I have a 7 week old Shih Tzu puppy. I have had him for 1 week already and he won't eat dry food, but he will try to eat my cat's dry food. What can I do to get him to eat his food? I tried mixing it with wet food, but he will lick the wet food and not eat the dry one. I tried soaking it in water, but that didn't work. He loves wet food, but I want him to eat dry food too.
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His jaw and teeth may not be strong enough for the dry food. I would consult the vet about this.
Your puppy may be attempting to eat cat food because the pieces are smaller than pieces of dry dog food. Most likely, your vet can advise you as to what type of dry food is best for a young puppy.
Did you buy puppy food or regular Kibbles?
At this young age he still needs small pieces so try to break up his food into small pieces like the cat food and maybe he will eat it.
Put a few pieces in a baggie and hit them with something to break the pieces up - he may always want small pieces (puppy chow for several months).
Mix a few pieces of cat food with his food - the cat food is nutritious and will not hurt him.
He got puppy food and it did work i brake it to pieces and he eats it now
So happy your fur baby is eating!! Wishing you all the best!!
Thanks for letting us know as we all love to hear that someone found a solution and their baby is doing well.
I know that many people do not think cat food should be fed to dogs but I cannot believe that anything harmful to dogs could be in cat food or they would have to have a warning on the label "Do not feed to dogs - keep away from dogs as it could be harmful".
That does not mean that I think it is okay to feed dogs a regular diet of cat food because cats and dogs have different diet needs and their food should reflect that. I do know from personal experience that my family dogs have regularly had nibbles of cat food (both wet and dry) and it did not cause them any problems.
Sometimes my son drops by with his Chihuahuas and if no dog food is available we will feed them small amounts of my cat's food.
I am only mentioning this because I would not want someone to panic if their dog eats a little cat food.
Please don't let the dog eat the cat food. My friend had a rescue boy who had only eaten cat food his first 2 years of life and he had severe kidney issues during his life which was very short because of the kidney issues.
Feed the cats in a place the dog cannot get to it! Also be sure he doesn't eat their poop. Same issues will happen with kidney problems if this keeps happening.
Check with the vet to make sure the pup's teeth are ok. Then get a recommendation for the best method to integrate the dry food into his meals. Our little ones liked the tiniest puppy food nuggets.
Prayers for the pup and you! May you have a blessed history together!
Not sure how to define a few times of eating it, but I do know from first hand experience, that dogs who eat regular meals of cat food and cat treats can develop serious kidney issues, obesity and have poor general development (if fed cat food when they are pups.)
F, who was a border collie, was in a situation--where before my friend rescued her and gave her a good home and good medical care--where she ate cat food for approx. two years.
From the moment she was rescued and throughout her short but sweet life, she had serious kidney issues, skin issues, teeth issues, and was generally in poor health. It was so, so, so sad. Such a sweet gal.
This is why I preach do not let your dogs eat cat food!
There are many articles written about this topic like the ones below.
My friend learned that the dogs get a taste for the cat food and if they can't get to the food, and they can get to the cat's litter box, they will eat the poop to satisfy their cravings for whatever is in the food that attracts them. This is a situation where it is better safe than sorry! I will step off my soap box now. Thank you for listening!
www.vetstreet.com/
pethelpful.com/
pets.thenest.com/
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