dog has been like this since she was a puppy and my vet kept saying, “she’ll grow out of it” but she never did.

I’ve found that I can get her more interested in eating if I switch her dry food every other bag or so (a large bag lasts about a month). Is this terrible for her? We’ve never had tummy problems with her before but I’ve heard that dogs do best when there is stability in her diet.

Here’s a photo of her. We just love her to pieces and I want to make sure she’s got the best nutrition.

She has her annual vaccination appt coming up soon so I will once again ask my vet, or maybe I should get in touch with a nutritionist?

[Alagirl]

hmm

when we had our Dalmatian new DH had her spoiled so rotten she would not touch dog food. Period.
Then we had to kennel her at his sister’s house for a while and she had two lab pups. And given the nature of her lack of relationship with pets, there was no babying involved there. The dog returned reformed in her eating habits.

I am inclined to suggest to just take up the food after 15 or so minutes or when she walks away from it (as long as Hoover is in the picture) and then put it back out for the evening meal if you feed twice a day.

I know it’s old fashioned advice, but in all the old books you read it’s good to have a fast day for the dogs each week. While I never did that I do let all my animals look at empty bowls at times. It keeps them more interested in food and less picky.
That means the cats don’t get supper one night, especially when they picked around at the late breakfast, so no, they are not suffering.

I think she has you trained to spoon feed her! :winkgrin:

[Bluey]

[QUOTE=Alagirl;6503451]
hmm

when we had our Dalmatian new DH had her spoiled so rotten she would not touch dog food. Period.
Then we had to kennel her at his sister’s house for a while and she had two lab pups. And given the nature of her lack of relationship with pets, there was no babying involved there. The dog returned reformed in her eating habits.

I am inclined to suggest to just take up the food after 15 or so minutes or when she walks away from it (as long as Hoover is in the picture) and then put it back out for the evening meal if you feed twice a day.

I know it’s old fashioned advice, but in all the old books you read it’s good to have a fast day for the dogs each week. While I never did that I do let all my animals look at empty bowls at times. It keeps them more interested in food and less picky.
That means the cats don’t get supper one night, especially when they picked around at the late breakfast, so no, they are not suffering.

I think she has you trained to spoon feed her! :winkgrin:[/QUOTE]

What she said.

Now, one of our dog club members is a small animal vet and recommends owners of dogs without special nutritional needs buy a different kind of dog food every bag.
The dogs get used to eat whatever is served.
If one kind is not quite right for that dog, maybe the next one will have what the other was lacking, a way to even the odds.

Many that have used that system have healthy dogs, that compete very well and don’t have digestive problems when food changes or are picky.
Worked well for us.

[Guin]

I don’t think there’s anything wrong with switching foods on a regular basis. Face it, they’re dogs. Left to their own devices, they’d eat dead squirrels.

[SquishTheBunny]

I had a picky one, and had to do the same. She never had any GI issues with switching it up, and she also was fed some foods with grains. I changed it up every 2 weeks to keep her appetite up. She enjoyed the change.

I dont think my lab even tastes what she eats. It gone before she has had a chance to chew, so she stays on the same food!

[Starhouse]

[QUOTE=Guin;6503522]
I don’t think there’s anything wrong with switching foods on a regular basis. Face it, they’re dogs. Left to their own devices, they’d eat dead squirrels.[/QUOTE]

Haha - she really, REALLY likes Squirrel…and baby bunny . Too bad I can’t find either of those as main ingredients! ha.

[Simkie]

While I’ve never had this issue in my Ridgebacks, I have certainly heard this same story from MANY other people with the breed. They often manage it by changing up the food with frequency. No harm in it.

Mine have always been excellent eaters. Not sure if I’ve just gotten lucky or if the strategy of only giving them so long to eat and picking up whatever remains has led to dogs that eat. Perhaps a little of both.

[Starhouse]

[QUOTE=SquishTheBunny;6503550]
I had a picky one, and had to do the same. She never had any GI issues with switching it up, and she also was fed some foods with grains. I changed it up every 2 weeks to keep her appetite up. She enjoyed the change.

