Is there anything that will make my dog eat better? {below for details}?

Question

I got a Great Dane a few months ago and she is vet checked and very healthy so I know it's not physical, but she needs more meat on her bones. How do I get her to fatten up some? I feed her Pedigree and have tried other foods, but nothing works. I hated changing her food, but had to try what I could. Any tips?

Answer 1

Feed her real food.

Answer 2

Do not listen to people who tell you to feed dog people food. There are too many calories and most people don't know how to balance the right amount of protein and carbs. I did alot of research on dog food after the big scare this past spring. I have a 4 year old dog who is a cancer survivor and wanted to make sure that he received the best nutrition possible. After alot of phone calls and research, I found a food that uses human grade ingredients and has never ever been recalled. It is called Canidae and you can get it at most pet stores.

It is ok to change your dog's food as long as you do it gradually. The first week use 75% of the old food mixed with 25% of the new food. The second week use 50% of both. The next week 75% of new food and 25% of old food. And by the fourth week she will be entirely on the new food with no tummy ache. They have different formulas of Canidae and the food is so pure that there are actually more calories in it than most other foods. They do have a diet version but I don't think that's what you want anyway. I really hope that you can benefit from all of the research that I did for my dogs.

Answer 3

I have the same problem with my 5year old dane. He has bowel problems with most foods so I can't really change his diet much, else diaherra, yuck! But I happened apon a food called ABADY and while it is expensive, I have never seen my dog so in my face about eating, seriously he was at the counter drooling and everything , like you usually I have to kinda make him eat. I will keep buying that food, and it actually firmed his bowels up even more, I think if he was on it only full time I would even get less poop to clean up. *(which means the food is a better quality and the dog is actually using more of it inside him, where it belongs)* I would look that up in your area. it is manufactured in NY. they do have a website...... dont recall. liver tripe was his favorite(wet food)
***hope you get results... again I will say the food is pricey but if you supplement with it, then it won't cost as much..I used wet mixed with his dry food, and cut the 1 can into 6 portions and they licked the bowl! I have 2 danes so they shared the can, in their 3 meals a day.

Answer 4

Sorry to say Pedigree dog food is crap -
- You need to feed a higher quality dog food to your dog for starters .. it will cost more but your dog will eat less - sounds odd but its true !!

Shepherdgirl postedthis months ago rate your dog's food !!
Take a look at how to grade your dogs food, as you can see Iams doesn't even compare to the better brands.
How to grade your dog's food:
Start with a grade of 100:

1) For every listing of "by-product", subtract 10 points

2) For every non-specific animal source ("meat" or "poultry", meat, meal or
fat) reference, subtract 10 points

3) If the food contains BHA, BHT, or ethoxyquin, subtract 10 points

4) For every grain "mill run" or non-specific grain source,subtract 5 points

5) If the same grain ingredient is used 2 or more times in the first five
ingredients (i.e. "ground brown rice", "brewer’s rice", "rice flour" are
all the same grain), subtract 5 points

6) If the protein sources are not meat meal and there are less than 2 meats
in the top 3 ingredients, subtract 3 points

7) If it contains any artificial colorants, subtract 3 points

8 ) If it contains ground corn or whole grain corn, subtract 3points

9) If corn is listed in the top 5 ingredients, subtract 2 morepoints

10) If the food contains any animal fat other than fish oil,subtract 2
points

11) If lamb is the only animal protein source (unless your dog is allergic
to other protein sources), subtract 2 points

12) If it contains soy or soybeans, subtract 2 points

13) If it contains wheat (unless you know that your dog isn’t allergic to
wheat), subtract 2 points

14) If it contains beef (unless you know that your dog isn’t allergic to
beef), subtract 1 point

15) If it contains salt, subtract 1 point

Extra Credit:

1) If any of the meat sources are organic, add 5 points

2) If the food is endorsed by any major breed group or
nutritionist, add 5 points

3) If the food is baked not extruded, add 5 points

4) If the food contains probiotics, add 3 points

5) If the food contains fruit, add 3 points

6) If the food contains vegetables (NOT corn or other grains), add 3 points

7) If the animal sources are hormone-free and antibiotic-free, add 2 points

8 ) If the food contains barley, add 2 points

9) If the food contains flax seed oil (not just the seeds), add 2 points

10) If the food contains oats or oatmeal, add 1 point

11) If the food contains sunflower oil, add 1 point

12) For every different specific animal protein source (other than
the first one; count "chicken" and "chicken meal" as only one protein
source, but "chicken" and "" as 2 different sources), add 1 point

13) If it contains glucosamine and chondroitin, add 1 point

14) If the vegetables have been tested for pesticides and are
pesticide-free, add 1 point

94-100+ = A
86-93 = B
78-85 = C
70-77 = D

69 = F

Here are some foods that have already been scored.
Dog Food scores:

Authority Harvest Baked / Score 116 A+

Bil-Jac Select / Score 68 F

Canidae / Score 112 A+

Chicken Soup Senior / Score 115 A+

Diamond Maintenance / Score 64 F

Diamond Lamb Meal & Rice / Score 92 B

Diamond Large Breed 60+ Formula / Score 99 A

Dick Van Patten's Natural Balance Ultra Premium / Score 122 A+

Dick Van Patten's Duck and Potato / Score 106 A+

Foundations / Score 106 A+

Hund-n-Flocken Adult Dog (lamb) by Solid Gold / Score 93 B

Iams Lamb Meal & Rice Formula Premium / Score 73 D

Innova Dog / Score 114 A+

Innova Evo / Score 114 A+

Kirkland Signature Chicken, Rice, and Vegetables / Score 110 A+

Nutrisource Lamb and Rice / Score 87 B

Nutro Natural Choice Large Breed Puppy / Score 87 B

Pet Gold Adult with Lamb & Rice / Score 23 F

ProPlan Natural Turkey & Barley / Score 103 A+

Purina Benful / Score 17 F

Purina Dog / Score 62 F

Purina Come-n-Get It / Score 16 F

Royal Canin Bulldog / Score 100 A+

Royal Canin Natural Blend Adult / Score 106 A+

Sensible Choice Chicken and Rice / Score 97 A

Science Diet Advanced Protein Senior 7+ / Score 63 F
Science Diet for Large Breed Puppies / Score 69 F

Wellness Super5 Mix Chicken / Score 110 A+

Wolfking Adult Dog (bison) by Solid Gold / Score 97 A

I do not remember where to find it but I hope this helps.

Answer 5

So if the vet said she is perfectly healthy and it's not physical then why do you want to add more meat on her bones? Dogs are not supposed to eat too much, in fact some breeds, if not all, are supposed to eat once a day. Check with your vet to be sure all is ok with her weight and then ask what steps you should take if she needs to gain weight.

Answer 6

Try feeding her Bil - Jac frozen dog food,in additon to dry food.It really puts the weight on.Also,I would feed her a dry food with at least 15 % fat and no corn,wheat or soy.Also,how old is the dog? Some giant breed dogs don't fill out completely until they are 2 or 3 years old.