[jvalentino]

I have a 10 month old Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, he is a picky eater, we feed him chicken with veggies and white rice. He is spoiled and given table scraps sometimes. Lately he has refused even the table food and only eats some when he is hand fed, then walks away. However, he has energy and is healthy, how can I get him to eat?

[labman]

Don't worry about it. Chances are he is overweight from eating too much of the wrong thing. It is very easy to over feed small dogs. He may not maintain his health on the current diet once he is a little older. It is very difficult to select a diet that is complete and balanced. Your best chance for him to lead a long, healthy, active life is to switch to a commercial dog chow. Since he is a little picky, go with a concentrated, meat based chow. Since he is already eating chicken and rice, you can't go wrong with Pro Plan adult chicken and rice or a similar product. Put his food down. After 15 minutes, take up what wasn't eaten and do not offer him anything until his next meal. If he doesn't eat anything for a few days, no big deal. I had a 5 month old Shepherd go 3 days on a few nibbles.

Where do I get such an idea? What do I know, and why should you follow this?

Suppose you knew a breeder that bred hundreds of dogs a year, mostly Labs, Shepherds, and Goldens. They provided all the medical care for most of them the first year. At the end of it, they did a complete physical including hip X-rays on all of them. They then spent $35,000 training them before giving them away. They have a large data base of breeding records. Dogs with any physical or temperamental problems are unfit for the program and are a waste. Their well equipped clinic and vet staff are available for serious problems as long as the dog is working. When the dog is no longer able to work, it is replaced at again the $35,000 plus a large emotional upheaval for the person depending on the dog. They have experimented with different diets and exchanged data with other such breeders. Don't you think that what ever they are feeding is healthy and safe? What kinds of controlled studies do you have backing your choice of diet? How objective are the sources of your information? Is your dog's health, their top priority?

I have been raising puppies since 1991 for a large dog guide school that does exactly that. What do they feed? They instruct us to feed Pro Plan chicken and rice puppy chow until 4 months and then switch to adult Pro Plan chicken and rice. I know enough of the people with the trained dogs to know they continue the Pro Plan. The group I meet with monthly for training includes people that have raised puppies for 6 different service dog schools. Some of them are feeding other premium commercial chows, including Iams and Eukanuba. Any dog owner wanting a healthy, long lived dog can make this regimen work, leaving more time to spend on the dog. It is also relatively economical.

How much to feed?

September 07, link to chart replaced with LongLiveYourDog.com - Life Span Study - Rate Your Dog

[jvalentino]

He is actually not overweight-- he is 15lbs which is average for a Cavalier, it just seems he's picky, we keep giving him tastier and tastier foods. Also he seems to eat when hand fed, but when I leave it in his bowl, he walks away. He started with pro plan puppy and stop eating that, then we swithced to Caesars, now table food-- but I guess he's testing us. Also should if he skips a meal should I feed him dog snacks in between?

[labman]

You really need to get him on dog food. Limit his snacks to what you must use for training.

Have you obedience trained him? This is a poor time of year to start. With somebody the right age in the family, 4-H dog training is a great idea.
In my area, clubs form soon after the first of the year. Even many urban
Areas have 4-H. For info look in your phone book under government listings
For extension or cooperative extension offices. Ask specifically about a dog
Or canine club. The dogs see all the people and dogs in the household as a
Pack with each having their own rank in the pack and a top dog. Life is much
Easier if the 2 legged pack members outrank the 4 legged ones. You can learn
To play the role of top dog by reading some books or going to a good obedience
Class. A good obedience class or book is about you being top dog, not about rewarding standard commands a treat. Start at http://www.dogsbestfriend.com/ No kids the right age? Work from a book, or find a class after the first of the year.

[jvalentino]

He actually went through puppy kindergarten and is house broken and bathromm trained. Im not saying he's perfect, but he is a well-behaved dog, listens pretty well- just is spoiled with his food. As a little pup, he was sick and had trouble holding down his food. He always threw up the dried food, so we had him on a light diet called a/d- then we swithced him to Purina pro plan Chicken and rice. The problem is we feed him sometimes when we snack or eat, so I guess he expects better, so then it swithced to Caesars, now table food. As far as table food is concerned, I spoke to my vet and he said as long as you feed them either chopmeat (lean) or steamed chicken, with rice and carrots- or another veggie, that is fine. Trouble is, he has become picky with even this. How can I get him back to eating the right way, also is there a chance I can get him back to dog food?

[labman]

James Herriot in his dog stories includes a badly spoiled dog like yours, he had keep for a while to get it eating a good diet. Your dog is much younger. Follow the program in my original post and he should come around before long. It will not be easy for you to watch, but you must do it for him. You may need to cut out all snacks for him for a while. Normally, a little doesn't hurt, but this is a special case.

[jvalentino]

So your saying Purina Pro Plan and not table food- also leave the food there only 15mins and no snacks. Suppose the whole day he eats nothing and I don't fee him snacks, like you said that's hard to watch? If he starts eating dog food again, can I ever feed him some table snacks here and there, or no?

[labman]

I think I already said I had a 5 month Shepherd go 3 days on a few nibbles. No it isn't easy. Once he is eating dog chow regularly, likely you can slip him a little other stuff once in a while.