# Dry vs. Canned Food



## LittleWing00 (Nov 23, 2008)

My chi is very picky with dry food. He has never been a good dry food eater. He is a year old now and I tried feeding Orijen mixed with Merrick Grammy's Pot Pie, a 5 star wet food. He now picks around the Orijen to get to the wet food. I tried giving him a little wet food by itself and he gobbled it up his food for the first time since I have had him. Would it be OK to give him wet food and then just give him toys to chew on and brush his teeth regularly? Plus I feel like the Orijen is so tough for chis.


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## OrchardLane (Aug 30, 2008)

I would stop feeding him the Merrick's completely. Wet food is not great for dogs overall because dogs are designed to eat bones not mush. It is essential for their overall jaw health (not just teeth) to crunch things.

Also chewing hard items releases endorphines for them so it is also a good mood stabilizer.

Yes Orijen is "tougher" than some foods but that is because of the unique cooking method they use to produce the quality food they offer. 

We have had a Chi with only 4 front teeth (no molars to crunch) as well as 4 week old puppies eating Orijen. Don't let your little one fool you. Chihuahuas can handle it. He is just holding out for the "yummy" wet food which to a dog is like an ice cream sundae to us.

The only times we feed wet food is when we switch puppies from puppy mash to Orijen (there is a few days in there that they transition from almost liquid to solid and we do use Merrick's Puppy Plate for that!).


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## Katie (Apr 9, 2005)

I think eating is more important than not eating, but that's just my opinion. As long as you provide some good chew toys for him to exercise his jaw or give him biscuit type treats and also brush his teeth the canned food will not harm him. 

I'm a firm believer in that the "best" food may not be best for every dog and that you have to find what works for you and your pet. 

Go with what you're comfortable with


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## mychiisqueen (Jan 3, 2008)

My suggestion is (it might not work for your lil one but it worked for mine) with the orijen i acted like it was treats and made a fuss so Emma thinks she was getting treats (sneaky sneaky) and now when i give her her dish its full of "treats" and during the day i give her kibbles as treats.. worked for me might work for you


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## *Chloe* (Feb 6, 2006)

i feed one dry meal and one wet meal a day, Twig has to have wet food as its the only way i can get her to eat her joint suppliment but i would probably feed it anyway as she loves her wet food- for a while she wouldnt eat the dry food which she gets a lunch times but after persisting for a few days she realised that was all she get at that time of the day


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## kobi0326 (Jun 13, 2008)

How do you get a dog to actually chew dry food? I don't feed my dog canned food, but I do wet his food (Wellness Core) to soften it before I feed Kobi because he won't chew his food when its dry, he will just swallow it all whole in one huge gulp and end up gagging on it. We've even got him one of those special bowls to help slow his eating, but he still inhales it without chewing. If I soften it, even though he still eats it fast, at least its in a more digestable form. Should I be more worried about his jaw & teeth or the proper digestion of his food? I worry he doesn't get the proper nutrition from his food if its swallowed without chewing.


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## OrchardLane (Aug 30, 2008)

There are very few dogs out there that won't eat what is put in front of them IF it is the only thing offered. What happens is that we step in and provide multiple options - which allows the dog to select which one it wants (IE: holding out for the one most appealing). 

Dogs won't starve themselves because they don't like a food. They are smarter than that and should be given credit for it. 

Once they learn that there are not 3 or 4 choices then they will eat the food you provide. We have seen this time and time again with dog owners we have worked with over the years. Some were "forced" to change dog food brands every week (a costly habit!) OR having to add homecooked items/gravies/wetfoods to the diet because their dog went "off" the new food. The dogs were dictating the diet - not for medical reasons but to see what else was going to be offered.

As soon as they offered one food without adding items, offering another alternative etc - the dogs stopped being so "picky" as they knew they were going to get one thing and one thing only so take it or leave it. 

Dogs are smart, they can be manipulative. Being the human in the relationship means making the appropriate choices for your dog and sometimes that comes with a price of having to have a few days of "tough love".

It is hard for the first few days - but being the smart canines they are - they catch on quickly that the kitchen is closed and it is better to eat what is offered than to go hungry.

If you aren't happy with Orijen then switch to another 6* food but avoid wetfoods. Your dog will be better off in the long run. 

kobi0326: Some dogs will never chew their food - some are "hoovers". It won't affect his digestion of the kibble. His stomach acids are strong enough to digest whole kibble without chewing so you don't need to worry about that.


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