Caro
Moderator
I think you hit the nail on the head. The Pedigree stinks. Dogs love stinky food. You could always give them the better stuff but sprinkle a little garlic over it to make it smell.
no eating for two days?
- Thread starter ruckusluvr
- Start date
I think you hit the nail on the head. The Pedigree stinks. Dogs love stinky food. You could always give them the better stuff but sprinkle a little garlic over it to make it smell.
ruckusluvr
Forums Enthusiast
Thanks so much Caro!
Thats what I am going to do!
I know that garlic CAN be toxic to dogs (supposedly) so how much is safe to put in the food daily? Can it be minced?
Phase
I'm sure it's just a phase that they are going through. Caliber went through the same thing a couple of times. IMO - not to sound rude by ANY means!! But, I think they may have been testing you. They're smart and know that if they try hard enough they'll eventually get what they want. It's REALLY hard to not give them what they want, but unfortunately it's something that you need to do to let them know that "Sorry, but what Mommy says, GOES!" And especially since you want them to eat better. I remember when I switched caliber to RAW, he ate it for a couple days, then all of a sudden he wouldn't eat it. Same thing - I gave him about 15-20 minutes to eat, and if he didn't eat, sorry bud....too bad! It went back. No treats. No human food. No NOTHING! Eventually he figured it out that he wasn't going to get his own way, and I haven't had a problem ever since...
It sounds very cruel, but I'm a huge believer of "Mommy(or Daddy) is the Boss". They play when I initiate it, they eat when I feed them, they go outside to play when I tell them it's time to go out. It makes training A LOT easier. That's not to say I don't play or let them out to play when they want to. I will wait a few minutes so they forget what they wanted and THEN play.
Also...when Caliber was 3 months I stopped putting his food down on the floor, and I hand fed him piece by piece(this was when he was still on kibble). It taught him that "nothing is for free", and it really helped the eating issues as well. Even when I switched to RAW, I fed him by a spoon........I just realized how silly that sounded, but it really does teach them the value of food. Maybe it's something you want to try? Either way...I hope it works out!!
Oh yes......as for Garlic!!! I put Garlic Powder in a salt shaker and just quickly sprinkle it over their food...works great!!!
I'm sure it's just a phase that they are going through. Caliber went through the same thing a couple of times. IMO - not to sound rude by ANY means!! But, I think they may have been testing you. They're smart and know that if they try hard enough they'll eventually get what they want. It's REALLY hard to not give them what they want, but unfortunately it's something that you need to do to let them know that "Sorry, but what Mommy says, GOES!" And especially since you want them to eat better. I remember when I switched caliber to RAW, he ate it for a couple days, then all of a sudden he wouldn't eat it. Same thing - I gave him about 15-20 minutes to eat, and if he didn't eat, sorry bud....too bad! It went back. No treats. No human food. No NOTHING! Eventually he figured it out that he wasn't going to get his own way, and I haven't had a problem ever since...
It sounds very cruel, but I'm a huge believer of "Mommy(or Daddy) is the Boss". They play when I initiate it, they eat when I feed them, they go outside to play when I tell them it's time to go out. It makes training A LOT easier. That's not to say I don't play or let them out to play when they want to. I will wait a few minutes so they forget what they wanted and THEN play.
Also...when Caliber was 3 months I stopped putting his food down on the floor, and I hand fed him piece by piece(this was when he was still on kibble). It taught him that "nothing is for free", and it really helped the eating issues as well. Even when I switched to RAW, I fed him by a spoon........I just realized how silly that sounded, but it really does teach them the value of food. Maybe it's something you want to try? Either way...I hope it works out!!
Oh yes......as for Garlic!!! I put Garlic Powder in a salt shaker and just quickly sprinkle it over their food...works great!!!
Caro
Moderator
Garlic is only toxic in large amounts so sprinkling some garlic powder or crushing half, or even one clove will not harm them. A lot of dog food actually has small amounts of garlic to enhance the smell.
BarbV
Forums Celebrity
I'm thinking of trying that technique with Indy to get him to slow down, and also to allow Bacca to have time to eat in peace. Alternatively, I've got one of those balls that makes them work at releasing the kibble a few at a time.
When you stopped hand feeding Caliber, what were his eating habits then? Was he still a gulper?