Is this HEALTHY for my pup or a bad habit to start?

Question

Well my lil girl is about 4 months now and weighs about 20 lbs. She is a mix breed (lab/chow/collie?) so I'm not sure how big shes going to get. Anywho i feed her three times a day-the appropriate feeding proportions that are according to her age and weight on the food bag (DRY food)..... in the morning and at night i add one teaspoon of CAN food with a little warm water to her food because she (OBVIOUSLY) prefers it more and she'll eat all of her food- where she doesn't with her plain dry. Is this a bad habit to start or is it ok to keep doing this with her? I mean I'm use to feeding my dogs all dry but adding a little can food helps her eat it better and she will eat all of her food that way.

So what do you think...is it ok to continue this or do you think this is a bad habit to start????

I figured it was a bad habit ! I guess she'll have to suck it up and eat the dry food...once in a while i'll give her some can though :)

Thanks for the advice!

Answer 1

Start of a bad habit. At least, giving it to her every day is. I give my dogs a little something "extra" about once a week, just to keep it from getting too boring.

A healthy dog will not starve itself. Give her dry for a week until she gets used to it. Give her canned once in a while.

Answer 2

I'm in disagreement with the majority of folks here. Personally I think it's a GREAT habit. Remember dry kibble is a DEHYDRATED food. Most dogs won't compensate eating only dry by drinking more water. (Us humans are guilty of it too - how many people do you know how when trying to get healthier have to make an effort to drink more water?) Personally I believe that dogs should have a varied diet. That's why my guys all eat RAW/Homecooked/Super Premium Kibbles. Canned can help you with that. You could keep the pup on the same kibble but switch canned flavors - most dogs can handle changes in diet of less than 10% w/o a tummy upset. When On the rare occurance I do feed a sole kibble meal They get hot water in with it. Sorta like cereal. If you are concerned with weight gain cut back on the amount of dry. If your dog needs 2 cups a day try 1 1/2. The guidelines on the bag are just that guidelines - you may have to tweak a little to get the perfect amounts for your dog. Good Luck with your pup!

Answer 3

With my dogs I have always mixed can with dry and none of my dogs are obese. My dog will eat more on days that he is really active and less on days that he is not. The only thing that he begs for is treats, and that is like ALL dogs. As long as you are feeding a high quality can food that is low in fat, there is nothing wrong with mixing a little in the morning and or night with the dry food. You might as well keep them happy while they are around, they do so much for us, why not feed them food they enjoy?

The key to keeping your dogs weight low is high quality feed, no table scraps, and activity! I've never seen a dog on can food gain weight if fed properly and living an active life style.

My dog is an Akita/Sibe mix.

Answer 4

From my personal experience, my kids all were fed a combination of dry and wet food, and we never had a problem with this. The only time it may become an issue is if you decide to stop the can food all together - she may not want just the dry for a few days.

However, there's nothing wrong with canned food in addition to the dry meal.

Answer 5

I agree with Mutt Mommy... Now that you have established that she is definitely eating hard food, then you don't have anything to worry about, in regards to her not eating.
Stop the soft food for a couple of weeks... Make sure she continues to eat the hard food, and then after a while, you can start giving her soft food every once in a while; maybe once a week or so.
She definitely will not starve herself, and she will soon realize that the hard food is her only option.

Good luck!

Answer 6

i've always fed my big dummy (foxhound/lab/beagle mix) dry in the morning and a little canned mixed with dry in the evening....it's not going to hurt anything....it sure would suck if you had to eat the same old meal every meal, don't you think? don't listen to the idiots above who are trying to tell you she's going to be spoiled and it's bad habit....a little variety never hurt anything or anyone...and who gives a shi*t if we spoil them a little bit....just go right on doing what you're doing and she'll be fine.....do you take the dry food away after awhile if she doesn't eat all of it? if you leave it there she'll eat it all eventually.....dummy of mine will pick around at her dry in the mornings but if i leave it there, she'll go back to it and eat it all very quickly when she decides she's hungry and ready to eat....and you're probably going to get as many answers to this as people answeringit, but it always has worked for me and mine is happy, content and not overwieght at all....just be sure to take her on one or two good walks every day to work off the excess energy and keep the weight down and she'll be trim, lean and happy.....

Answer 7

I feed my cats soft canned food and milk in the morning and they eat fine the rest of the day. I had a dog that would only eat one kind of dry food you just have to find the one she likes but your not hurting her just treating her :)

Answer 8

i think its ok...i feed my dog twice a day...once i nthe morning around 8 and then again in the afternoon at 5..and I put a scoop of dry food and a can of canned food and mix it in....he loves it and ive been doing it for 6 years now...so no its not a bad idea..

Answer 9

I think it will be ok. We feed our dogs canned food every morning. Just make sure she gets enough exercise. If she starts gaining weight, cut down on the amount or stop feeding it to her.

Answer 10

There shouldn't be a problem unless you do not plan to continue the routine. The mix you have usually does not have trouble eating so be careful not to overfeed. Remember to keep the amount of treats you give her in mind when calculating her serving size.