# Chihuahua Won't Eat Kibble



## Dorothy's Mom (Apr 8, 2015)

We just (on Monday - two days ago!) adopted a rescue Chi. She is 3 yrs old and about 6 pounds. BUT, she needs to gain about half a pound, looking at her very skinny belly and her ribs. She is quite thin. She was raised with very large dogs and did not get to eat much due to dominance of the other, bigger dogs. Her tail has a crook in it, as well, because a big dog bit her once and it was never repaired. It is healed but now forever bent. So I do know she had issues eating before. We don't have any other dogs - just a cat.

Anyway, she won't eat kibble. She'll eat the CAT kibble, any table foods we give her (which we do not want to start on THAT!) but she will NOT, NOT, NOT eat dog kibble.

We have tried both the brand and flavour the rescue had her eating as well as two other brands. Nothing....she's not interested. 

She is otherwise quite fine. She is friendly, happy, wagging her tail and running around, whines when we leave, acts like a lunatic when we return.....she seems like quite a well-adjusted dog considering she has been in three homes (her original home, the foster home and now ours) in the past 6 weeks. Poor soul. 

Suggestions, advice?


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## michele (Jan 12, 2009)

What food is she on?


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## Dorothy's Mom (Apr 8, 2015)

She is on GO Salmon recipe:

Salmon Dog Food | Petcurean GO! Sensitivity + Shine

We tried this because this is what she was supposedly eating at the foster home. We have also tried the GO brand lamb formula. And then, we tried Performatrin brand dog food (made by Pet Valu - it is very highly rated as excellent nutritionally). 

She won't eat any of the above. 

But, currently she IS eating the Performatrin brand cat food.


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## CuddlesMom (Feb 22, 2014)

It looks like good food, but maybe it'll help to switch to another brand. Maybe if she doesn't like another brand, you can try canned food. It might even help to add canned food to the dry food to make it more appealing. 

You can also try Ziwipeak.

In addition, it'll definitely help to keep her away from eating the cat kibble. If they had a choice, all dogs would prefer cat food to dog food. It may be filling her up and also making her dog food seem less appealing. It's also not healthy for her.


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## Dorothy's Mom (Apr 8, 2015)

CuddlesMom said:


> You can also try Ziwipeak if it's not too expensive for your budget.


Cost is not a factor for us. Our last dog was a twice-a-day insulin injection Miniature Pinscher and I made alllll her food. So, actually just being able to actually go out and BUY food is both a time-saving luxury and a cost savings to us! Pretty much any dry food will be far less expensive than the cost of making all of a dogs food! 

But, meh, I loved her so I never saw it as either expensive or time-consuming. :love5: Her name was Bella. 

Anyway, back to the topic...sorry, I got a little off topic thinking about her. I still miss her every day. It's been about two months since she passed.

I will have to look for Ziwipeak as I have never heard of that.


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## CuddlesMom (Feb 22, 2014)

It'll definitely help to keep her away from eating the cat kibble. If they had a choice, all dogs would prefer cat food to dog food. It may be filling her up and also making her dog food seem less appealing. It's also not healthy for her.

I hope you can find some kind of food she likes. 

If you go with Ziwipeak, you might have to order it online.

Bella sounds like she was a really lucky dog .


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## michele (Jan 12, 2009)

Mine love Ziwipeak,5* food


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## Wicked Pixie (Oct 14, 2011)

Personally I would never feed kibble, there are loads of better choices available.
The kibble manufacturers have spent years brain-washing us into believing it is the best thing to feed a dog, is necessary for good health, etc etc and it simply isn't true.
Ziwipeak is a great dried food, or there are good wet/canned foods and frozen options too.
You will definitely be able to find something that is really good for her that she really loves.
Have a look at dogfoodadvisor.com it is an American site but many of the brands will be available in Canada.


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## zellko (Jul 3, 2013)

Both of mine didn't eat much the first week while they were adjusting. I'm trying to get weight on my little rescue, too. She eats Merrick wet. I was feeding Whole Earth Farms wet but it had liver in it and it stunk up the kitchen and made her pooh stinky. Merrick looks and smells good enough to eat. Both WEF and Merrick are totally sourced in USA and the plant is supposed to be cleaner than some human food plants.


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## Chiluv04 (Dec 19, 2013)

zellko said:


> Both of mine didn't eat much the first week while they were adjusting. I'm trying to get weight on my little rescue, too. She eats Merrick wet. I was feeding Whole Earth Farms wet but it had liver in it and it stunk up the kitchen and made her pooh stinky. Merrick looks and smells good enough to eat. Both WEF and Merrick are totally sourced in USA and the plant is supposed to be cleaner than some human food plants.



Love the Merrick brand! It is a superb food, both kibble and wet. I just recently started adding wet food to their diets and I went with Merrick, and my crew loved it.


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## dannbarbery (Feb 4, 2014)

Probably because of its diet before you adopt the chihuahua that is why it is not easy to feed her with the kibble now. Why not introduce kibble to her in a small amount like mix it with her usual food.


