I need your advice. I switched Bella & Beni off puppy food by mixing it with the new food which was Natures Variety(a hollistic dog food) and they were eating the mix for about a week fine and then slowly they just didn't seem interested in eating. I would have to hand feed them to get them to eat. So I thought maybe they didn't like the new food so I am trying Natural Balance and they seemed to like it for a couple days and now they just don't seem interested at all in eating anything. I had a little puppy food left over and tried tio give it to them and they just don't want to eat this morning. It has been a struggle to get them to eat but I have been getting them to up until this morning. I feed them twice a day, once in the morning and once in the evening and some treats in between. I am sure they would eat their treats but that is not a healthy meal for them. I just want them to like eating again and I can't keep trying every dog food to see what they will eat. I am not sure if it is the dog food or something else. I did come home one day from work and the cats bowl had been knocked over and I think they ate a bunch of cat food but I don't know if that one incident would make a difference. The cat food is on a high table for the cat. I am leaving their food out for them in their bowls and they are not touching it. I don't know what happened cause they used to love eating. Any advice or help would be great.
Hmmmmm.... perplexing. I feed like you do, twice a day and they are eager and remind me if I start to forget that it is their feeding time. I switched Binks over to Blue Buffalo and he did not miss a beat. I am certain I can put carpet shavings in the bowl and they would eat it.
As for Beni and Bella, strange that they both would stop eating it. Usually if it was the food tasting bad, then they should happily accept the former food, which in this case it did not happen. Are they acting the same other than not eating? Feeling ok???
I am sure you will get some better advice than what I will give you, but here is my take on it:
Give the new food a couple of days. Specially if you think they are just being finicky. If there seems to be an apparent health issue, then I would consider switching foods or maybe a call to the vet. Switch that around, call the vet and then switch foods if they advise. I took a peek at the nutritional info on the food you feed and it appears to be a quality food.
I would suspect that Jessie or Deb or WCC would have some good insight as well. Keep us updated on the situation.
Thanks for your reply Sattie. After I posted I remebered I had a bag of Royal Canin puppy food that I had tried awhile back but didn't think the quality was as good as the Nutro Ultra puppy. I don't have anymore Nutro Ultra puppy to try again but I gave them some of the Royal Canin and they ate it. Do you think they just don't want the adult food? Maybe the puppy food tastes better. The pieces are way smaller too than the Natural Balance. Maybe they like the smaller pieces. I don't know but they have been acting normal otherwise, it is just this switch in food that has done something. I don't think they like the Natural Balance or the Natures Variety. I don't have any place nearby that sells the Blue Buffalo. The doggy health food store sells the Innovia Evo. Maybe I will get a sample (I know the lady who owns it has samples of it) and try that or should I try the Nutro Ultra adult? What do you all think?
Beni was the one who started not eating much and then it seemed Bella followed. She is my piggy and I tell you she will go around and lick stuff off the floor or eat a piece of toilet paper and other stuff so I have no idea why she wouldn't eat any kind of food.
If you can get samples of different foods or get the tiny bags, that may be a way to try some different foods to see which one they prefer. It sounds like they are being picky to me. And we want so much for our dogs to be happy that we will give in and then next thing you know, we are going crazy.
They may or may not like the adult food, but one way or another, they will need the nutrition that the adult food can give them. I would try to stick with one food, switching them around to a bunch of different foods in a short period of time could upset their tummies.
If I were you (again, my opinion), I would continue to use Natures Variety and maybe mix in a spoon full of canned dog food. (If Natures Variety offers canned food as well, use that). Say if after a week they are still not taking to it, then I would consider switching to a different food.
As for the kibble size, one thing you could try is taking the Natures Variety and break it up into smaller pieces to see if they will eat it. If they do, then it may be that they prefer smaller bites.
I hope this helps, like you stated earlier... I want my dogs to enjoy their meals!
Well, it certainly seems Sattie has you covered there! Well done Sats! In my opion I too would persist with the Nature's Variety for a week or so. But not just for the reason that changing foods can be difficult and take a while for the dog to get used to it, but also because if you allow young dogs to be picky then you will set that standard for the rest of their lives. Nightmare! Dogs will never starve themselves, and I would've thought Bella and Beni will eat when they get hungry enough.
Having said that I think perhaps I am on the stricter side of dog behaviour/training than most on here. So you might not feel you need to be aware of this problem I just voiced.
I don't think I can be of much help with the not eating situation. The only one of my pups that had a problem not wanting to eat was Bandy and I think that was because he was so small and so young. It was quite a chore for us to be sure he got enough food in him daily for several weeks... Now thank goodness he is a good eater like the rest of my guys.. The only difference with him is that I still give him 1/3 of a container of Cesar Puppy wet food along with his kibble every day. My others all eat Science Diet kibble. I have been feeding it to my chis since 1994. On the two occasions I tried them on another brand of food they were not happy about the change. My guys all stayed on Science Diet Puppy Small Bites until they were a year old and then they went on Science Diet Small Bites Adult.
