My dog refuses kibble after bland diet. How do I get him to eat?

Dogs can be picky eaters, especially if they are given a choice of what to be picky about. I would not feed dairy products such as curd or too many fruits as this can cause digestive upset and diarrhea. If he likes chicken and rice, you can add the vitamin (or a liquid vitamin supplement to it) or even some veggies such as carrots or broccoli, however trying to get him on a balanced commercial diet is best. You'll want to put down the food for 15 m to give him a chance to eat, and then pick up whatever doesn't get eaten. While transitioning, you should not give any people foods, snacks, treats, other items, etc save for his regular meals. It may take some time, but a dog won't starve and they'll eventually try out the food. Sneaking in a little chicken or even low-sodium broth in with the food may also encourage eating in those 15 m windows.

Gradually over 4-5 days. Mix the old food with the chicken and rice adding more and more percentage of old food (first day 25% old food + 75% chicken and rice; second day 50% old food + 50% chicken and rice and so on).

Hello, thank you for your question about Simba. One other thing that you could try to help entice him to eat some of the white rice would be to pour some low sodium chicken broth onto it to help it have more flavor and be similar to the chicken that is eating. In general since he will hopefully be on this bland diet for a short period of time, if he continues to eat only the chicken or protein in the meal, this will not cause any significant problems. Hope this helps, good luck!

Having a good source of a special treat like chicken is a blessing and a curse! IT sounds like he's learned that he can hold out for the food stuff. I would recommend very intentionally, slowly increasing the amount of kibble while decreasing the amount of chicken over about 2 weeks. Wetting and warming the dry food can make it more appetizing to him as well. Make sure to shred/cut the chicken as small as possible to mix with the food. Additionally, put the food down for 15 minutes, then pick it up and offer again later (2-4 times a day). If you wet and warm the food, just throw it away and start over each time. Also for a healthy, adult dog, it's ok if he goes a day or two without eating while you're transitioning. Good luck!

Hello. I would just slowly try to re-introduce Jagger's food by adding just a little more of his food to the chicken & rice at each feeding. Soaking his food in low sodium chicken broth may help too. Just mix it up well & maybe let it sit for 15-20 minutes to meld the smells & flavors before feeding. If his food is usually a dry kibble, switching to a canned or soft moist food might make him happy. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

I would recommend having Koa examined by a vet. This is highly abnormal. Chicken and baby food is not the proper nutrition long-term, these types of diets should only be used for a few days to a couple weeks at a time as a way to rest an irritated GI tract, and it likely doesn't include enough calories or fat to maintain or gain body weight. After examination and a discussion of Koa's medical history, the vet can recommend appropriate diagnostics to determine what could be going on.

Many times after surgery, an animal's appetite can be decreased / absent as well as being lethargic / sedated. If it has been less than 24 hours, I would give it at least 24-48 hours before contacting the veterinarian that performed the surgery. Once the appetite returns, you will have an easier time getting King to take the pills. If it has been longer than 24-48 hours, I would recommend contacting the veterinarian for the most appropriate recommendations. I hope this helps guide you in the right direction. Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further. You can also feed a bland diet as outlined below and see if this helps. GENERAL INFORMATION A bland diet is a diet that is soft and highly digestible. It is low in fiber, fat and protein and is high in carbohydrates. Bland diets are generally composed of a single carbohydrate source and a single lean protein source. The most common bland diet is boiled rice and boiled lean chicken breast, without skin and bones. Since bland diets are low in fiber, stool production slows and defecation is less frequent. Bland diets are fed to rest the gastric system and to help promote normal stool formation. Animals that are physically sick should not be fed bland diets as a method of treatment. PRIOR TO FEEDING A BLAND DIET Pets should be fasted for 12 to 24 hours. Young animals should not be fasted for more than 12 hours. Fasting will allow the intestinal system to relax and minimize acid secretions that may irritate and inflame the intestinal lining. During the fast small amounts of water or ice chips may be provided. Never fast a sick animal, it may cause disease progression and death. BASIC BOILED RICE AND CHICKEN BLAND DIET RECIPE CARBOHYDRATE SOURCE: Boiled white rice LEAN PROTEIN SOURCE: Chicken breast, no skin and bones BOILED RICE: 1 part white rice with 3 parts water boiled for 20 – 25 minutes or until the rice is easily crushed. BOILED CHICKEN: De-fat chicken breast and boil in water for 10 – 15 minutes or until the chicken meat is easily pulled apart and cooked all way through. MIXING INSTRUCTIONS: Finely chop the lean protein and mix 2 cups carbohydrate source and ½ cup lean protein source. STORAGE INSTRUCTIONS: Bland diets can be premade and stored in the refrigerator for a maximum of 48 hours. The bland diet can be cooked in a batch and frozen in feeding sized portions to minimize preparation time. Thaw and warm the frozen diet prior to feeding. PERMITTED LEAN PROTEIN SUBSTITUTIONS Pork loin, egg whites, low fat cottage cheese. 7% low fat hamburger, plain low fat yogurt. PERMITTED CARBOHYDRATE SUBSTITUTIONS Boiled potatoes, boiled spaghetti, Minute rice. PERMITTED COMMERCIAL BLAND DIETS Science Prescription Diet I/D, Eukanuba Veterinary Diet Low Residue, Royal Canin Veterinary Diet Intestinal HE. FEEDING INSTRUCTIONS Estimate 25% of your animal’s diet and feed that amount of the bland diet every 6 – 8 hours. Smaller animals will require less and larger animals will require more adhering to the same carbohydrate to lean protein source ratio. The bland diet should be fed for 4 -5 days with no treats or other food sources until stools are firm. TRANSITION BACK TO A NORMAL DIET Never transition back to a regular diet rapidly. Transition back to the regular diet over a 1 week period. Start by adding 25% of the regular diet to 75% of the bland diet and feed that combination for 2 days. If stools continue to be firm then continue substituting the regular diet in 25% increments and feeding the combination in 2 day time intervals until the diet is 100% regular diet. Minimize treats for 1 week after moving the diet back to 100% regular diet