Picky dog won't eat dry, wet, or meat. How to boost appetite?

Even with the vitamin supplements, this is not likely a complete and balanced diet. There is not anything you can give him to improve his appetite. This is likely behavioral and nature. It’s hard to get a pet adjusted to eating pet food once they are used to eating something like human food or jerky treats. You may try cooking his food or try different commercial diets to find one he likes. If you want to cook his food, you will need to contact a veterinary nutritionist to make sure that the diet is complete and balanced. A recent survey found that the vast majority of the homemade diets found online were unbalanced. Any food you choose needs to be AAFCO tested and certified. This information will be on the packaging. You will also need to decrease the amount of jerky you are giving him. Best of luck.

Thank you for submitting your question. Minxy is such a small dog that she needs to be eating regularly. If her appetite change came after adding the canned food to her diet, I would stop that. She may not be liking it. If you added the canned food to encourage her to eat, then there is a primary problem affecting her appetite. Since she is so young, I would have her evaluated by her veterinarian. She may have intestinal parasites. If she does not have any medical problems, I would try a different diet and your veterinarian can recommend a probiotic to add to her food. Some of them are flavored and will entice a dog to eat. I hope this information helps!

Have her seen by your veterinarian. The odor may be due to periodontal disease that needs to be addressed she may need her teeth cleaned and/or may lose teeth. Severe periodontal disease can be painful which could affect the appetite. Discontinue feeding milk as it can lead to an upset stomach. You can feed her Pedigree if that is all she will eat. Try soaking it with warm water to stimulate the appetite. The "best" food in the world is useless if a pet won't eat it.

For a dog that is used to eating fresh food, it can be a challenge to get them to eat kibble or canned food. One of my dogs is very picky and LOVES The Honest Kitchen products. I currently feed her 1/2 kibble and 1/2 The Honest Kitchen Keen. She has not missed a meal since I started feeding The Honest Kitchen. It is more expensive than kibble, but is very good quality food. Since I see that you are in CA, another option would be Just Food for Dogs. That would be a fresh food diet that is premade. Both companies are excellent, so see if Pepper likes either of those options. Good luck! I hope that was helpful. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

As long as she eats and is not losing weight, don't stress out over it. It is true that smaller breeds can be a bit more finicky. Switching foods would not be recommended as it can lead to gastrointestinal upset and reinforce her finicky nature. Instead, try mixing in a bit of warm water or a teaspoon of baby food to stimulate the appetite.

Hi there and thank you for using Pet Coach! In my experience, small breed dogs can be notoriously picky with their food choices. I would offer a variety and not only is flavor important but texture is as well. If you are offering dry food, make sure to dry various kibble sizes. Small bites would be most appropriate for Codi. If you are feeding too large of kibble, than it may be too difficult for Codi to chew. I would also try wet versus dry food as wet food may be more enticing for Codi. If changing textures does nothing for the appetite, I would recommend switching flavors / formulas of dog food to see if this makes a difference. If this does not change the appetite, then you can always try home cooked meals with vitamin / mineral supplementation. I would recommend going to (www.balanceit.com) to have a homemade diet formulated for Codi. On this site, you can also purchase a bottle of vitamin / mineral supplement powder to add to the cooked food. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns. I am also available via phone or text based consultation if needed.

Hi there. If Molly isn't underweight and your veterinarian has confirmed that she doesn't have any underlying GI issues that might make her not feel well when she eats, then there's no need to constantly switch foods trying to find something to interest her. Many picky dogs are good at training us to do this. :) Instead, you can just offer her food at her regular mealtimes. Leave the food out for 10-15 minutes, then pick up whatever is left and put it away. Offer it again at the next scheduled mealtime. It might take a few days, but she'll eat when she gets hungry. It's a bit like insisting your child eat his vegetables, when he'd rather have ice cream!