New mastiff owner - problems with feeding

[Opie]

Hey we just recently got a new Mastiff Puppy he is a mix between the Dogue de Bordeaux and Old English Mastiff. Right now he is 9 weeks old and I don't even think he is 20lbs yet. His dad was 200lbs and his mom was 150 lbs. WE have him on the same puppy chow that the original owners were feeding him so we didn't have to many drastic changes with new home and kids and food etc. This is day 3 we have had him and we have had no accidents in the house yet we bring him outside every hour and he just does his business and we have been giving him some small dog treats. I have read thru a few things online and some say to give him beef hot dogs for a treat and not dog treats some say to give them carrots. We give him a treat every time he goes potty outside and he eats them slowly and he has a firm stool. We also have been giving him about 2 cups of kibble in his bowl and he doesn't really touch it. Last night I gave him a can of Pure Balance canned putty food and he ate it super fast and couldn't get enough of it. Now we have him 2 cups of kibble this morning in his bowl and he hasn't touched it he just kinda sniffs it and leaves it be. What should we be doing different? I just want to care for this Puppy the way he needs to be taken care of.. So many different ideas on food and feeding and everything its over whelming please help us.

 

[Smokeycat]

Cute puppy. There are a few things that could be the cause of trouble eating. The first is he is still in a new environment. Second it sounds like he may not like the food the breeder was feeding him. Eating the canned food shows that he was hungry and then not eating the kibble just reinforces the second point in my mind. As long as he is healthy I wouldn't worry that he is under 20lbs, my EM was only 24lbs at 11 weeks.

 

[cinnamon roll]

Welcome to the forum.

 

[DDSK]

Try mixing a little of the canned food with the kibble and see how he likes that.

 

[Opie]

Ok Ill try mixing in some canned with the kibble here tonight and see how it goes. Is pure balance a good food to feed him or do you suggest I find something different? And after looking at alot of weight charts he seems so under weight.. Should I be concerned should I bring him to the vet?

 

[Smokeycat]

Don't put too much stock on the growth charts. Each dog grows at their own rate and there is a wide range at each age even within a breed. Instead go by his body condition. You want to be able to see the last 2-3 ribs.

 

[Opie]

I can see the last 2 ribs on him and he spends alot of time going to his kennel or under the coffee table and sleeping.. I guess for the most part thats all he does is sleep. Hes not very playful at all sometimes he will play with a toy but for the most part he just sleeps is this normal? I know he is still young and what not but I am used to lab puppies where they always seem so wild when they are young.

 

[Smokeycat]

Kryten didn't seem to know he was a puppy until he was 6 months old. Prior to that all he did was sleep, eat and grow.

 

[Mario]

I struggled with getting Mario to eat enthusiastically for close to a year- he would ignore his food, take a few bites then walk away ... Until I started putting a small amount of warm water on it. Now he gobbled it all up.
I know it's the water because he was on Diamond, then we switched to TOTW and 1 time he are it all up then the next time he ignored it. After a few days I remembered seeing the warm water mentioned here so I gave it a try. it works for us.

 

[Opie]

Tonight I mixed one can of dog food with one cup of dry puppy kibble and he ate the entire thing. Does anyone ever feed their dog brown rice?

 

[NeSaxena]

Ummm, not really... Dogs don't process husks as well as we do, their digestive tracts are pretty small. Things like brown rice, wheat etc may also cause kidney stones. Instead of brown rice, normal white rice is better for them, but not as regular food because there isn't much nutrition there. Though the advice for an upset stomach is boiled rice with hamburger meat, that's only till the stomach is fine.

In regular meals, a good quality all life stages or adult kibble without chicken or grains in it works best. If you're up for it, maybe you could try switching over when the current kibble pack is done

 

[musicdeb]

Your pup is still stressed from the change in environment. Give him time to adjust. Pups will eat when they are hungry. Pups generally eat 1 to 1 1/2 cups of kibble 3 times a day. Avoid free feeding the pup so you can control what he eats and to avoid the possibility of bloat.

Check out Dog Food Reviews and Ratings | Dog Food Advisor for kibble ratings and customer feedback.

If you change the food, do a slow transition to prevent diarrhea.

