The journey to find Luke dog food he likes

[rfuerst911sc]

Hello fellow dog lovers , a story of Luke and his food temperament. So we rehomed Luke when he was six months old. Previous owner gave us a full bag of Pedigree puppy food so that's what we started with . Compared to our previous three fangs of fury daschunds Luke is a gentle eater .

He takes his time , sometimes eats when you put it down and sometimes he doesn't. Just not food motivated . We then switched to Purina One adult food at about 10 months . Same deal he eats when he wants to . Thinking he didn't like it we switched to Purina Pro Plan .

Have purchased every flavor they make with basically the same results . Luke is a 60 lb Australian shepherd/German shepherd mix . He should eat 3 to 31/2 cups a day . Vet says he's healthy and looking good.

So the other day I said to my wife let's try something else. We order large bags via Chewy but decided to buy a small bag locally to see what happens. My wife did some research and decided to try Hills Science Diet . Wow he likes that stuff ! 😁. We are mixing it with Pro Plan until it's gone and then doing the full change . So any of you done the dog food journey ? 😋

[gacook]

I've never understood why people let their pets be "picky eaters." Once hungry enough, they'll eat what you give them--always.

[KFC911]

Yeah... I need to journey over to Tractor Supply and pick up some Pro Plan Large Breed for 65lb Moka .... every dog is different but she ain't broke and she's gobbled every brand I've tried... one

[asphaltgambler]

I would stick to Purina Pro-Plan, it is very highly recommended. Let him eat when he wants to. You should be feeding / water in the am and 'dinner' time, that's it. My dog usually eats at those times, but when he doesn't - no big deal. I'll simply pull his food bowl up, then put it back down later. He sometimes will skip the morning meal for no reason.

[stevej37]

Healthiest dogs are fed on the 'keep full program'
The dogs appetite will level off when he realizes food is always there. (might take a week or so)

[Seahawk]

Originally Posted by gacook

I've never understood why people let their pets be "picky eaters." Once hungry enough, they'll eat what you give them--always.

The new dog came with a large bag of food seven months ago. She was a residential dog that may have walked a mile a day, if that, always on a leash.

A bit picky but nothing serious.

Now, miles and miles a day, no leash (supervised), she eats like Jabba the Hut at a buffet.

[gacook]

I don't have dogs anymore, just cats, but we always kept dry food out for them. Same thing with the cats.

Typically, animals don't "habit eat" like we humans do--they eat when they're hungry (except for my fat-arse Maine Coon--he tries to convince me to give him treats EVERY TIME I walk into the kitchen!)

[gacook]

For the record, I'm not a vet, though there is one in the family, and my wife manages a PetSmart, so that basically makes me an expert.

[GH85Carrera]

Out dachshund would eat any dog food brand ever made with gusto. He gets Science diet.

[rfuerst911sc]

We put down 11/2 cups in the morning and the same amount at dinner. If he doesn't eat we leave it down until he does. He gets a good amount of outside play time every day . Online comparison of Pro Plan vs Hills they are close . One has more fat another has a little more protein. Both have " fillers " but at least Hills tells you they use beaks and hooves 😁

[rfuerst911sc]

Originally Posted by GH85Carrera

Out dachshund would eat any dog food brand ever made with gusto. He gets Science diet.

We had 3 dachshund's at the same time , they would attack the food bowl like it was a badger lair . Hence the fangs of fury statement 😁. Luke is more of a take my time at the buffet eater 😋

[stevej37]

Sitting down to a meal...the wife says "you only get one cup of food for the day"
Would you be happy? What if she said "eat as much as you want"

After a few meals of ayce...your appetite would level out....just like a dog's.

[KFC911]

If y'all try that "one size fits all" with all dawgs ... it better be XXXL. Some ya can, some ya can't and have to limit. My vet would kill me too ... it varies by dawg ... whatever it takes ... balance.

[Superman]

Our Australian Cattle Dog gets Merrick dry dog food. She likes the chicken formula the best. it is very good dog food, without grains as fillers. Lots of fat and protein.

significantly, she grazes and does not over-eat. We free-feed her. There is always food in her dish. She is a slender, athletic dog. Perhaps you do not have a problem to solve.

[cstreit]

Never had that issue. Our dog is starving 24 hours a day. No scrap unturned, bowl unlicked, or morsel Unsampled.

We feed her more than the vet recommends plus treats for behavior, and she’s slightly chonky…

…but you’d think we fed her once every three days by the way she is HIGHLY food motivated.

[gregpark]

My wife buys science diet for our spoiled baby. 16 bucks for a 5lb. bag. I paid 16 bucks for a 50 lb. bag of dog food (27% protein) from tractor supply and he likes it better. She said the science diet must be better for him. I compared the lists of ingredients, identical!

[NY65912]

The Farmer's Dog. Real food

[rfuerst911sc]

Last night Luke got the pro plan/science mix for dinner and he ate it all . This morning the same results . So this small data sampling suggests he likes something about the science kibble . As long as this keeps up , he has good bowel movements and the vet gives a health thumbs up we are good .

[rfuerst911sc]

Originally Posted by gregpark

My wife buys science diet for our spoiled baby. 16 bucks for a 5lb. bag. I paid 16 bucks for a 50 lb. bag of dog food (27% protein) from tractor supply and he likes it better. She said the science diet must be better for him. I compared the lists of ingredients, identical!

What is the brand name of the tractor supply food ? Or is it their own label ? I would like to check it out . Thanks

[flipper35]

Several years ago there was a thread on here with a site that compared a lot of the foods out there. We went with Diamond Natural based on that since it is reasonably priced and available locally. The regular Diamond is not so good though based on that web site so be sure which you get when you pick up any food based on brand alone.

All of our dogs liked it well enough and stayed healthy. Both our female labs were 75# and not fat at all. One decided to drag our vet down the hall to investigate a cat and the vet was impressed how strong the lab was as she was sliding. Our beagle was fatter but he supplemented his diet with the free range critters out here in the country.