Best food for my puppy

Dog food and feeding Dog foods
1

Hi everyone, I’m new to this forum.
I have a 7 months old italian greyhound, it’s a bitch and a really fussy eater.
I have noticed that as a result of her picky eating her coat does not look it’s best. I’m pretty sure she has no other health issues, she is lively, bouncy, normal weight, normal stool etc. but probably not getting all the nutrition she should be at this age. Also she never eats anywhere enough what the guidelines for her size and breed say she should be eating. She is more of a couch potato but has her exercise too.
I’m forever searching for the best food for her and although I’m not keen on forever switching brands or type of food unfortunately that is exactly what I’m doing at the moment :frowning:
I wanted to get her the best quality food there is, even if it meant paying more, her healthy growth and well being is important to me plus she is a show dog.
We’ve had so far - Royal Canin Junior small breeds until she went off it plus I was told not to give it dry (soaked for better digestion, which she wouldn’t eat after a while) then we tried Lilly’s kitchen puppy dry and wet food - again limited success (on and off), so we even tried raw feeding (Natures Menu and Nutriment) with not much success either and after she threw it up undigested I stopped giving it. I then put her on Natures Menu wet puppy food which was a big success to start with (puppy chicken and lamb) but again it didn’t last long.
So she is currently still on wet food, I’m now trying to alternate it between Natures Menu wet and Collards wet puppy food (she will only eat one flavour of each) and adding some sardines, cooked chicken etc. to it to actually get her to eat it.
Can anyone suggest some top quality wet/dry food for puppies please?
What do you think about any vitamin supplements or adding Salmon or Coconut oil (or both?) to her diet?

Many thanks for any advice

2

Hello and welcome to the forum,
I don’t have much experience with this breed but people I know with more experience, tell me that they are notoriously picky. I know of one Lurcher who will not eat her meals if more than one food is in the dish and once she has been put off a food for any reason, she is unlikely to go back to it. On the plus side, apart from the raw food, your pup doesn’t seem to have reacted to any foods you have tried.
Again, I have not had any experience feeding a pup but hopefully somebody who has, will be able to share their experiences with you. You could also use the quick search tool to enter your dogs details and your budget. thisthread explains where to find it. It should give you some ideas.
Salmon oil or coconut oil may help with your dogs coat. Some foods already have it added. I have heard that Lidl are about to start selling a reasonably priced Coconut oil (£2.99) for 300gs.
I wish you good luck with your picky pup :slight_smile:

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3

Hi & welcome…I have read your 1st post, however, have never owned or fed your breed (not my breed choice albeit quite fond of them & temperament of ones met though).

Wainrights wet complete trays suit some (various flavours) & we feed this to a toy dog here to a realtively small companion dog. Conversely our working breed dog is currently on Akela Fish, ( a relatively high meat content food often fed to working dogs), however, (& this is the important bit)., what suits some breeds, (or even individual dogs), might not suit your dog.

Whilst happy with what we feed I have also fed nutriment albeit you indicate your dog wasn’t a fan. Do bear in mind it should be thawed properly & also comes in a huge variety of flavours & compositions (they might all be branded the same but ingredients & dogs realtionship with them can differ between varieties).

As well as wet completes, raw completes and dried extruded kibbles there are also other options out there including home cooked which some shappily sing praises of.

Less well known commercial food types (often getting favourable comments) include air dried, freeze dried & cold pressed. I find these relatively nee foods very interrestng as they some allege they have benefits over dried extruded kibbles which are allegedly usually extruded at higher temperatures, (which some allege has disadvantages).

Unfortunately air dried & freeze dried are currently out of my price budget. Cold pressed foods I find of great interest albeit for own dog specific dietary specific reasons (kibble wise) I also currentlly feed a chicken, grain free & relatively low carb food…I do, however, keep finding myself researching cold compresed & otherfoodsmade by less conventional manufacturing processes.

Availability, shelf life, cost etc may also be factors although many accept the route to suitable feeding can sometimes involve a little effort.

The dog food generator gizmo on here may be yiur best bet to getting so e ideas asmight be speaking to your breeder, or perhaps a breed club to canvass viees of others who own the same breed.

Some vets know their nutritional & food stuff but I personally would do my own research & with a view to avoiding paying more for less &/or a product the vet sells at a significant profit margin.

In light of your comments & concerns I will stop short of recommeding a specific food but hope the above of some use

Thr other advice re adding fish or fish oil is sound a friend of family swears by occasionally adding sardines but I havén’t researched pro’s and con’s .

Oh & obviously in any real concerns for your dogs health then obviously consider consulting with a suitable vet.

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4

Hi,

I have 3 dogs on a fish only diet and there coats are amazing.
Its ava sensitive skin and stomach white fish that i feed them.
If your not looking to change her food try a tin of sardines in her meal once a week the oils are amazing for there skin and coat.
Make sure its sardines in sunflower oil or fresh water.
Hope this helps
Lizzie