# Puppy Diet



## whatsuppup (Mar 9, 2015)

Hi All,

DaVinci (8 weeks) was started on Royal Canin - Medium Puppy food. So, naturally, I bought a bag to continue him on. I had also bought a... OMG  ewww.. sorry, I think puppy just passed gas while sleeping on my lap! Gag!! I had also bought a bag of holistic puppy food - no corn or wheat, fillers, color or artificial preservatives.

Moments after we got in the door from the long drive home, he vomitted (I attributed that to the long car ride). My only concern was he vomitted all whole, but completely soggy pieces of kibble. I can only guess that he somehow ate them without chewing at all! 

So, I put some of the RC kibble in his bowl. He sniffed around at it, and I even assumed he had eaten a little each time I saw him at his dishes. It wasn't until the following morning (5am potty break) when I heard his tummy grumbling so loudly. At first I thought maybe it was gas, but then realized it was his definitely his tummy. So I put a few pieces of kibble in my hand to see if he would eat it. And he tried.. and would chew but spit out the whole piece of kibble. So I added water to his food dish to help make the kibble soft. He wouldn't touch it. Out of concern, I opened up the Actr1um Holistic kibble that I was saving to transition to later, and tried to give him a piece of kibble. Same issue - couldn't chew it. I put some in a separate dish and also added some water - he went to that dish and lapped up some of the flavoured water but didn't try eating it. The water stopped his tummy grumbles though, and I took him back upstairs to sleep a little longer. Later that morning, he still didin't touch his food, so I picked up some RC wet food in a can, and added some to his RC kibble. He licked it a little, and over the course of the day ate a very small amount of the wet food. The following day (3rd day at home) he checked out his RC dish, and then his holistic food dish and ate some of the moist kibble - yay! I noticed over that day that he would check out what was in both dishes, but consistently go for the holistic food. So, I took away the RC dish (assuming the wet food had sat out for too long anyways). He still eats the holistic food, and is getting better, staying at his dish longer to eat more, but it's still in little bursts and if he manages to finish what is in his dish (I put 1/2 cup in there Sunday night) the total amount he has eaten since he came home is about 3/4 cup. I know puppies need to adjust and eating is one of the adjustments when coming home. I just want to be sure this does sound normal (I think it is), and that it isn't something I should look into. For his age, the daily feeding guideline on the bag of Actr1um says he should be fed 2 - 3 1/4 cups daily (for a puppy with a maturity size of between 21lbs to 50lbs.

Another question - his breeder told me to leave his food out all the time for him, instead of giving him meal times. Is that good advice? It appears a lot of people on here have set food times for their poo's. Given that he is barely eating, perhaps leaving it out is okay for now? Should I change the routine later, and transition him to meal times? Or would giving him meal times now, encourage him to eat a little more at each feeding? I'm not sure what to do, in his best interest. 

The raw diet intrigues me, and I think it is a good way to go, but as a picky eater myself, I don't think I could actually handle the raw foods, nor the smell of them. Not to mention I worry about the raw food contaminating areas of the home and my kids getting sick. I would however, also like to know that it is okay to give him some cooked, unseasoned chicken, or beef, as well as fruits or veggies, as I can't imagine how we, as a society, expect dogs to live solely on kibble for their entire lives, and remain healthy. I know I can't imagine what it would be like to live the remainder of my life on dried kibble, suitable for human consumption (not that any exists, or course)! 

For those of you in North America, or maybe just Canada, do you have any experience with Actr1um Holisitic dog food? It is manufactured solely for Walmart. Reviews seem to be okay from what I could find online, and health wise, it seemed to get an okay/decent rating, iirc. Presidents Choice Nutrition First Puppy Food, is another one that I have heard is really good, and also has no corn, wheat, fillers, by-product, etc. I may end up transitioning from Actr1um to Presidents Choice, and sticking with that, if DaVinci will allow me, later on. Also, not sure about Kirkland brand at Costco, due to the horror stories I have read about online, though it is possible that there is little truth to those stories. Finding a healthy dog food that is right for your dog is a lot of work! Or at least I make it to be!


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## 2ndhandgal (Aug 29, 2011)

Was his breeder wetting the food or was he eating kibble OK there? Generally dogs don't chew, their jaws move up and down not side to side and small bits of food go in and are dealt with in the stomach so food coming out whole is totally normal (sorry )

I have never left food out for pups or dogs to graze and I am sure it encourages fussy dogs. It will also make your life house training as when he needs to go will be less predictable. Poodle cross pups are often not the best eaters in the world and it is fairly normal for a pup to not eat well while settling in. I would go to 4 small meals a day, put the food down and leave for 15 minutes then take it away. 

Adding tasty extra's to food can encourage fussyness too - mine do get some extras (although very limited in Mollys case due to illness) but they are generally reserved for training or just extra treats rather than added to their bowls.


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## Lindor (Feb 3, 2014)

OMG I had to wipe the tears from my eyes I was laughing so hard!

I transitioned Maggie onto Actr1um from the breeders food. She liked it and did very well on it but now I feed Acana as I think it is better than Actr1um. For now just try to stick to the Actr1um. Don't give any meat or tasty treats as then he will learn to hold out for them and not eat his food. Only give 3 or 4 meals a day and take it away after 15 to 20 minutes. If you just let him graze throughout the day it will be really hard to predict when he has to poo, or if you live in an older house like the one I used to live in, the mice will help themselves to the food and take it across the kitchen to store in a drawer.