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## Moonfall (Nov 16, 2012)

I personally feed acana. If money and time aren't an issue, a raw diet might be beneficial to her- I feed raw to my ferrets with great success (ferrets MUST have raw diets!!). 

My chi has nasty allergies, and acana is a single protein food, so it helps a lot to control the allergies and avoid nasty surprises sneaking into his food. He is allergic to chicken, which a lot of foods have in them. He even has to use special allergy formula pill pockets for his medication. Oi. 

Pick a five star food, one with as much meat as you can find, and try a couple of formulas (some high end pet shops have samples to try!) and see if there's a flavor she likes. The pet store I use allows you to return anything if your dog does not like it, or exchange it for another thing, so that is nice. You might also consider the Honest Kitchen food, which is very expensive but human grade food that you rehydrate prior to feeding. My dogs enjoy it when we get free samples and I add it to their food as a treat.


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## Dorothy's Mom (Apr 8, 2015)

What are all of your thoughts on dental health and a diet of only soft home-made, raw or canned foods?

Yes, I brush her teeth. But I also brushed my Min Pin's teeth and she had horrible teeth once she became diabetic and was on a strict home-made (soft foods...chicken, rice, pumpkin and veggies) diet. her teeth were great when she was on kibble. But about two to three years after going on a home-made diet AND with brushing her teeth went downhill fairly fast.

Thoughts on teeth and soft/home-made foods????


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## Huly (Mar 5, 2012)

Raw bones work wonders on teeth!


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## Wicked Pixie (Oct 14, 2011)

It is a myth that kibble cleans teeth.
High carb diets (all kibbles are high carb) contribute to dental issues. so a wet/soft diet that is high meat content and low carb such as raw or a quality canned is better for dental health. Raw bones, bully sticks etc are great for keeping teeth clean.


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## Dorothy's Mom (Apr 8, 2015)

Wicked Pixie said:


> It is a myth that kibble cleans teeth.
> High carb diets (all kibbles are high carb) contribute to dental issues. so a wet/soft diet that is high meat content and low carb such as raw or a quality canned is better for dental health. Raw bones, bully sticks etc are great for keeping teeth clean.


Thanks for this info. Now I will have to go off and research this.


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## Moonfall (Nov 16, 2012)

Bones are your best bet for teeth, or other hard chews. Kibble doesn't help teeth at all.

Interestingly, my ferrets are 4 and 5 years old now I believe and they have spotless teeth- that's because of the bones and raw meat they eat.


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## Dorothy's Mom (Apr 8, 2015)

Just an update on Dorothy and the food. Well, here I am again - making all the dog food! She finally would eat - chicken and rice. I had a diabetic dog before her and made alllll her food so I am adept at what needs to be included to balance the diet.

Looks like Dorothy is going to be on a homemade diet from here on it. Lucky little pup! But I love her!


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## lulu'smom (Jan 4, 2012)

We have one with stomach issues and eats a homemade diet, so I know how about time consuming! Lulu eats Ziwi Peak in the AM and Primal freeze dried in the PM. Both of those are very hard to find in local stores, although Primal is sold at Pet Supplies Plus if you have one in your area. I'm in sure if wag.com or chewy.com sells in Canada, but if so and if you don't mind ordering food online that could be an options. I order Lulu's ZP and get it in 2 days.


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## Dorothy's Mom (Apr 8, 2015)

lulu'smom said:


> We have one with stomach issues and eats a homemade diet, so I know how about time consuming! .



Yes, it is time consuming but I really don't mind doing it. You know, Dorothy is very thin. Very thin. I thought it was because she lived with big dogs and maybe couldn't get enough time at the food dish. But since we have had her she has been very finicky and had some digestive upset regardless of the many different brands we have tried in the last week. 

I finally just gave her rice in an effort to stop her diarrhea and give her digestive tract a break. Then I slowly started adding bits of protein to it and she seems to really like it. She actually gets excited about eating now.

I have to wonder if she is just sensitive and no one ever took the time to sort that out and find something that worked for her.


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## lulu'smom (Jan 4, 2012)

Dorothy's Mom said:


> I have to wonder if she is just sensitive and no one ever took the time to sort that out and find something that worked for her.


I'm sure you are right. And how great that she has someone to love her enough to take the time and effort to figure out what helps her to make her life better!! Both of you are lucky girls!!


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## Dorothy's Mom (Apr 8, 2015)

lulu'smom said:


> Both of you are lucky girls!!


I'm the one who is blessed. :love7:

She has really helped to heal my broken heart from the loss of my last furbaby. Dorothy is truly wonderful! I love her already. :love4:


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## lulu'smom (Jan 4, 2012)

Dorothy's Mom said:


> I'm the one who is blessed. :love7:
> 
> She has really helped to heal my broken heart from the loss of my last furbaby. Dorothy is truly wonderful! I love her already. :love4:


I understand that too! Gidget helped heal our broken heart after suddenly losing our first Maltese, Lacy, when she was a little over 4 1/2 yrs old. We had Lulu, who was 3 yrs old at the time, but our little Gidget not only helped us but Lulu as well.


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