# New Puppy not eating enough! :(



## BeardyBunny (Apr 22, 2016)

Hello! We just brought home our 8 week old standard poodle puppy on Friday evening. He is so sweet and smart-totally a dream but there is one issue we are having with him- it is now day 4 and he is eating only about 1-1.5 cups of food a day, and for his size it's recommended he eat almost 3 cups!

We took him to the vet for a wellness check yesterday and he weighs a little bit less than when he went to the vet with the breeder, showing me that he has been losing a little bit of weight 

He does eat enough to be pooping a few times a day, but he just doesn't seem interested in his food. As per the vets recommendation we sprinkled some cooked white rice into his food (didn't help) and I have been adding water to the kibble and warming it up. I'm going to get some unpasteurized goats mild today and try mixing a little bit of that in.

The vet says not to change his food until he has been eating normal for two weeks, and that he may just need to get acclimated to his new environment, but my breeder says go ahead and start transitioning him to a different food in a day or two to see if he likes something else more (he is on a grain food right now, and I would like to switch him to grain free). It does seem like he simply does not like his food..

Has anyone had any experience with this? Any suggestions? I just want to make sure he gets the nutrients he needs to grow, and am nervous that he has lost weight (.2 lbs) at such a young age  Thanks!!


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## twyla (Apr 28, 2010)

Welcome, although not standard poodles both my toy poodle puppies were way too excited about "everything" to think about eating when I brought them home. I wouldn't switch up or add to what he is eating just yet, it can cause digestive upset in some pups. 

Question is what was he eating before? 

Oh and my Pia wasn't interested in her food until I started picking it up, she was like "Ah that isn't going to be there all the time" mind you Pia was 20 weeks when I got her so take that for what it's worth.


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## BeardyBunny (Apr 22, 2016)

He does seem pretty excited to be here! He's been eating Eukaneuba Large Breed puppy food, thats what the breeder fed him and we've continued that here at home too. He's a big boy at 10lbs, and the back of the bag says he needs 2 3/4 cups a day.

I would like to eventually switch him to a better quality food that's grain free.


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## Sammy the spoo (Jul 7, 2016)

Congratulations on your new puppy! My puppy was not that interested in food for the first few days too. I hand fed him for a while . He liked it much better than from the bowl. Also feeding him 3 cups sounds like a lot, but I would not worry about how much until he's settled to your home.


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

I think this is something that happens with many puppies when they are newly arrived at their forever homes. Both of my poodles did pretty much as yours is currently doing and they are both healthy and robust adults.

I would try taking some of the kibble and use it as treats for training. You can (and should be) teaching his name, sit, down, stand, stay and wait. If you look at the early parts of the 52 weeks of Javelin thread Link in my signature) and lots of the Javelin's Road to Ring Ready thread http://www.poodleforum.com/24-perfo...-hunting/205393-javelins-road-ring-ready.html you will see descriptions of things I have done with my boy to teach him basics, play games and the like. Even if you aren't planning to do any performance sports with you pup, many of the games, like "Get It, Get It," and "With Me" will fit the bill for teaching useful life skills while getting some food into him at the same time.

My Javvy came home on Fromm and I fed that to him fairly exclusively for about 6 weeks, with the last two being a transition to Blue Buffalo. Stick with your plan and add in some fun ways to increase interest in food and as your little one gets more familiar with his new home I am sure he will become a good eater. In the meantime one other thing you might try is soaking a portion of the kibble in some simple chicken broth (even just water that you boiled some plain chicken in) might make his food more enticing and easier to eat.


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## Lori G (Sep 19, 2014)

3 cups? Wow, that does sound like a lot! He is eating and pooping so I think he just needs time to settle in. If he is healthy and happy, I wouldn't be worried. I also think you can start switching is food VERY gradually.


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## Mfmst (Jun 18, 2014)

Our Poodles are very sensitive to change and he's probably just settling in to his happy new home. Buck didn't eat well at all when he joined us and I panicked prematurely and started trying all different types of kibble. My breeder feeds all her dogs grain free AM kibble, mixed with water and toppings from time to time to keep it interesting, and an evening meal of chicken necks. Luckily, Buck was always eager to eat the necks. Hand feeding can help, using kibble as training treats is a great idea. Some toppings that Buck likes are a dollop of cottage cheese or plain yogurt, finely minced cooked meat or chicken so he doesn't cherry pick it out, a crumble of Stella and Chewy dehydrated raw.

