20 month old Dogue not keen on new adult kibble

[Caracroft]

Hi all,

Just looking for advice from other owners of Dogues or other Giant breeds. We have fed our Rhiannon on Royal Canin since getting her at 8 weeks as it was the food the breeder used. We fed her Giant puppy then Giant Junior and have just attempted to change her to Giant Adult!

She has a habit of turning her nose up at food for no apparent reason, ever since we have had her. (Very different to Labradors we have had before !) The first meal of adult / junior mixed was eaten rapidly and I breathed a sigh of relief

But since then she keeps turning her nose up at it, she has managed to pick out all the junior at times and other times she completely leaves all of it. We have put cooked chicken and fish on it out of desperation but she just picks out the chicken and even when the fish totally smothered the kibble she just licked it all off.

We've tried ignoring it and not giving her anything else but she seems to be stubborn enough to starve herself! Her ribs and spine are showing now. I'm worried about returning to Junior which she is also leaving anyway and her not getting enough protein content as she seems to need building up.

Any advice on other dog foods/diets etc. would be great thanks for reading

Cara

 

[Ajizy]

Try raw diet.

 

[Ajizy]

Research raw, there are groups on face book for ex. Carnivore carryout.... if interested I can help you.

 

[Iymala]

Just so you have some basis, royal canin is a popular choice for breeders due to their "breeders club membership." Breeders get significant discounts on foods, free delivery, free puppy kits, and a lot more http://www.royalcanin.com/pro-breeders/crown-partners/about-our-program
It is within their best interest to promote the food and use it.

There are other quality kibbles out there that are much more affordable and use better quality ingredients. Overall, royal canin is a low quality food in my opinion with a high quality price tag.

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[tlov]

Check out dogfoodadvisor.com there is a lot good info and ratings for different dog foods. I wouldn't feed Royal Canin. The protein source is chicken byproduct. It seems very expensive for a food with byproducts in it. I don't know how you feel about adding toppers to the dog food. I add canned green tripe, egg, or meat to my dogs' food. That might help. My dogs' especially like the Trippett green tripe and you can stir it in the kibble and it shouldn't be easy for her to pick out. Good luck, I hope she starts eating better. I have an old dog who started not wanting to eat and that's when I started added toppers to their food.


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[Iymala]

In the royal canin, giant breed junior formula I dont like that rice is the first ingredient rather than a meat source, chicken by-product meal is a very low quality meat source, and 4 of the top 5 ingredients are grains. It is a very cheaply made formula.

Dogfoodadvisor.com is a great website that will not only rate foods, but explain what ingredients are and why they are good or bad. Not all dogs will do great on grain free or grain inclusive foods but it will give you a good understanding of what to look for in ingredients to determine the quality of a food.

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[Caracroft]

Thank you all so much for your replies.
I will investigate raw and the website food advisor to get more information.
I really don't know anything about feeding raw and worry about making a mistake.
I have been topping her food but she manages to eat all but the kibble even if it means licking every single kibble to get the fish or egg off it.
Concerned now about RC so urgently need to find an alternative.
Thanks again
Cara

 

[Yamizuma]

We use Acana Pacifica. Tali, our DDB is allergic to chicken and wheat. Chicken allergies are very common in the DDBs and some other mastiffs. It may be less of a case of the pickies and more of a case of the dogue knowing something in that food is not quite right for them. Sometimes dogs find things that are horrible for them quite delicious too, damn that double edged sword.

I can't do the raw thing due to location and other issues, but I have not read good things about the food you are using. It's not cheap, either. Lymala's suggestion is great.


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[Caracroft]

Hi Yamizuma,
Thanks for your advice, it's funny I was looking at Acana last night, I hadn't heard of it before but it came up on another dog food list with a good review. It's from Canada as you must know but I did find one distributor in the UK, so will continue to compare it
Thanks again

 

[Yamizuma]

I'm in Canada, and of course we are a land of rocks and trees and rocks and trees and rocks and trees and water! You may be able to find something very similar that is local-ish to you. There are also several mastiff peeps from the U.K. here on the forum. My mum was from Ireland and half my family tree is there! My BIL and SIL are in the Cottswalds on holidays today.


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[Caracroft]

Hi again, I have to just say Tali is gorgeous, I had a peep at your profile album of her and it was great to look through.
I actually saw Acana in a local ish pet store today but only small bags which would cost a fortune for my 50 kg baby girl! Lol!
Looking for a similar UK pet food with natural ingredients
Thanks again

 

[Iymala]

We have a few members from the UK that could give suggestions. I'm completely unfamiliar with the options there and prices. My only suggestion is look for a kibble that has a named(chicken, beef, duck, etc) meat meal before any grain or starches. The more meat in the first 5 ingredients, the better quality, normally.

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[Yamizuma]

Hi again, I have to just say Tali is gorgeous, I had a peep at your profile album of her and it was great to look through.
I actually saw Acana in a local ish pet store today but only small bags which would cost a fortune for my 50 kg baby girl! Lol!
Looking for a similar UK pet food with natural ingredients
Thanks again

Awwwwww! *blushing* Tali is wonderful and so pretty! Part of what makes Acana good for us is that it's from Canada,where I am. And it is not cheap here either, sadly. Happily, there are great options, including ones that work for others but not me. Great advice here.


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[glen]

Hi we are In uk we feed Eden holistic Its online and they deliver free our 3 cc's do great on It no grains or crap.the price Is £50 for 15kg but we buy In bulk so get a bit cheaper.whereabouts are you.

 

[Caracroft]

Hi glen, thanks for your reply, I hadn't heard of that brand so will have a look. We are in South Essex.

 

[glen]

Your welcome.iv checked they deliver where you are.

 

[Yamizuma]

Hi we are In uk we feed Eden holistic Its online and they deliver free our 3 cc's do great on It no grains or crap.the price Is £50 for 15kg but we buy In bulk so get a bit cheaper.whereabouts are you.

We pay $54 for 15 kg! So wow, at the exchange rate, you pay nearly double. Ouch! But then again, if DH and I go for a swanky night out, we pay a bit the equivalent of 40 euros or so...so...the our two dogs gat 2 to 3 weeks of food for that, and in the grand scheme of life, they are well worth it if you can swing it financially.


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[Smokeycat]

I'm in Canada, and of course we are a land of rocks and trees and rocks and trees and rocks and trees and water!

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LOL. This made my night to read. Love the arrogant worms.
My non-mastiff is a dog that will starve himself if he doesn't want to eat something. In addition to finding a food that he likes I also feed him satin balls to help put weight back on him when he needs it. Satin balls are a high calorie food/treat that you can make, plenty of different recipes both here and online searches.