dry food/canned food

lillysmom · April 04, 2006, 10:24:23 AM

I just switched Lilly over to big people food. The dry food just seems like she is fighting to chew the food. I am wondering if she would do better on canned food? Does anyone use canned food or mix the 2 together?
Thanks!
Paula

PattyInAK · April 04, 2006, 10:34:49 AM

I have always just fed dry dog food. I feed Purina One. The kibble is small and my dogs have had no trouble eating it.

April · April 04, 2006, 11:24:09 AM

big people food? Do you mean like dinner scraps or leftovers? If so that's really not healthy.
If you mean a raw diet or a home made one that could work as long as you keep it balanced.
Dry food might still work if you moistened it a little with say chicken broth or a little warm water. I'd probably try that first, but there are tons of canned foods out there that are good.

lillysmom · April 04, 2006, 11:33:49 AM

Hi April, oh no, by "big people food" LOL, I meant I just took her off puppy chow. When I posted regarding that, I just called in big people food. She never gets leftovers, except MAYBE once in a blue moon. I will try to moisten a little bit like you suggested. Actually, I have been using chicken broth, just a little bit, but I was concerned that wasnt ok for her. Should I warm the broth?
Thanks!
Paula

Jenny G · April 04, 2006, 11:56:24 AM

I feed Berman and Lucy and heaping 1/4 cup of dry Wellness with a big spoonful of canned Wellness two days/ day.

April · April 04, 2006, 12:03:11 PM

Quote from: lillysmom on April 04, 2006, 11:33:49 AM
Hi April, oh no, by "big people food" LOL, I meant I just took her off puppy chow. When I posted regarding that, I just called in big people food. She never gets leftovers, except MAYBE once in a blue moon. I will try to moisten a little bit like you suggested. Actually, I have been using chicken broth, just a little bit, but I was concerned that wasnt ok for her. Should I warm the broth?
Thanks!
Paula

You don't have to warm the broth. If you made the broth yourself it would be fine, or if you buy it it should as well. (When Cajsa would get chicken and rice for upset tummy I'd just cook a piece of chicken and use that broth to make the rice or to soften her food.) The only thing is if you buy it make sure you get the low sodium, fat free (or nearly fat free) and that there isn't onion in it. A lot of commercial chicken broths have onion in it so be careful of that.

MindyKay · April 04, 2006, 12:03:51 PM

I feed Ozzy both dry and canned Natural Choice, topped off with some green beans to help him keep his figure.

Mike · April 04, 2006, 03:18:43 PM

Quote from: April on April 04, 2006, 12:03:11 PM
A lot of commercial chicken broths have onion in it so be careful of that.

As someone who is allergic to onion, almost all commercial chicken broth has onion in it.

Barb · April 04, 2006, 03:31:58 PM

I feed my 10 yrs old Brandy Solid Gold canned and Rudy, my 5 yr old the Solid Gold kibble.

A couple times a week, Rudy gets a nibble of the canned.

Brandy's is microwaved so it is warm and Rudy's kibble has warm water put on it.

A little warm water and a little zap in the microwave makes the kibble smell come out a little bit and may be more appealing to Lilly. A dash of the canned mixed in won't hurt either !

April · April 04, 2006, 03:32:17 PM

Mike, I didn't realize that it was that prevalent. I do tend to prefer my own homemade broth and foods, but I wouldn't have thought that broths from the store would be that difficult to find without onion. I guess it's all in the "seasonings" or "flavorings" right?

Dee Dee and Hallie · April 06, 2006, 11:54:27 AM

Hallie gets canned in the morning and kibble mixed with canned at night. (plus supplements, pumpkin, fish oil, probiotics, vitamins, etc etc). I also give her some green beans to help fill her up. :) I always had the school of thought that canned wasn't good food but after researching it sounds like a good canned food nowadays is better for them than kibble. I can't do raw...so I went with mostly canned. And both her canned and kibble are without preservatives, corn, or fillers, etc. (she gets chicken soup for the pet lovers soul kibble and eagle pack holistic select canned) It's so hard to know just what to feed these guys!

LUVMYGUNNER · April 07, 2006, 07:08:43 AM

Gunner and Petunia are on Evo/Natural Balance I mix both together. If your gonna use chicken broth make sure its low sodium. Also you can mix the dry with a little canned food. You can perk up her food by adding plain yogurt or plain pumpkin to the kibble. I also add apples/celery/green/ beans or brocolli to their diet. Brocolli givews some puppers a little more gas than usual sometimes.

doxielady5569128 · April 07, 2006, 03:08:53 PM

Porky just switched to "big boy" food too. He has done fine on Purina Pro Plan for small breed dogs. The chunks are very small and easy for him to chew. You may want to try a dry food formulated for small breed dogs. Then the chewing on the dry food will keep Lily's teeth cleaner for a longer period of time then canned food. And it doesn't smell as bad either.

Hope you can find a solution soon.