# golden won't eat adult formula and now owner needs therapy



## tp1999 (Nov 9, 2010)

My eldest golden has just graduated to adult food and he won't eat. He's always been extremely fussy, but for the past week he's probably consuming at BEST 1/2 of what he should be getting in a normal day. His energy level is still high throughout the day which is good.

His younger brother has just turned 6 months and on his puppy food. Unlike his older brother, he wolfs his food down 2.2 seconds. He's tried to sneak a morsel or two of his brother's food and has had no ill effects (at first I thought maybe the bag had gone bad which is why I'm saying this)

Our older dog is on Royal Canin Golden Retriever Formula. We've tried everything (moistening it, adding a little flavor) and he just sniffs it and backs away. He's a very sweet natured laid back dog...and lately he just doesn't seem himself. As his owner (mommy), this worries me. Although we feed him first, he can see his brother eating his old puppy food and this probably makes him even more sad. 

My husband wants to stay consistent and teach him to eat his new food, because even if we do switch brands, it's probably not going to taste as good as the puppy formula and we could run into the same issues. Once the bag is empty, perhaps explore a different option, but he thinks Bear is having a battle of the wills. If he's hungry enough...he will eat....the food is there. We both want the best for him, and our Vet recommended dry dog food and thought highly of RC. 

We live in OZ, and the premium dry food options we have are: Hills Science Diet, Eukanuba, Iams, Pro Plan, Nutrience, Advance, Eagle Pack, Holistic Select, Canidae.


Questions I have:

Am I a bad mom? 
Have you experienced any pains switching to adult formula and how long did it take and do you have any tricks/suggestions to share?
Would you recommend sticking it out until we finish the bag or "giving in"?
Are there any brands listed above that you think offer a better balance of high nutritional content and better taste?

Thanks for any help....this is Bear (on right) with his younger brother.


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## mylissyk (Feb 25, 2007)

Is the new adult food a different brand of food or a different meat content than his puppy food was?

I think your husband is right. Put his food down for 15 minutes, if he doesn't eat pick it up and put it away (don't let him get the puppies food). Feed him again at the next regular feeding time. He will eventually eat when he realizes if he doesn't it goes away and there is no other food being presented. Dogs won't starve when there is food being offered.

A little bit of tough love will help, you are in no way a bad mom!


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## tp1999 (Nov 9, 2010)

mylissyk said:


> Is the new adult food a different brand of food or a different meat content than his puppy food was?
> 
> I think your husband is right. Put his food down for 15 minutes, if he doesn't eat pick it up and put it away (don't let him get the puppies food). Feed him again at the next regular feeding time. He will eventually eat when he realizes if he doesn't it goes away and there is no other food being presented. Dogs won't starve when there is food being offered.
> 
> A little bit of tough love will help, you are in no way a bad mom!


great, thanks you for the advice. We're sticking with the same brand, he was eating the Royal Canin large breed puppy formula prior to the switch.


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## Stretchdrive (Mar 12, 2011)

*If I were to make a choice out of those options, it would be Canidae, or Holistic Select, but food choices are all personal preference, and what works best for each dog. In this economy though, who can afford to waste a bag of food. What puppy food was he eating? Have you tried mixing the two? Just ideas, good luck. Hope he comes around soon.*


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## Enzos_Mom (Apr 8, 2010)

If you'd like to be able to feed them both the same food, have you considered an all life stages food??


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## tp1999 (Nov 9, 2010)

Enzo, I haven't but will look into an all stages food.

Stretch, you nailed it....these bags are not cheap, especially in this economy. Two dogs, $120 per bag. Plus the RC golden recommends softening the food. We've tried to strain it by pouring hot water over it so that it moistens the kibbles but doesn't make it mushy. Regardless, the food goes wasted when he doesn't eat it! If Candidae and Holisitc are good foods, we might give one a shot....I know some brands, even RC have a lax return policy, but I'd rather avoid too much trial and error if it's unnecessary.

We've been mixing 1/4 of his RC puppy with his new big boy food, and he's managed to dissect the puppy kibbles out of his bowl.