I dont think my lab even tastes what she eats. It gone before she has had a chance to chew, so she stays on the same food![/QUOTE]

Ok, that’s great to hear. I may just start buying smaller bags (20lbs ish) and switch every bag with a small transition. So my next question is what high-quality foods you all recommend that have high fat content. Right now she’s on Taste of the Wild High Prairie 18% fat/32% protein and she’s doing well on a minimal amount of that – probably 1.5 cups a day. I wouldn’t want to go any lower in fat and not much lower in protein.

[Starhouse]

[QUOTE=Simkie;6503590]
While I’ve never had this issue in my Ridgebacks, I have certainly heard this same story from MANY other people with the breed. They often manage it by changing up the food with frequency. No harm in it.

Mine have always been excellent eaters. Not sure if I’ve just gotten lucky or if the strategy of only giving them so long to eat and picking up whatever remains has led to dogs that eat. Perhaps a little of both.[/QUOTE]

And I think that’s why I’m still shocked she isn’t a hoover, too. The breeder warned us that they will eat anything in sight and they get very fat if not managed well so all this time I was waiting for the food hog to come out of her shell. She’s picky with everything, including treats. I can’t tell you how many packages of snubbed cookies I’ve given away to friends with dogs because she turned her nose up at them. She loves those chicken strip treats the best, you know, the ones from China that were killing dogs? :no: As soon as I heard about that, I threw the rest out but still haven’t found anything she likes as much.

[vtdobes]

I feed both Acana and Orijen…both very excellent foods and should be readily available to you in New England.

I am envious that you only feed 1.5 cups a day. My 18 month old male Dobe eats 5 cups of Orijen a day…and my Dobe bitch gets 3.5. Adds up!!! And both are piglets…hoover everything up without even tasting!

[Starhouse]

[QUOTE=vtdobes;6503615]
I feed both Acana and Orijen…both very excellent foods and should be readily available to you in New England.

I am envious that you only feed 1.5 cups a day. My 18 month old male Dobe eats 5 cups of Orijen a day…and my Dobe bitch gets 3.5. Adds up!!! And both are piglets…hoover everything up without even tasting![/QUOTE]

I would love to feed more…and she has access to a full bowl 24/7 if we’re not dog sitting, but just based on what I have to put back in the bowl at the end of the day to fill it back up, she can’t be eating more than 2 cups at the very most each day. She also gets the can of wet food, though, and that is typically gone completely by morning. I do know she gets up in the middle of the night and likes to snack :lol::lol: so even if it’s not all gone by the time I go to bed, it is usually gone by morning.

[bdj]

I’m in agreement with Alagirl and Bluey - I usually buy a different brand/formula/main protein with every new bag (usually about once a month). I do always buy grain-free, but otherwise, I go for “consistently inconsistent”. As a result, my girls are fine with just about anything I give them, and I don’t have to worry about our “regular brand” being unavailable if I run out.

As long as your dog is accustomed to this, and they don’t have any specific need/reason to be on another formula, they should be fine.

I agree with Alagirl about taking uneaten food up after 15 minutes, too - what’s that saying? “Hunger is the greatest seasoning” or something like that?
Plus, I think you find out that much quicker if they’re not 100% and their appetite is off.

[Alagirl]

the only think I would have to add is that changing foods often can make it difficult to diagnose skin conditions caused by the food, since most take a week to manifest themselves.

But if you don’t have an issue with that, switch away.

[wendy]

most of the doggy nutritionists recommend switching brands often, to improve the nutritional content of the diet.
-the idea is that it’s impossible to get everything a dog needs in the perfect proportions in one design of food. So each food is going to be imperfect in some aspect of nutrition, so if you keep feeding the same brand, day after day, eventually the dog will become malnourished in some way. So just switch it up and hopefully the various brands will be imperfect in different ways so they “cover” for each other.
Also feeding the same food day after day tends to create dogs with “sensitive stomachs” who get diarrhea if they eat anything novel. If you change the diet often this doesn’t happen- the dog’s body learns to digest anything.
Also the idea that dogs don’t “crave variety” in their diets, and don’t get bored of eating the same old day after day is clearly untrue, and most prefer to get a variety of foods.
Many people actually have two bags of food open at once, and feed one in the am and a different one in the pm, and switch brands at each purchase.
Other people “top” their foods with canned foods or table scraps or other nutritious additions.
The only real way to get a dog to eat up the same boring food day after day is to do “tough love” where the dog is given what you want the dog to eat, and gets 15 minutes to eat, and then it goes away. Most dogs under such a feeding protocol rapidly learn to eat whatever they are given because otherwise they go hungry.