Congratulations on the new puppy, btw! I was assured by PF members that no dog ever starved to death with food available. Stay calm and carry on


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## BeardyBunny (Apr 22, 2016)

Thanks for the responses guys! I know-3 2/4 cups seems like SO MUCH. I checked the back several times but it does say to feed him that much. I know it's ok dog food but not the best (corn is the second ingredient) maybe that's why you need to feed the puppy more because there is just too much filler or something.

I did try using the kibble as treats during training but they didn't work very well as rewards-he wouldn't eat them or would SPIT THEM OUT LOL I bought some grain free lamb and salmon puppy treats yesterday for training and he was drooling over those. I got him to learn "sit" (as much as an 8 week old puppy can learn it with that short attention span lol!)

It definitely put me at ease knowing that no poodle has starved to death with kibble in front of them


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## JudyD (Feb 3, 2013)

I'll add another idea. Not all scales are well calibrated, so weight on one scale may not register the same on a different scale. That 0.2 pound difference might not be actual weight loss but scale error. I'd consider the most recent weight at your vet's office as the baseline and see how your boy grows from here.


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

JudyD you are so right on how the scale is set. I often use a scale at my nearby PetSmart to check weights. The only other scale I weigh them in on is at my vet's office. The vet's scale always weighs them as lighter than I think they are from the PetSmart scale. I actually think the store scale is more accurate since the one at my vet's office is right on the floor and the store scale is up on a platform. My vet even thinks his is a bit off since being so easy to get on, kids are on and off it all day long, but the store one is pretty out of the way along with not being at a height that a small child could easily jump on and off of. I think the vet has another scale in the back to weigh animals really accurately on to calculate dosages that are finely tuned to body weight. But each of the publicly available scales weighs pretty consistently.


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## FireStorm (Nov 9, 2013)

I've never been able to get Hans to eat the amount of kibble that the bag (any bag) recommends. I have always wondered if the manufacturers recommend feeding more in the hopes that they'll sell more food. 

I think you'll get mixed recommendations on adding toppers and such (some people find that it makes the dog picky) but I'm pretty indulgent when it comes to feeding Hans - I do vary his diet quite a bit and add various toppers when I'm feeding only kibble (when we are home he gets 1/2 raw, 1/2kibble). One thing I've found that he really likes is coconut- either coconut oil or plain shredded unsweetened coconut. It has a really strong smell and he goes nuts for it. Also, he will eat more food if it's in a puzzle toy or used as training treats than he will if I just put it in his dish. I don't know why the food is better if he has to work for it, but clearly in his mind it is.


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## JudyD (Feb 3, 2013)

As a lactation consultant, I did test weights on babies to assess milk intake. We had a very good scale, which we recalibrated fairly often with a standard ten pound weight. When we got a discrepancy between a weight on our scale and one taken on a ped's offic scale, I was confident ours was more accurate, so that was our baseline. 

Our vet's office is an hour and a half round trip, which means I don't weight my dogs as often as I'd like to. There's a brand new Petco near us--maybe they have a public scale. I'll check.


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

JudyD if the new Petco has a vet clinic they will definitely have a scale. Depending on traffic, our vet's office is 45 - 60 minutes away, so the store scale is my personal baseline.


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## Viking Queen (Nov 12, 2014)

When I brought my Iris home she did not like the food that the breeder had been feeding her. Would barely touch it. A couple of days later I mixed in some of the premium food that I had decided to transition her to. It was high protein, grain free 5 star rated food. She very carefully, piece by piece, set the breeder kibble in a pile on the floor, but ate each piece of the kibble I had chosen. The next time I fed her I just gave her the new food and she loved it.

I never did the whole topper thing as I thought it might make her just want the topper and reject the kibble.

Maybe your kid just does not like the food, like Iris.

My new pup, Poppy, was a lot like Iris. She rejected the food the breeder had been feeding in favor of the new kibble I had selected for her.

It does take time for a new pup to settle in. I think he will be fine.

Congratulations on the new pup!

Viking Queen

P.S. Pups on a higher quality food with fewer fillers do not eat as much as pups on other foods.


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## glorybeecosta (Nov 11, 2014)

When I get a new dog and they won't eat breakfast or dinner, I give the a small piece of chicken, or something tasty, then they will eat, it like gets them started. But only one piece.


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## Asta's Mom (Aug 20, 2014)

Congratulations on your new puppy. You might try adding a very high quality kibble as a mix in to his current kibble. I mix some ZiwiPeak into Asta's basic kibble and he eats it all up. (The ZiwiPeak is too expensive to feed just straight) Anyway, just an idea.