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## RedDogs (Jan 30, 2010)

1) Try leaving it down and picking it up as recommended
2) Teach him to use kibble dispensing toys, initially with puppy food, and after he's figured it out, have it be mostly puppy, some adult...and gradually change the ratio.
3) I would work to get him to eat all foods not just his adult foods (and all you out there with puppies and kittens...expose them to a few different kinds of foods...it's part of socialization!!)... put it down, pick it up shortly and keep oging with it
4) Always consult your vet before doing any sort of diet changes.... I've met a few poor eaters who had health problems...everyone thought the dogs were stubborn...it went on for years..
5) Make him work for his food (via training).... if he initially doesn't want it, fine, wait a few hours and try training again. Give him a few pieces. If he eats, ask for beahviors, then feed a few pieces. Behavior. Food. behavior. Food. This can increase the value of food.


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## tp1999 (Nov 9, 2010)

RedDogs said:


> 1) Try leaving it down and picking it up as recommended
> 2) Teach him to use kibble dispensing toys, initially with puppy food, and after he's figured it out, have it be mostly puppy, some adult...and gradually change the ratio.
> 3) I would work to get him to eat all foods not just his adult foods (and all you out there with puppies and kittens...expose them to a few different kinds of foods...it's part of socialization!!)... put it down, pick it up shortly and keep oging with it
> 4) Always consult your vet before doing any sort of diet changes.... I've met a few poor eaters who had health problems...everyone thought the dogs were stubborn...it went on for years..
> 5) Make him work for his food (via training).... if he initially doesn't want it, fine, wait a few hours and try training again. Give him a few pieces. If he eats, ask for beahviors, then feed a few pieces. Behavior. Food. behavior. Food. This can increase the value of food.


these are great suggestions (I've written them down)

I've been so focused on the food part, I've neglected behavior training in all of this.


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## Finn's Fan (Dec 22, 2007)

Another thing I would do is switch the 6-month-old puppy to the same all life stages food you choose for the older one. Canidae has an all life stages; some dogs do wonderfully, others not so much. If there is no more puppy food in the house, and the older one still doesn't eat, you'll know it's not a fit of pique that he can't have what the youngster's having.


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## tp1999 (Nov 9, 2010)

Finn, I'm going to ask our Vet next week for an all stages food recommendation. My husband had a breakthrough moment today, he took Bear's food, warmed it up for a few minutes, put it in a human bowl, pretended to swirl it around, and dumped the food back in his regular bowl and he ate it instantly. I think he's probably just been feeling less special b/c his brother eating the food he likes better, so we'll change that once we get through this round.


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## mylissyk (Feb 25, 2007)

tp1999 said:


> Finn, I'm going to ask our Vet next week for an all stages food recommendation. My husband had a breakthrough moment today, he took Bear's food, warmed it up for a few minutes, put it in a human bowl, pretended to swirl it around, and dumped the food back in his regular bowl and he ate it instantly. I think he's probably just been feeling less special b/c his brother eating the food he likes better, so we'll change that once we get through this round.


Smart dog, he's playing you!!! lol


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## IowaGold (Nov 3, 2009)

Do not beg or trick your dog into eating! He needs to learn to eat when there is food available. I have people come into the clinic all the time complaining about how their dog won't eat (funny thing is, the dog in question is usually obese!) and all the elaborate rituals they have to go through to get their dog to eat (add this, warm that, etc., etc.). You are training your dog to be picky by playing into all this. A normal, healthy dog will not starve to death if offered food. You need to be stronger than he is. If you want to try a different food, that's fine, but don't fall into the trap of changing foods every time he starts to slow down eating, either (if there are other reasons for rotating foods that's fine, but "because he is bored with the food" is not a good reason).

This thread's title is very telling...it's obvious that you are worried about this and I would guess that means you are acting worried during feeding time too. Dogs really do pick up on this. If you can't feed the dogs without hovering/worrying, put them in their crates or separate rooms to eat (to prevent the pup from eating the older one's food) and leave them alone for 15-30 minutes. If one or the other doesn't eat, tough luck until the next feeding time comes around. Repeat the new ritual with every feeding until they are eating readily (then you can change the location, etc. of the feedings). Good luck!


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## tp1999 (Nov 9, 2010)

IowaGold said:


> Do not beg or trick your dog into eating! He needs to learn to eat when there is food available. I have people come into the clinic all the time complaining about how their dog won't eat (funny thing is, the dog in question is usually obese!) and all the elaborate rituals they have to go through to get their dog to eat (add this, warm that, etc., etc.). You are training your dog to be picky by playing into all this. A normal, healthy dog will not starve to death if offered food. You need to be stronger than he is. If you want to try a different food, that's fine, but don't fall into the trap of changing foods every time he starts to slow down eating, either (if there are other reasons for rotating foods that's fine, but "because he is bored with the food" is not a good reason).
> 
> This thread's title is very telling...it's obvious that you are worried about this and I would guess that means you are acting worried during feeding time too. Dogs really do pick up on this. If you can't feed the dogs without hovering/worrying, put them in their crates or separate rooms to eat (to prevent the pup from eating the older one's food) and leave them alone for 15-30 minutes. If one or the other doesn't eat, tough luck until the next feeding time comes around. Repeat the new ritual with every feeding until they are eating readily (then you can change the location, etc. of the feedings). Good luck!