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## whatsuppup (Mar 9, 2015)

2ndhandgal said:


> Was his breeder wetting the food or was he eating kibble OK there? Generally dogs don't chew, their jaws move up and down not side to side and small bits of food go in and are dealt with in the stomach so food coming out whole is totally normal (sorry )


You learn something new every day! I had no idea dogs don't actually chew their food - Thanks! Puts an end to me wondering about the vomit.


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## whatsuppup (Mar 9, 2015)

Lindor said:


> OMG I had to wipe the tears from my eyes I was laughing so hard!


It was totally a SBD - Slient But Deadly. I never heard a peep, just got a whiff of yuck!


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## whatsuppup (Mar 9, 2015)

Thank you, both of you!

I don't know that his food was moistened by the breeder, but I suspect not, as when I was there I saw dry kibble in a dish in their penned off area within her house. Mind you the mother was with her pups, so it could have been her food... but the dish was full.

I will remove the treats, and supplement with kibble; I'll give it a try and see if he manages to keep the kibble in his mouth and get it down.

I will also transition to 4 small meals per day, as you both suggested, instead of leaving the food out. 

Thank you! All of the tips and advice is so much appreciated!


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## whatsuppup (Mar 9, 2015)

Marzi said:


> Taken from my Crate Training thread:
> Mmmmm chocolate  (or chocolate parti poo) is definitely great.
> 
> Your pup is tiny - they do not eat much, just think how big his little stomach is. Are you feeding him 4 tiny meals a day?
> ...


True, at only 4lbs his stomach must be pretty small. And, he is improving a little bit with his intake, each day. Wasn't feeding him meals per day, just leaving his food out all the time, as per his breeder. But thanks to you, and the others who posted in this thread, I will be switching over to meals, and leaving them out for 15-20 minutes.

I will give the peanut butter/cream cheese smear a try, as well. Good to know that licking is soothing to dogs. Thank you!


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## Marzi (Sep 17, 2012)

You do know that advice has to be paid for in plenty more photos of your very cute pup, don't you?


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## 2ndhandgal (Aug 29, 2011)

The only thing I would say is what is the size of the kibble you are feeding now compared to the breeders kibble, dogs don't chew the majority of things but if the kibble is large he may need to?


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## whatsuppup (Mar 9, 2015)

2ndhandgal said:


> The only thing I would say is what is the size of the kibble you are feeding now compared to the breeders kibble, dogs don't chew the majority of things but if the kibble is large he may need to?


I think it is similar in size to the Royal Canin, which he was spitting out, though the Actr1um may be a tad bigger. I will have to compare. Good point - I hadn't taken a size difference into consideration.


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## Lindor (Feb 3, 2014)

Maggie was similar in size to your little man and had no trouble eating that size kibble.


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## whatsuppup (Mar 9, 2015)

Lindor said:


> Maggie was similar in size to your little man and had no trouble eating that size kibble.


Do you think I should stop wetting his food, and let him figure it out? Maybe I jumped in too quickly, wetting his food?


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## Lindor (Feb 3, 2014)

whatsuppup said:


> Do you think I should stop wetting his food, and let him figure it out? Maybe I jumped in too quickly, wetting his food?


If the breeder was wetting it then I'd say keep wetting it otherwise just try it dry. Hope he sorts himself out soon.


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## whatsuppup (Mar 9, 2015)

Ok great thanks. He finished moist bit he had left in his bowl (a few pieces are left). Tomorrow I will start the 4 tiny meals, and I will start off dry and see how he does. I put a few dry pieces of kibble in his crate before putting him in, and they were gone when I let him back out. I would swear that the points of his teeth could cut through just about anything! Lol


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## whatsuppup (Mar 9, 2015)

Thank you everyone!  We are off to a good start today. 1/4 cup dry kibble first thing this morning and he ate just about all of it. Added another 1/4 cup late morning, and he ate about half. We'll see how he does with his next meal. I have to stand there while he eats, so that he continues to eat, instead of leaving it to follow me all around, but I can live with that for now.


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## Lindor (Feb 3, 2014)

:whoo: Way to go DaVinci! :twothumbs:


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## Marzi (Sep 17, 2012)

That sound good


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## caz3 (Mar 27, 2014)

Aww I am glad he is eating now Harley was fussy as well (is this a small dog thing ??) although not now ,I used to leave his food out like you as I felt he was hardly eating anything but then I went to mealtimes as yes I think them grazing over the day does not give you regular toilet timings 4 meals then cut down to 3 around 3/4 months then 2 meals 6months onwards I think this is the rough guide then (some go down to 1 meal at age 1 ) and remember if you change his diet do it gradual over a week or so ,so as not to upset his tummy


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## whatsuppup (Mar 9, 2015)

caz3 said:


> Aww I am glad he is eating now Harley was fussy as well (is this a small dog thing ??) although not now ,I used to leave his food out like you as I felt he was hardly eating anything but then I went to mealtimes as yes I think them grazing over the day does not give you regular toilet timings 4 meals then cut down to 3 around 3/4 months then 2 meals 6months onwards I think this is the rough guide then (some go down to 1 meal at age 1 ) and remember if you change his diet do it gradual over a week or so ,so as not to upset his tummy


Thank you, and thanks for the guidelines on what age(s) to reduce the number of meals per day. Your advice is appreciated!


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## lady amanda (Nov 26, 2010)

AWE!!! YAY!! such great help! AWESOME!!! and what a stunner little pup


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