Is My Puppy Bored With His Food?

Question

I don't think my puppy likes his dog food anymore. He doesn't get excited when I put food in his bowl (not like he used to). Sometimes, he will only take a couple of bites and leave. This has been going on for the last week and 1/2 or so...

Then yesterday, my puppy managed to tip his water bowl over into his food. This seemed to make him happy-- he ate all his food-- as if he prefered soggy wet food to dry crunchy food.

Was he trying to give me a hint?

My friend told me that dogs can get bored with their food and I should add things to it like a raw egg (she said it's good for his coat) or pieces of bread, or cheese, etc.

Is this true? Is my Puppy bored with his food? And If so... What (people food?) can I mix in with his dog food to "spice" things up? And what food should I avoid (I know chocolate... anything else?)

Perhaps my puppy would prefer that I moisten his food? Should I add water or milk, or make brown gravy for his food or something?

What do you think?
T.

Thanks everyone for your imputs! :) With so many great answers to choose from, I am not sure which one to pick... so I am putting this question to vote.

Thanks again!
T.

Answer 1

You don't say how old your puppy is, but it is normal at a certain age for them to not eat as much, because they aren't growing as fast. They also go through growing stages, sometimes they grow fast and want to eat a lot, sometimes they're growing slow and aren't as hungry.

This is when picky eaters are made. The owner worries because puppy isn't eating as much. So they try to tempt the dog into eating by changing foods or adding things to the food or fixing special meals. Don't do it, you will only be training him that if he doesn't eat you will give him something better.

He knows how much he needs to eat. He knows when he's hungry. He won't starve himself. As long as he is otherwise healthy, and you are feeding him a quality food, don't worry if he doesn't always want to eat. It's normal. If you encourage him to eat when he's not hungry he'll likely end up overweight.

Answer 2

Sadly you are going to have to make the puppy go hungry for a while. Start over with a food you know he definitely liked at some point(a good dry kibble is best) and give a bowl in the morning, mid afternoon and evening. Each time place the bowl down and see if he is willing to eat it, wait a couple of minutes and if he does not take it away and try again about 20 minutes later. If he refuses to eat it again take it away and wait until his next meal time and try the process again. If the dog is not sick he will eventually eat, no dog will starve itself because it does not like certain foods. It took my puppy a week or so before he learned that the Blue Buffalo kibble I give him is what he is going to eat from now on but now he devours it daily :) My puppy was a gigantic picky eater...eating one food one day and wanting something else the next. Human food can be very healthy for dogs and pups so long as it is things like boiled chicken, carrots, potatoes and so on but it can get rather expensive. Many dog owners though feed their dogs a "a human food diet." and it turns out perfectly fine.

Answer 3

Yes, it is actually better if you add water to the dry food. It prevents bloating. You can add egg, yogurt, cottage cheese, canned fish, all these I put in my dog's food somtimes. But I don't put it in every night, as then they expect it and will not eat unless there is stuff added in. You can also mix canned food in with it. That is fun too.
Avoid mushrooms, onions, coffee, tea, cola, Macadamia nuts, garlic, grapes and rasins, plants, candy, ex.

Answer 4

Yes, they can get bored with their food. What I would do is leave a bowl of dry food out for him and also give him a bowl of softened food. Soak with water not milk. Milk can cause an upset tummy.

Answer 5

My dog will not eat his dry dog food anymore so I have tried a few things:

I feed him only in the evening - but you have a puppy who has to eat more...
Add water to his dog food
You can also mix in plain cooked rice, chicken broth, cottage cheese, but remember the more human food he has the more he will like it.

try changing his food

Answer 6

The right Food for your Dog
http://www.petskare.com/category/The-right-Food-for-your-Dog.html

Answer 7

add a little water to the food just to make it a little wet

Answer 8

try adding some gravy, our dog loves that

Answer 9

he may have outgrown it