My puppy is a picky eater with dry skin. Should I mix wet food?

Some dogs can be very picky, and if Brownie enjoys eating food with a little wet food mixed in, that's not a problem. Many brands of dry dog food also carry equivalent wet foods, and you can mix that in while still providing a balanced diet that is healthy for Brownie to eat. If you do add in wet food, you may just want to decrease the amount of dry food slightly to account for the increase in calories for adding extras.

It's absolutely fine to mix together wet and dry food to feed your dogs. Just make sure the wet food does not contain any of the ingredients that cause his allergies. Typically with picky dog eaters, I recommend putting food down for 15-20 minutes, then picking it up when the time is up even if the dog hasn't eaten. The dog then gets no more food until the next meal time, no treats, human food, etc. At the next meal time, again put the food down for 15-20 minutes, picking it up when the time is up. No food again until the next meal time. What you are teaching the dog is that they have to eat during meal time, or else they won't get any additional food. You have to be very strict on making sure Jax gets no other food except during meal times. Best of luck, I hope this helps!

Dogs can sometimes be very picky! You can try mix together the dry and canned food so he can have both at the same time. You can also try soaking the dry food in gently warmed low sodium beef or chicken broth. Over time, decrease the amount of broth you add to the dry food until he is eating the dry food only. It's ok for Buddy to eat canned food only, but I would give him dental chews daily to help keep tartar build up on his teeth. Good luck, I hope this helps!

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!

It's fine to mix together wet food and dry food for Buddy. Each brand of food has a different daily recommended allotment, so read the instructions on his food to know how much to feed him. Best of luck.

Most commercially available canned foods are still balanced diets. As long as Zoey is eating a food formulated for growing puppies, she should still be meeting all of her nutritional needs. However, being a small breed dog, she is naturally more prone to developing dental issues as she ages. Dry food is a bit more abrasive to the teeth, which will help to decrease tartar formation. You can try mixing a small amount of dry food with her wet food to try to tempt her to eat it. Otherwise, be sure to brush her teeth daily to maintain oral health. Be sure that you are feeding a high quality brand of food (Science Diet, Purina ProPlan, and Royal Canin are some of my favorites), and keep Zoey on puppy food until she is 1 year old. Anytime you change flavors or brands of food, mix the old and new foods together over 5-7 days for a slower transition to decrease the incidence of vomiting and diarrhea. Wet food should be just fine provided that you stay on top of brushing her teeth. :-) I hope that all goes well!

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.