Look, everything you're saying makes logical sense, but it's certainly not easy to watch a hunger strike - the moping around..the sad faces. I know...okay I realize now I'm getting played. New feeding drills will start today (and stay permanently).


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## IowaGold (Nov 3, 2009)

tp1999 said:


> Look, everything you're saying makes logical sense, but it's certainly not easy to watch a hunger strike - the moping around..the sad faces. I know...okay I realize now I'm getting played. New feeding drills will start today (and stay permanently).


It's hard being a doggy parent, but when it's in the dog's best interest, you have to be tough!


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## cprcheetah (Apr 26, 2009)

When Shellie was on Kibble, she came to me on Royal Canin Golden Retriever, she wasn't a huge fan of it, would eat it but never finished a bowl. Then I switched her to Taste of The Wild and she gobbled up her dinner. You might want to consider switching to Canidae or Holistic Select, both have more meat in them than the Royal Canin, which is what dogs need. Most foods have a return policy if the dogs won't eat them. But Shellie was never super fond of the Royal Canin.


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## Summer's Mom (Oct 20, 2010)

I don't know if this is politically incorrect, but I just wanted to chime in that another member and I who feed Canidae started having problems a little while back. Our dogs have eaten Canidae and all of a sudden reacted differently.. He lives in Canada, I live in Singapore - same reactions (diarrhea, soft poo) same timing, on a new bag.. I found that suspicious..

If you're going to switch, maybe try a small/medium bag first before getting a big one to prevent being stuck with a big bag that causes the runs!

I agree with the rest about having fixed meal times for 10 minutes, and using kibble dispensing toys.. I have one really fussy puppy (she could starve herself for 3 days and eat 1 meal before starving herself again to the point where she was losing weight) and I ended up putting chicken broth or a tablespoon of wet food on it every meal. Now she eats exclusively out of kibble toys - very good! She loves it..


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## Garfield (Apr 7, 2009)

First of all, your two dogs are adorable! How old is the "eldest?" And what type of puppy food do you feed?


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## tp1999 (Nov 9, 2010)

mylissyk said:


> Smart dog, he's playing you!!! lol


pretty much, yes. We stopped the elaborate bowl mixing, hovering worried mom behaviors and he just turned and walked away. Then he came back with hopeful eyes, panting and walk away pouting. I can't believe I've been suckered...no wait let me rephrase that....I can't believe I've been OUTSMARTED by a furry dog. I used to work in event planning and part of my job entailed bossing around 300 lb security guards, and I can't get my doggy to eat a bowl of food? :no: Anyway, the tough love has already begun and I'm reminding him that it's for his sake. Plus when dogs don't eat, it could be a sign they're sick - I don't want to potentially miss a sign because my dog is a finicky eater.


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## Sweet Girl (Jun 10, 2010)

First of all, that photo of your two dogs together is priceless.

Reading through your post, it made me wonder if perhaps the bag of adult food is "off." The fact that your guy is picking out the puppy food pieces suggests to me that he IS hungry. I would have thought a puppy and adult formula by the same company was similar in flavour, so it surprises me he is being that fussy. Does the food smell bad to you? (Well, I know it won't smell _good,_ but does it smell musty? Or rancid?).


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## tp1999 (Nov 9, 2010)

Sweet Girl said:


> First of all, that photo of your two dogs together is priceless.
> 
> Reading through your post, it made me wonder if perhaps the bag of adult food is "off." The fact that your guy is picking out the puppy food pieces suggests to me that he IS hungry. I would have thought a puppy and adult formula by the same company was similar in flavour, so it surprises me he is being that fussy. Does the food smell bad to you? (Well, I know it won't smell _good,_ but does it smell musty? Or rancid?).


Hi SG, thanks for your concern, I was worried about this as well, but we confirmed the food isn't bad - he's always been a fussy eater and from the portions we've given him and the food his baby brother has snuck accidentally we have determined there's nothing wrong. The fussiness is a learned behavior I'm working hard to correct now.


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