fussy eater

hi all my cavalier is just 11 months old , she is a very fussy eater, i get worried as at times she will not touch food for days, I know she loves our food which i dont mind giving her but when hubby works away i dont cook much.
I have tried her with dried dog food snubs it, she hates pedigree chum with a vengeance, i get her to eat the butchers and my dog from morrisons but when she gets used to that, here we are again back to square one. I spoke to my breeder she said none of hers are like that and she told me to ignore her, she will get the message, yeah for 3 days, i was worried, put chicken in with the dog food then she got fed up with that, HELP what can i do this is exhausting, i do love and worry about her eating habits. from rosa

 

Dry food soaked in gravy always worked for me as an inviting dish. I don't use tins only ever give the dog dry food with various vegetables when we have them.

 

banana man I tried that she just walks away and takes to her bed and sulks even when i put little mixer in she will just not eat it.
I honestly think this dog goes on a hunger strike, yet iff i made a ham sandwich or toast she would happily take it from me and woof it down. For all the days she does not eat she does not look thin but i do worry about this behaviour. on the funny side of things maybe she is an anoerexic dog. I give her sunday dinners with veg sometimes she eats it and other times she just smells it and walks away.
I thought about taking her to the vet, iff she gets past the 4th day without food i am seriously will have to think about doing this and she is so an intellegent little dog maybe she picks up on my stress of her not eating.
from rosa

 

Hi Rosa

Your cavvie sounds just like my Cocker!!!! Bramble is now 18 months old, and we had a terrible, terrible battle with food.... Time and time again I was told put the dried food down twice a day, leave it for 10 minutes and if she hasn't eaten it, take it up, and DO NOT give any nibbles, etc. Well, I could do this for 2 days then, like you, got so worried I would give in and put some pilchards or sardines over it (which she then scoffed down like no-body's business!!!). This went on for months. I now feed her James Wellbeloved dried food, and finally got the courage not to give in. It is a battle of wills - you must stake your claim to being pack leader. Suddenly, one day out of the blue she just started to eat, and has done so ever since (apart from the odd days). She will today steal off the table if given a chance and has been known to nab a biscuit in mid leap whilst passing by. She even stole Mr HB's pizza in a split second off his plate!!! :eek: :eek:

Just make sure she has plenty of water and her poo's are not mucus-y. In this heat, even I am off my normal food.... if in doubt speak to your vet....

I was told, and it is so true, that we are too soft on our mutts!!!!
Peservere, and it will come good in the end!!!

Good luck!!

 

pleased to hear i am not alone honey bee, I was told to do that just leave it for 10 mins which i have done and pick it up in fact i read that in a cavalier book i have.
Yes our lovely poochs know how to get round us, this has been going on virtually since i got her from 8 weeks old, its a battle of wills.
I have never heard of james wellbeloved dried food do you reckon i will get it here north east.
will i have to go to a specialist dog store.
thanks banana man and honey bee for your input.
from rosa

 

Hi Rosa, look here:
http://www.wellbeloved.co.uk/
If you click on stockists you can put in your post code and see if there are any near you. It's good stuff.
My daughter and grandson have the same problem with Pickles, a 3 year old Sheltie, but when he is here with my dogs, he wolfs down whatever they have with gusto!
I unfortunately have the opposite problem, a dog who will eat anything that looks remotely like food, and I have a constant battle to try to keep her weight down!

 

Hi Liz we cant win can we, will click onto that website thanks for all the help as it is worrying, I have got dried dog food and she will not entertain what i got, used to leave a bowl of it down for her and she used to play with it and throw it all over the kitchen floor.
Will try it with gravy and veg what banana-man suggested, will have to stick to my guns when i get this food as i am in a no win situation.
from rosa

 

Hi Rosa!!!

Was preparing tea and dropped a 1/2 frozen sausage on the floor. Bent down to pick it up and greedy-guts got there first - it had all gone in a split second!!!!! :eek: :eek:

 

fussy little madam has left her food today made pie, chips puts some down and she has left that also, gone to bed in a huff, iff she wont eat what can i do cant force her to eat, I am not keep putting other food down am i right just to leave her or should i keep trying other food i will be on all day and night. from rosa

 

Hi Rosa! In our Algarve English newspaper here there was a similar situation recently and the vet who "hosts" the page said the same as above ... leave it for 10 minutes then take it away. Eventually they will decide they either to get eat or not. They won't die in three days he said .. be a bit hungry and then may act properly.

Like the new Avatar, Honey Bee ... is this your new aerobics routine ?? :D :D :D

 

Rosa get Jan Fennel's book The Dog Listener - invaluable for all dog humans! She is fantastic, and also uses the 10 minute thing

 

That is excactly what i have done lady of leisure as i dont like to leave food lying around in this weather it just goes off anyway, we are heading up the coast for a run out tommorow a place close to Alnwick, northumberland and i bet she eats the fish and chips when we arrive there.

from our land of fog, winds and the odd good weather :rolleyes: :eek:

 

Enjoy your outing tomorrow, Rosa ... be it fog, winds or sunshine and particulary enjoy the fish and chips ... for me, thanks :D :D I do it occasionally but have not really got the knack of it at all .. shame!

 

jay i nearly bought the dog listener will have to get it, I have a cavalier king charles book he just mentions the 10 min thing, the author also says that cavaliers are not lap dogs, i disagree with him as mine is a proper lap dog, she would sit over me all day and she follows me everywhere, she is like my little shadow and there is not a show without punch as the saying goes its a fact.
lady of leisure looking forward to tommorow thanks and i will definately enjoy my fish and chips, have you got a fish and chip shop over their in portugal. from rosa

 

My sister has cavaliers, she raises money for research into the heart conditions older cavaliers get, and I agree with you they are very cuddly dogs. What I think your author meant was that they are not delicate little dogs, they love long walks, can be very energetic, and don't need any pampering.

I have got Jan Fennels' book too! I have also got 'Dog Tricks step by step' by Zeigenfuse and Walker, which has a lovely cover picture of a cavalier leaping right in the air to catch a stick. This is a good book for help with teaching commands.

Try not to worry about your fussy madam not eating, she really will pick up on your feelings. She won't starve herself, honest!