 

[Opie]

Well we got Opie to eat all his food last night but we also have been having puppy issues today. Today when we got up he had a few #2's and a #1 in the crate and now today I have been taking him out after meals and after every drink and every hour. It seems odd that I can take him outside and he goes potty but when I bring him back into the house as he sits down he pees again. I know hes still young but is this totally normal? Wed did get him to eat all of his food today we just took the dry puppy kibble 1cup and put aobut .5 cup of warm water on it and he ate every last piece. So good news is that he is finally eating .

 

[Mario]

Glad to hear the warm water helps. it's worked great for Mario. Do you have lots of snow? Think maybe he's just not quite done going to the bathroom yet when he comes back in? maybe keep him outside a few extra minutes? Potty training in the snow is why I've never wanted another Christmas pup. I'd much rather get one from the Easter Bunny.

 

[DennasMom]

Glad Opie's eating well! Now you just have to keep an eye on the ribs, so he doesn't over-indulge. You want these big guys to grow slow and stay lean, that helps the bones grow strong and in pace with all the muscles. Also... more food & water in = more #1 and #2 out...

For potty times - we also had a spring-time puppy, so we spent a lot of time outside. Potty times were all rewarded with play time... so, first thing in the morning, we'd calmly carry the puppy outside and put her in the approved potty-spot, then stand there and wait...and wait... as soon as the potty started, we chanted "potty, potty, potty" as the stream was flowing, and stopped when the pee stopped (thus creating the word/action association). As soon as the potty was over, we yelled "GOOD POTTY" in a happy, happy voice, and then had a potty-party with lots of interactive play (tug, balls, chase-the-human games, etc.). After a few minutes of play, the #2 is normally ready, too (and sometimes a second #1)... so you can get them both done in one outing.

 

[musicdeb]

Has the pup has a vet check to rule out UTI? Sounds like he can't help going pee in the house. If there is no UTI, then it could be excitement pee.

 

[Opie]

Nope we have not had a vet check yet as he was just at the vet a few days before we got him and we are going to bring him in when het gets his next booster shot. No accidents following the rest of the day and no accidents last night woo hoo!! Now if only we could get him on a schedule where he plays during the day and sleeps at night because right now he sleeps all day and at about 9pm he wants to play. Any one have any good crate training ideas? I have been putting him in there with a treat every so often thru the day if I need to shower or something and then he whines and cries but I was told not to let him out until hes done crying or they will get trained to cry until they get let out. He also hates the leash when ever he sees it he hides and he wont follow me to the door he fights me and pulls against it and just wants me to carry him lol

 

[musicdeb]

Does he have toys and cuddly things in the crate? Buy him a stuffed animal a little bigger than he is so he can cuddle.

Have him wear the leash in the house to get used to it for a few hours each day. Show him the leash is ok and good thing because he can go outside. It takes them time to get used to the leash.

 

[Opie]

OK so I really need some serious help here lol. I have been letting Opie out every hour and immediately after he eats. He will go pee and than he walks around for a bit and goes pee again and on occasion he will poop. I praise him I give him treats I do everything I think I am supposed to do. I am also trying to crate train him by putting him in the crate randomly thru the day for periods of 15min to an hour and sometimes 2 hours. I have been working overnights and when I go to work at 10pm and come home at 6am no accidents. Today I let him out and he walked around for a good 20min out side in the cold with me and dug in the snow and went pee and than he was cold and wanted to come inside. I put him in his crate and gave him a treat and went to take a shower and I was in there for 20 min I come back up stairs and he went poop and pee and than proceeded to walk in it and get it all over everything. So I cleaned him cleaned the crate gave him a new blanket and took him outside for 30 min. I than went to the kids school program and was gone an hour and when I came home he once again pooped and peed and walked all over in it and made a mess again. I don't understand what his fascination is with going potty in his crate is but it needs to stop.. I know he likes his crate because I leave it open and he will just go lay in there and hang out or take a nap or crew on his bone. He freely roams in and out of it and 90% of the time he doesnt make a sound when I close the door. But if he does whine its for about 5 min and than he goes to sleep. What am I doing wrong?

 

[musicdeb]

Check out the video I posted about getting your pup to go potty outside in the training/behavior section. Sounds like he's not liking the cold and snow and therefore not going potty like he should. Are you able shovel a path for him so he can feel the ground? When we had snow/ice, Titan refused to go poop for 3 days.