my 7 yr old a picky eater

by kristen
(woodbridge va)

my baby rottie is being a picky eater.

he is 7 yrs old and will not eat just plain dry dog food no more if i put wet in sometimes he will, if i make him gravy he gobbles it up! is milk gravy ok for him in his dog food and a question what can i give him for his hips i know he has slight pain sometimes?







Hi Kristen
Dogs can be picky eaters at any age and it's difficult to resist the temptation to make special meals or 'gussy up' the food in an effort to get them to eat more. However, that's not necessarily the right approach as the dog tends to just get fussier and fussier that way!

If you are feeding a premium quality large-breed dog food, then you can soak it in warm water, or even in milk/gravy if you want to, but I wouldn't do more than that. Nature won't let your dog starve himself (even if he's not eating as much as you would like him to) and it's his responsibility to eat, yours is only to supply the nutritious diet!

Older, less active dogs often tend to eat less than they did when they were younger, so it may be that he's getting what he needs, he just needs less right now.

As for his hips, there are natural joint supplements that may help, but it depends on the reason for his discomfort. I'd definitely suggest that you have your vet examine your dog before deciding on any sort of supplements or medications, as you need to know if he has a problem and if so, exactly what it is.

I hope this helps a little, and I wish you the very best of luck with your Rottie.