Please keep us posted on your little ones.. It is so important that they eat well as they are such small but high energy doggies.... Deb
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Daisy did this when we got her off puppy food and started giving her adult food. The food was bigger and she hated that, she would not eat it. She likes small bites.
Thank you all for your advice. I emailed my breeder about the problem. She said it may not be that they don't like the food but that they are teething right now. She said to moisten the food for them for a few weeks and lessen the amount of water each week and see if that helps. She said also not hand feed them cause they will get dependent on that which I kinda knew but I didn't want them to go hungry without a meal. If that doesn't work she said to contact her and she will see what the next step to take. I have been feeding them some puppy food and they eat it and I think it is because it is so much tinier than the adult dog foods so they don't have to chew as much. I probably should have waited longer to switch then until after they were done teething but the Nutro puppy bag said feed until 8 months old.
I did not even take into account that they could be teething, much less to contact the breeder. I think you did the right thing and got some great advice.
It is recommended that you switch chihuahuas to adult food when they are 8-10 months old... that is what I did as well :D
I really would stick it out with one brand of food... dogs will not starve themselves, and will eat when they are hungry. If you switch brands to find one that your dog will eat, they will learn that they can be picky eaters and get away with it.
Royal Canin is very palatable to small dogs because the kibble is sprayed with chicken fat... smaller dogs do not have as good of a sense of taste as larger dogs, and the smell of the fat entices them to eat the food. This is why most people suggest Royal Canin for picky dogs.
I know of a few foods with tiny kibbles... Timberwolf Organics (what I use), Innova, and RC all have tiny kibble sizes.
Thanks Jessie for your advice. I do like the Royal Canin but I thought that it might have made Beni itch cause he has dry sensetive skin and I thought maybe he was allergic to an ingredient. I can't get Timberwolf Organics where i live. I wish I could cause I hear a lot of people use it and it is good. The Innovia I could do and I may try a sample. I am trying to stick it out with the Natures Variety. They ate it today but not much. Beni eats it one piece at a time. he acts like he is afraid of the bowl. He quickly grabs a piece and goes and eats it somewhere else. Takes him forever to finish. I am not having to much of a problem with Bella. Like you said I don't want to keep changing foods but I may just give the Innovia a shot. What do you think? The Natures Variety doesn't have as strong of a smell as the puppy foods did. Bella is 8 months old and Beni is almost 9 months.
I would try to stick with the Nature's Variety and see how Beni does with it, rather than switching right away. Beni could have possibly just liked the puppy food more, and he is holding out for it. Eventually he will realize that he needs to eat what you are giving him.
I used Innova with my chis a while back, and Madison did great with it. Rylie and Chloe had horrible gas and diarhhea on it, and we switched them. The ingredients are great, but certain foods just don't work for certain dogs.
Royal Canin does make a mini indoor formula which doesn't use corn, if worst comes to worst. I know it is a very palatable food for small dogs.
Also, Timberwolf Organics does ship :D It's the best food I have tried, and I have used many different foods!
Ellie eats in the same way you're describing Beni does. Takes one piece quickly and leaves the room to eat it somewhere else. I think this might actually be a small dog trait as there was a post about this particulat behaviour a while back and most members, if not all, said their Chis ate like this. It's very strange, but I wouldn't worry about it too much if I were you.
Jessie has given some good advice, and I agree with her on pretty much everything. Be persistant, I'm sure it'll work out soon. Let us know how you'er getting on in a while, wont you?
Jess & Jessie, I remember their was a thread where almost everyone said their chis ate like that and I was the only who had chis who didn't.....well I guess they joined the club. They have actually been eating pretty well for the past 2 days. Today they both ate their morning meal and evening meal but of course not right out of the bowl. It was a few pieces at a time. They seem to be enjoying their new food now so maybe they grew a liking to it now that they know thats what they have to eat when they are hungry.
Dogs are unconditional LOVE!
In my opion I too would persist with the Nature's Variety for a week or so. But not just for the reason that changing foods can be difficult and take a while for the dog to get used to it, but also because if you allow young dogs to be picky then you will set that standard for the rest of their lives. Nightmare! Dogs will never starve themselves, and I would've thought Bella and Beni will eat when they get hungry enough. 
cause I hear a lot of people use it and it is good. The Innovia I could do and I may try a sample. I am trying to stick it out with the Natures Variety. They ate it today but not much. Beni eats it one piece at a time. he acts like he is afraid of the bowl. He quickly grabs a piece and goes and eats it somewhere else. Takes him forever to finish. I am not having to much of a problem with Bella. Like you said I don't want to keep changing foods but I may just give the Innovia a shot. What do you think? The Natures Variety doesn't have as strong of a smell as the puppy foods did. Bella is 8 months old and Beni is almost 9 months.
