Brand new puppy not eating or eating only a little…

Don’t worry, for the first three to four days your puppy may well not eat much and unless you can visibly see protruding ribs or spine it is fine.  They have just had quite the upheaval and it upsets their tummy.  Soft stools and excessive urination are also pretty common in this introductory period so don’t worry, unless your puppy appears to be suffering from diarrhoea. If this is the case then take them to your local veterinarian immediately as diarrhoea in puppies, especially if coupled with vomiting could be an indicator of a dangerous disease such as parvovirus which can be deadly.

Good breeders will give you some food to purchase or take home with a time sheet of feeding.  If they haven’t call them up and find out the times that they fed at – if they fed at 8 am and you are feeding at 6am your puppy will not have an appetite.  If you change the food from what the breeder recommended then it is likely that your puppy will eat less whilst coping with the change. It is very important that you slowly mix and new food into your puppies previous diet adding a little of the new dog food at a time in order to allow their digestion to process the new food type.

What dog food to feed my puppy

It is important that you select a high quality dog food when choosing the right dog food to feed your puppy.  I would always recommend dry dog food, not only for ease but also for maintaining harder excrement.  This means when your puppy poops it is easier to pick up.  Wet foods have an extremely high water content, which leads to sloppy stools that can be difficult to clear up.  Choose a food that is holistic and free from additives to ensure that your puppy is receiving the best start for growing bones and muscle development.Give your pet the ultimate in pet food – Wysong Epigen™ the world’s FIRST and ONLY starch-free pet food! If you are looking for a low fat food then try to find a brand that still contains fatty acids to help with coat shine. Low calorie dog foods should not be necessary for a puppy unless recommended by your vet but they can be a good aid to losing weight for your adult dog combined with increased exercise. Make sure you choose a brand that has high quality ingredients so that your dogs coat and health are maintained as lots of dogs can lose condition when put onto diet dog food. I like as a weight loss food, as it boasts healthy ingredients.

Slowing your pup’s eating down…

There are many different methods you can use to slow your puppy down when eating. You can place an indestructible toy such as a kong into their food bowl which will ensure that they have to eat around the toy in order to get the food, which slows the eating process down.  You can also feed your dog in multiple dishes so they have to take breaks in between eating, however this approach can be time consuming.

My favourite method is to stuff a kong with their food, sealing the end with cream cheese and let them tease their food out.

This is a great method as not only does it slow your puppy or dog down when eating it also is a fun task for them to complete, which gives them something productive to do and doesn’t waste your money buying replacement chews all of the time as the Kong does the same job, whilst being a toy they can play with. Another option is to scatter feed – scatter their food in the garden making them forage for it – this is also great for keeping them entertained!

If you want to change the food type…

Gradually add a teaspoon of the new food to the food the breeder had your puppy on during each meal (less for toy puppies, more like a quarter).  Then build this up and reduce the amount of the previous food.  This process should take ten days to change them over but will avoid an upset tummy. Don’t forget when changing your puppy or dogs food that you should ensure you endeavour to purchase a quality brand. Most pet shops and even veterinarian tend to off good deals on quality dog food such as (UK only).

Toy dogs (yorkie, poms etc.) – about a large teaspoon of food, four times a day building up every day as they grow to eventually a small handful two/ three times a day.

Medium (spaniels, bull terriers etc.) – roughly a large tablespoon, four times daily, building amounts to a large handful and a half (more dependent upon breed i.e. bull terriers will be on higher amounts than a spaniel).

Large (labs, retrievers, GSD’s) – small handful four times daily building up to two to three handfuls twice a day.

Consult both your vet and food guidelines for specific weights of food recommended.

Struggling with finance for food?

Finance can be a major issue when choosing the correct food.  You want something that is nutritious but not going to break the bank.  For more information you may be interested in this article on balancing your budget with all natural dog food written by the fantastic Halleballedog.com

Worried about dog food allergies?

Many dogs can be prone to developing allergies, especially as many people do not know what goes into their dogs food.  You may find this article at it’s the dogs life useful for determining and dealing with food allergies in your dog.