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## sidewinder (Feb 3, 2016)

How exciting, a new puppy! FYI, my nearly 7 months old spoo Mackey is eating 2 C of kibble with chicken broth on it in the morning and 2 chicken wings (or the raw equivalent) in the evening. He weighs at least 50 lb and is (at last measure) 26" tall. I haven't weighed him in awhile since he's now too heavy for me to pick up. I'll weigh him at the vet's soon. He is not thin at all, very muscular and fit and looks the perfect weight. I think that the food companies advise you to feed too much in order to sell more food.

When I brought him home at 8 weeks, he was eating Purina. My breeder free-feeds all her dogs with this. I wanted to change him to the food my other dogs eat, Taste of the Wild, and eventually to raw. I totally agree with you on the benefit of grain free (especially corn) food for dogs. I switched him cold turkey and he never had a problem. No soft stool and he loved his new food!

After about a week of eating the new yummy food, he started leaving behind half of his breakfast. I found that sometimes he would refuse food in his bowl, but he'd eat it out of a puzzle toy! I have a rubber toy shaped like a double clamshell that screws apart and holds a cup of food. He can tip it and move it around with his nose and paws and make the food spill out a little at a time. I gave him this in his crate on days when he didn't eat breakfast. It always worked! He still loves this toy! I still use it when he has to stay in his crate for more than an hour or so, even though he now eats up what's in his bowl pretty consistently.


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## CharismaticMillie (Jun 16, 2010)

BeardyBunny said:


> Hello! We just brought home our 8 week old standard poodle puppy on Friday evening. He is so sweet and smart-totally a dream but there is one issue we are having with him- it is now day 4 and he is eating only about 1-1.5 cups of food a day, and for his size it's recommended he eat almost 3 cups!
> 
> We took him to the vet for a wellness check yesterday and he weighs a little bit less than when he went to the vet with the breeder, showing me that he has been losing a little bit of weight
> 
> ...


Okay, first of all, there is no way an 8 week old puppy is going to be eating 3 cups. I send my puppies home eating approximately 1 and 1/2 cups daily. (1/2 cup 3x daily.)


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## MollyMuiMa (Oct 13, 2012)

Congrats on your new Spoo puppy! As far as food is concerned I'd try transitioning him to a better, tastier food! I'm lucky with my girl as she has no problem changing foods or protein types at all, never has! You won't know til ya try if your pup has a tummy of steel, so go ahead and try a 50/50 change.....also at 8 weeks he is teething and sometimes their gums are sore so do try softening the food, or get a smaller size kibble....the chicken broth idea is a good one, and you can also try using the water from a can of tuna! Happy Puppyhood!


P.S. CM is right! Also, with good quality food you feed much much less!


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## BeardyBunny (Apr 22, 2016)

I know close to 3 cups seems like a ridiculous amount of food for an 8 week old puppy to eat. My husband and I checked the back of the Eukaneuba bag several times because we couldn't believe the portion sizes.

So I went with my gut feeling which was that my puppy simply did not like the Eukaneuba food and went out and bought Fromms Large Puppy food. I sprinkled a little bit on top of his Eukaneuba and he went nuts for the fromm bits..left most of the Eukaneuba in place haha

We are going to continue transitioning him to the Fromms food which only says he needs just less than 2 cups a day for his weight and size...crazy difference! Definitely seems worth the extra cost. I got a 30lb bag and will transition him to grain free once the bag starts running low.

Thanks for the help!


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## CharismaticMillie (Jun 16, 2010)

BeardyBunny said:


> I know close to 3 cups seems like a ridiculous amount of food for an 8 week old puppy to eat. My husband and I checked the back of the Eukaneuba bag several times because we couldn't believe the portion sizes.
> 
> So I went with my gut feeling which was that my puppy simply did not like the Eukaneuba food and went out and bought Fromms Large Puppy food. I sprinkled a little bit on top of his Eukaneuba and he went nuts for the fromm bits..left most of the Eukaneuba in place haha
> 
> ...


Perfect! I sent my last litter home eating Fromm. Great food.


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## TrixieTreasure (May 24, 2015)

First of all, congratulations on your new baby boy!! I agree with others that he probably just needs time to settle in. As long as he's playing and running around, and eating/drinking, pooping and peeing, then I wouldn't be too concerned. You're doing great with him!

All of my dogs have been Toys, but I remember a few of them not eating a lot the first few day either. So, just give it time


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