what is the best food for my westie. other foods ive tried give him the runs he dosnt like dried food.?

Question

he is 7 months old.

Answer 1

Try Chappie! I have a jack russell who is the same!

Answer 2

I have a Westie- they are very sensitive. Stay away from raw diets- Westies have limited ability to deal with the bacteria in them. Also dogs eating raw diets will shed Salmonella, campylobacter, and other things that may or may not make them sick, but are a public health risk to anyone who touches them.
When judging dog foods, ingredients can be very misleading. Ingredient lists do not tell you quality of those ingredients, by law companies can use very low quality meat and grains and you will not see it on the label. You need to find out the nutrient levels in those diets, which usually you can get from their websites or by calling their customer service lines. If you find it hard to get that information then its probably not a good food.
The nutrient ranges for puppies are for the first year of life:
Based on size (small dog), age in months:7-12 months
Protein-22 %-30%
Fat 8%-9%
Calcium .56%-2.5%
Phosphorous- .8-1.6%
Also- a good source of anitoxidants is needed.
I fed my dog Science Diet Puppyu until he was 1 year old,then I switched to Science Diet Oral Care because in small dogs teeth are always a problem.
Feeding him correctly now will save money in a long run.
Always switch foods gradually over a week, mixing in the new food with the old food over the course of a week.
Canned or dry as a puppy does not matter, but as he gets older you will want the teeth cleaning action of a dry food like Oral Care. Dont' feed table scraps because he won't want anything else and you want a complete diet to extend his life.

Answer 3

The foods that are best for dogs are products such as Nutro Natural Choice or Ultra, INova, Royal Canin etc. Look on the back of the bag and make sure that first ingredient is protein, not a by product. By products are left over parts of the animal and sometimes cancerous tissue. Second, you want to ensure the fillers are ones that your dog can digest such as wheat or rice. Barley and corn are very hard on a dog's digestive system. However if your puppy has allergies steer towards rice NOT wheat. Now.. to get your dog to eat. Make sure the food bowl is completely clean. My dog's won't touch their bowl if they feel it's "dirty". Now.. put some water (or if she's very stubborn use chicken or beef broth - all natural and very cheap) on the dry food and put it into the microwave. The heat will bring out the aroma of the food (and make it softer giving the illusion of "canned") and since dog's rely on smell more than any other sense it will entice your dog to eat. You can also try products as you had mentioned before - Gravy train for extra vitamins, Linetone for a healthy coat, Fish oil or even Olive oil. Just make sure what you're adding is all natural w/ no preservatives etc. When she goes to eat be encouraging as you would training a new trick. "Good girl, etc etc" You may even want to give a few pets and scratches. Hang out for a bit when she starts eating. My pitt won't start eating till I give her a scratch down, and a kiss on her nose. Also feed your dog in meals. Don't just leave the food out hoping she'll eat it, put the food down for 10-15 minutes then pick it up till the next feeding. Also, use a command for feeding - dinner, nummy numms, whatever. Something your dog will associate with and come running when it's time to chow down. Stay the head of the pack and put your dog in sit before feeding. Make a big deal about it so she'll be as excited as you are that dinner is served! When it's time give the command to eat, this is where the encouragement comes in. But your vet is right, when she's hungry enough she'll eat. Believe me, she won't starve herself. 4 days may seem like a long time but in actuality it really isn't. Cut down on her goodies - treats, raw hides, etc till she eats properly. Good Luck

Answer 4

Dried food is best, if he's hungry enough he will eat it. Get him checked out by vet to c if he has colitis or irritable bowel-very common in dogs, then you will have an idea what sets him off. If you persevere with dry food give him Burns lamb and rice with maybe a little mince/chicken and c how he goes. This worked for me. Beware though an awful lot of dogs are allergic to chicken at the mo.
Hope this helps

Answer 5

Remember that when switching your dogs food, the general rule of thumb is 10% over 10 days. If you just swap over to a new food, even a healthier one he may have tummy trouble. I would try to switch him onto hard food. His teeth will need twice as much work to keep them healthy if he stays on a all wet diet. I rank food according to ingredients so in my list of recommendations are:
Best: Merrick, Wellness, Blue Buffalo, Innova Evo, Canidae, and Wysong to name a few..these foods are made with human grade ingredients and are as close to a dogs natural diet that you can get commercially. All should have a wet food too.
Better: Royal Canin, Eukanuba, Bil-Jac, or similar
Good:Iams, Nutro (Max, Natural, Ultra) Pro-Plan, or similar
Not-So-Good: Beneful, Pedigree, Purina "Chows", or similar
Duck Food: Alpo, Come and Get It, Rob Roy, Ar any other dog food that only costs $20 for a 40# bag...there is a reason its so cheap.

One of my students is a Westie, his dad has him on Eukanuba. Always check with a vet to rule out any health concerns. Start your boy out easy if he is being stubborn..I know with a Westie stubborn is a given....try giving him a good dry food as treats. Obviously give him no other types of treats in the meantime. Most pets are ok with standard food as treats because you gave it to them. Hope all works out for you

Answer 6

My westie is fed on Eukanumbra which is a dried food (she doesnt lke it either but gets hungry after refusing to eat for 3 days!!!) but have you tried the recommended Caesar or Tesco eqivalent?

Answer 7

Soft foods will give any animal soft poo or the runs and sometimes really bad gas. I suggest mixing canned food with dry food. Gradually, reduce the canned food with the mix until dry food is completely introduced. Your puppy is still young enough to encourage eating dry foods. Talk to your vet about what brands will be suited for your dog. Find out what store bought brands and vet brands. Choose what you can afford.

Answer 8

he must eat some kind of biscuit to help his teeth. Try mixing a complete food with his tinned food for a few weeks, gradualy reducing the amount of tinned. Then after a couple of weeks, simply leave a bowl of complete down. You need to be aware that it isn't meant to be gobbled down in one go like tinned food is, but nibbled at throughout the day. Lots of people see this and think that the dog doesn't like it. It's up to you to decide what your dog should eat for his wellbeing, not have him dictating to you what he will eat or not. That is the best way to go about getting a fussy eater.
I have done rescue and fostering for many years now and every dog who comes here gets to eat the dry food I feed my lot on. They may refuse to eat it for several days but they get nothing else. They soon start to eat. Sounds a bit hard but it's for their own good. No healthy dog will starve itself to death with a bowl of food available for it.

Answer 9

I've got a westie, the do tend to have iffy stomachs, we give spud pedigree pouches. also we give him bakers complete which is like moist chewy bisciuts, he likes them but spits out the white ones.

Answer 10

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

Answer 11

Royal Canin do a special Vet range that comes in wet and dry formats for sensitive tummies, pop along to your vets for more advice on which one would be best.