Anything I can add to a dogs food, that won't make her sick, or "messy"?

Question

I adopted a 2 year old australian shepherd about 3 weeks ago. I kept her on the same food as her original owner was feeding her, and she rarely will eat it now.
The only way i can get her to eat a relatively good amount is by adding human food to it, which i would prefer not to do.
I know they sell the gravy for dogs, but, is there anything that i can do to get her to actually eat her food plain?

Thanks... I've tried baby food, she licked it all off, but left the food, lol!

ive tried the water.. she let it sit there till it got sticky and gross, so i dumped it.

I tried the wet food, she hates it.
With as many years as ive own dogs, i have never seen a dog not enjoy wet food?

Anyways, I guess we will just keep trying.
I dont want her to start losin too much weight though!

Forgot to add... Australian shepherds aren't "from" Aulstralia. So, that may be why :)
Shes not a working dog, just a hyper pet :o) I have had dogs for years, and rarely have any problems.
I guess I will just wait it out.
I worry too much

Answer 1

this is pretty normal. i ended up just leaving the food out and eventually my dog would eat it...then i just got a feeder that lets her eat when and how much she wants to. i can do this because she DOESN'T overeat. not all dogs can you do this with. but she just wasn't into "meal times"

try adding some warm water.

also you could get some packets of wet dog food and add a little of that in when you feed her.

good luck

Answer 2

She is probably still getting used to her new surroundings and may have a slightly unsettled stomach. If adding something tasty (perhaps a little dribble from a can of tuna) gets her to eat, you might consider continuing to add this little treat and slowly phase it out as she gets used to her new home. If her stomach is unsettled and she is having diarrhea, try adding a spoonful of plain yogurt or a spoonful of canned pumpkin (not the sugary pie filling).

When you decide to cut out the human food treats, she might not eat for a day, but she won't starve herself forever. Put out the breakfast dish for 15 minutes, if she doesn't eat, then take the dish away and don't offer her any more food until dinner time. The time limit will teach her to eat what is offered to her in her dish. By dinner time she should be hungry enough to go for the plain (or watered) kibble.

Answer 3

Odd how these Australian Shepherds seem so much more popular in USA and few people in Australia have heard of them..

But to the question of feeding the dog

If the dog is not a working dog, ie it is just a pet

it will need very little food to stay healthy.
Dogs need raw bones to chew to keep their teeth and jaws strong and healthy and also for the calcium they need. Stick lamb shanks or beef shanks not little bones like chicken bones.

the harder a dog is working the more food it will need, just like people!

Many of the kennels I have known add rice to the dogs food to add bulk to the food without fattening the dog.

Fresh meat and bones is the food dogs in the wild eat so it is a reasonable food to base their diet on when they are domesticated.

Answer 4

I have used baby food. Any of the meat flavors. I stirred it in so she couldn't just lick it off the top.