Which dog food??

[GA girl]

Last week my dog died. He was almost 16 years old. We had him for 15 years. We also have another dog, who was his "little brother". He is 6. They always ate dinner together. Since he has been gone the other dog will not eat his kibble unless I add something with it. A friend of mine suggested Bil Jac frozen dog food. I have also been looking at recipes for homemade dog food.
Any suggestions. I have just been making him a small plate of what we have for dinner.
He loves people food and will eat anything that you eat.

[Disney4us2]

I give our dog Benef dry food. In the morning I put a little beef broth in it. Sometimes for dinner I add half a can of Pedigree or Alpo ans mix itr together. Sorry for the loss of your fur baby.

[Cinderelley]

Sorry to hear of your loss. It is tough to lose a furbaby, even when it was the right situation. Your other dog probably misses his brother. :(

My friend has always browned ground beef and rice in with a cup full of dog food for her babies. You may have to adjust the amount depending on the size of your dog.

[VWL Mom]

Sorry for you loss, went through the same thing last year and it's tough.

We got a rescue from TN in December. ( a Santa Paws pup). Her foster mom suggested adding sweet potato to her dry food and she loved it. I would cook a few at a time and dice them up in her dry food. She gobbled them up.

[Mickey'sGirl]

We give our dogs rice with their food, as it is easily digested. When our poor old Rory wouldn't eat, I made him all kinds of stuff; ground meat, tomatos (he was MAD for them!), scrambled egg, I would save gravy and bacon drippings. Anything to get him to eat.

My sister's dog (a Shih Tzu) lives with us, and is not a good eater, but we find we have better success with her when she has really small kibble and the rice.

I hope it all works out for you soon!

[MNNHFLTX]

I'm do sorry about your dog. It sounds like he lived a good long life. No doubt your other dog misses him. :(

I wouldn't wait too long to find a new dog food, or your younger dog might get used to eating people-food (which may not be the best for him, especially if there things like onions or garlic in it). You can make your own dog food--we made our old diabetic dog (sadly, also gone) ground turkey, oatmeal (already cooked), broccoli or green beans and pumpkin puree (for fiber). We also gave him a multi-vitamin to make sure he got the right nutrients. But there some commercial dog foods out there that would be an easier route for you. I've heard that the Bil Jac food is good. We now use Freshpet dog food, which is sold out of refrigeraters located in many grocery stores. It contains the lean meat and veggies and other ingredients we used to prepare ourselves and has less preservatives than canned dog food.

[Dulcee]

Sorry for the loss of your pooch. Its never easy is it?

As for your younger guy, our dog was super picky. We had a hard time getting her to eat the same thing more then two or three days in a row (even when I was making her homemade chicken and rice!) On top of it she's a giardia carrier and if she doesn't eat normally it flares up and results in vet visits. We switched a few weeks ago to Natural Choice. They carry it at petsmart (not in food stores) and other pet specialty stores. Its pricey compared to Iams or Purina but since we put her on it she eats every meal as soon as we put her bowl down. Dry in the morning, wet at night. They have several flavors/types and the sensitive stomach one made for an easy switch. Her coat has also been gorgeous since the switch. I highly suggest it.

If you go the route of making your own food as someone above said be sure to look at vitamin supplements, its hard to get the right mix of vitamins on your own.

[sassafras]

Sorry to hear about your dog. We lost our Old English Sheepdog a couple of weeks ago and are going thru much the same thing with our Jack Russell. She will eat table scraps, but doesn't seem to eat much dog food. I'd been debating what to do to get her to eat more, but now I may try some of these suggestions.

[Carol]

Beth is correct. I work at a Veterinarian Hospital and, can in fact tell you, dogs should not have people food.

Dog food is formulated nutritionally to meet their needs. I would definitely look at all natural products. Personal I buy California Natural Lamb and Rice for my three pups. (My Shepherd cannot have chicken.)

If you continue to supplement - the dog will continue to not eat. Offer the kibble - if it goes untouched - take it up and offer it again a few hours later. Dogs are very manipulative. Although we do not always know what they want - they, on the other hand, know exactly what to do to take advantage of and work their peeps.

Good luck.

[EpcotFan182]

I'm so sorry for your loss:(

We use Halo brand, it comes in a variety of flavors of both wet and dry food. Halo also has a lot of different products for both dogs and cats to keep it interesting.

[GA girl]

Thanks for the replys. It's really hard losing a fur baby that you have had for so long. We had Eddie longer than I have had my youngest daughter. I think we will stay a one dog family.
I bought some wet food to mix with his kibble and he did eat that today. No table food at all today.
He did get his rabies shot this morning so he has been a little lazy tonight.

[Carol]

Glad to hear he ate. :mickey:

Pets do mourn. I would contribute that to his behavior being slightly off a bit too.

I wouldn't rule out getting another dog in the future. They are pack animals and really do well with 'siblings'.

[RedSoxFan]

We switch Bella (yellow lab/2 yrs) from Eukanuba to Blue Buffalo. She loves it and dances when it's breakfast/dinner time. So funny to watch her get excited for food. She was never that excited for Eukanuba.

Sorry for your loss. :(

[Stitchahula]

I am so sorry for your loss. We went through that with my dogs a few years ago. We had to put our older one to sleep and her sister (actual sister) went into mourning, and wouldn't eat. We did the boiled hamburger and rice since it was nice and bland so when she did want to eat again it wouldn't upset her stomach. Bil-jac is a great food, I've fed the dry to my dogs for years. I also like the frozen but it's a bit more pricey and storage is an issue. Talk to your vet about your pup not eating and see what they have to say.

[WDW&MK]

You have our condolences. We have lost our old dogs too. They are so much a part of the family, it just about broke my heart each time.

Our new babies (1 and 2 years old) are VERY picky eaters and were not eating their food even with yogurt or cottage cheese added. We now give them a mixture of CORE which is made by Wellness and their regular food. CORE is all protein - no grains. They LOVE it and will now eat their entire bowl of food. CORE is a little on the rich side and a little on the expensive side, so mixing it works well for their touchy tummies as well as our pocket book.
Good luck!!