If you want to create a “picky eater” do the following: offer a food. When the dog won’t eat it, take it away briefly and add something to it or change it and then re-offer it. This will train your dog to refuse food because each time he refuses it you make it better.
Or another way to create a “picky eater” is to put the food down and let the dog have all day to nibble at it. This will make your dog picky as well because the dog learns he doesn’t have to eat, there is always food available over there if he feels hungry. Letting your dog pick at food left out all day has a number of other disadvantages, so it’s best to never let a dog eat like that.

[Starhouse]

[QUOTE=Alagirl;6503779]
the only think I would have to add is that changing foods often can make it difficult to diagnose skin conditions caused by the food, since most take a week to manifest themselves.

But if you don’t have an issue with that, switch away.[/QUOTE]

Good point. So far we’ve never had an allergy issue with her (knock on wood) but in general, the breed is pretty hardy and not as susceptible to allergies as labs and other breeds are. They are at risk for bloat but her food dish is raised and she doesn’t inhale the food, so really I am not worried about that at all.

[GraceLikeRain]

[QUOTE=Starhouse;6503612]
And I think that’s why I’m still shocked she isn’t a hoover, too. The breeder warned us that they will eat anything in sight and they get very fat if not managed well so all this time I was waiting for the food hog to come out of her shell. She’s picky with everything, including treats. I can’t tell you how many packages of snubbed cookies I’ve given away to friends with dogs because she turned her nose up at them. [/QUOTE]

Are you sure you don’t own my miniature schnauzer as well :winkgrin:. The deprivation until they cave in works fine with some dogs but others truly will just.not.eat. Dexter has stayed on the same dry for about 6 weeks now but I vary the wet that I mix in and I still have to coach him through his one and only meal of the day.

If rotating works without GI consequences then it sounds like you’ve figured out what works for you.

[Starhouse]

[QUOTE=GraceLikeRain;6503981]
Are you sure you don’t own my miniature schnauzer as well :winkgrin:. The deprivation until they cave in works fine with some dogs but others truly will just.not.eat. Dexter has stayed on the same dry for about 6 weeks now but I vary the wet that I mix in and I still have to coach him through his one and only meal of the day.

If rotating works without GI consequences then it sounds like you’ve figured out what works for you.[/QUOTE]

Exactly. We’ve tried the waiting game, and the wet food literally starts growing mold…that’s how long it sits there. Then I have to throw it out! I hate throwing out dog food as much as I hate throwing out hay :lol:

I’ve also come to terms with her just not being hungry some days, and other days being more hungry than usual.

[Nezzy]

we do not have any picky eaters. i have 5 small dogs and they all eat in their crates so they all have time to eat. after dinner, any left overs are picked up. Otherwise all the other dogs will go after it.

I say pick what you want to feed the dog, when it gets hungry it will eat. If not, there is an underlying health issue. My dog had Inflammatory Bowel Disease and that was a symptom. but if your dog will eat within a few days then he/she is fine.

[Superminion]

Our JRT was the same way. She used to get wet Pedigree mixed into her food at the shelter, and when she came home I decided to wean her off it after her settling in period because it gave her the runs. The first night that I poured just dry food in the dish and released her from her down-stay she gave me a look like “This is a joke, right?” then ran the cats off their food.

We tried waiting it out, and she’d kinda, sorta pick through it throughout the day. It got to the point where she wouldn’t come when you called her for dinner, even when we switched up brands. We finally let it sit out for 10 minutes, then it got dumped back into the bin. It took about 2 days, and she got the hint. Now she chows down before her 10 minutes is up!