# Help with feeding (again) Ziwipeak that Coops would rather starve than touch



## Becku (Aug 2, 2012)

Hello all,

So Coopers diet has been dry ziwipeaks for breakfast and raw for dinner. 

He has never loved his ziwis and to be fair learnt to eat them as he would get nothing else until they were gone, even if that meant skipping dinner until he ate them (thanks to suggestions from these forums).

Last time we bought a big bag of ziwis he refused to touch them (I don't know if they have a stronger flavour when new?) But I introduced them mixed with egg and he ate them until he would eat them without egg.

Last week or the week before we ran out of ziwis and just fed raw until now (when we got a new bag).

The problem is he turned up his nose and wouldn't touch them; so I thought I would just try the no feeding until he ate them. 
He skipped them (for dinner and breakfast and dinner again) and then I started to panic as he was clearly starving. He saw us eating and actually started drooling.
I tried everything to get him to eat them.

-soaked them to make them soft
-mixed them with gravy to hide the flavour (i know i know)
-tried to hand feed and pretend I was eating them and then 'offer' him some
-did the mixing with egg trick

nothing worked. He picked at little bits off egg and left all the ziwis. (Which was just this morning and the final thing i have tried)

I actually think he would starve to death than eat these and I really don't see me being able to just not feed him as that is cruel. I don't know what to do I feel like crying we spent $160 on this bag of food that we really can't afford but always try to give him the best of the best.

What else can I do? It's not like I can mix these with his normal food as this IS his normal food. Normally he still picks at a few but these he isn't going near.

Please help :crybaby:

EDIT: I just want to add the obvious that I am not silly enough to be feeding him a single tidbit of our or any other food etc. The ziwis (what is in his bowl) is the ONLY food he is getting.
Is this just a war of the wills? Did I cave to early and that it isn't actually cruel?


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## Evelyn (Oct 14, 2012)

I fed mine ZP, just in the evening, for a year then all of a sudden all 3 of my dogs, at the time now I have 4, we getting loose bowls and one was throwing up. They wanted nothing to do with it anymore and I was glad to take it away, having so many issues, some dogs just can't take raw or ZP.They always got Fromm bird game kibbles in the am.I would slowly start changing his food. If something doesn't agree with your system and or you just don't like it would you eat it? Right now I feed mine , still the Fromm kibbles with one table spoon of Fromm can food in the am, and Stella and Chewy in the evening they are all doing well. Chi's have to have food or they will get low blood sugar and go into shock, so I would give him what he like and not withhold food.


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## Becku (Aug 2, 2012)

Ziwis have never given him trouble in regards to being unwell/vomiting etc. On the contrary he actually is noticeably healthier while eating them (shiny heathy looking coat, more energy etc). He gets nice food that he enjoys in the evening, however this food isn't giving him all his nutrients etc just by itself as he refuses to eat cooked or raw organs and fish. So the compromise IS ziwipeaks. He can't have it all his way or he wouldn't be very healthy.

Would you feed your children candy all day every day just because they like it? 
I am not here to defend my choices but I need help with what to do. And just feeding him chicken/beef every day isn't a healthy option.


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## pigeonsheep (Nov 8, 2008)

Blek personally I never liked the smell of ziwi and dex wouldn't touch it at all when I tried. U said u fed raw for dinner...did he at least eat that?


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## Becku (Aug 2, 2012)

Yes he eats all raw meats other than fish and organs as well as cooked meats (chicken beef lamb etc).
But I can't just feed him that as he isn't getting everything he needs.


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## pigeonsheep (Nov 8, 2008)

Hmmm there's a lot of people on here that feed purely raw. Ifeed freeze dried raw so can't help u there hehe. Wonder what u can doooo


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## Becku (Aug 2, 2012)

Most people who feed raw also make sure to give organs or fish to suppliment those nutrients however Cooper refuses to eat any organs or fish (cooked/raw/dried) and so ziwis in the morning was my way of ensuring he is still getting that aspect from his diet. 

Plus I simply don't have time to make / buy that much raw or even cooked foods every day. Ziwis are quick handy and ready to go


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## KrystalLeigh (Aug 17, 2011)

As I was reading your post I was wondering, is the meat he gets as a raw meal the same as his ziwi? Just wondering if for some reason he may have started not liking a specific meat. 

I completely understand where you're coming from. We have recently tried two premade raw brands and failed. We spent a lot of money (not as much as you though!) and I wanted to introduce another great food into her rotation. I've had to just throw in the towel and accept that she doesn't like it. 

We fed ziwi peak for quite awhile but have recently stopped. I know a few others on the forum have had trouble with it as well and have noticed differences in colour, etc., yet some dogs still do amazingly well on it. 

Could you maybe introduce another dehydrated food instead of the ziwi meal for a little bit and then introduce the ziwi again to see if he has the same reaction? 


Sent from Petguide.com Free App


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## coco_little_bear (May 30, 2012)

Which ziwipeak flavour do you feed? I had similar problems with my Lilo recently. She started hating the venison and fish one. She used to love it, then started only tolerating it and then it got to a point where she would rather starve than eat it... even with her favourite foods mixed in it. Since I switched back to just venison last week, she restarted eating it without problems. Maybe you could try switching to another flavour? But if you've tried that already and he hates them all this much, it might be worth looking into another food similar to Ziwipeak.


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## Evelyn (Oct 14, 2012)

Becku said:


> Ziwis have never given him trouble in regards to being unwell/vomiting etc. On the contrary he actually is noticeably healthier while eating them (shiny heathy looking coat, more energy etc). He gets nice food that he enjoys in the evening, however this food isn't giving him all his nutrients etc just by itself as he refuses to eat cooked or raw organs and fish. So the compromise IS ziwipeaks. He can't have it all his way or he wouldn't be very healthy.
> 
> Would you feed your children candy all day every day just because they like it?
> I am not here to defend my choices but I need help with what to do. And just feeding him chicken/beef every day isn't a healthy option.


No, but I didn't make my children sit at the table until they ate what they hated. They did have something sweet, even candy, but not all day, and grew up to be great adults. You asked for help and I was just giving you my thoughts.


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## Wicked Pixie (Oct 14, 2011)

How about trying an alternative dried food? Orijen now make a freeze dried, and Primal is getting good reviews on here. My lot go loopy for Ziwi, so I have never had this problem.
Or how about trying the frozen complete raw patties? Or canned Ziwi?
I think Ziwi Peak is a great food, but it isn't doing him any good in the bowl lol. How long you persevere is down to you and your dog. How is his weight? An adult dog who is on the podgy side would be treated far less leniently than a puppy or a dog that struggles to hold weight, in my house.


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## Becku (Aug 2, 2012)

Evelyn said:


> No, but I didn't make my children sit at the table until they ate what they hated. They did have something sweet, even candy, but not all day, and grew up to be great adults. You asked for help and I was just giving you my thoughts.


Not giving him anything until he ate his ziwis was advice from the lovely people here at these forums and for the most part it worked until now 
And he has his nice foods at night (hence why he needs his healthy food in the morning-his ziwis etc) I am not trying to be rude, I just don't want this thread to become a debate that isn't my intent 

Now as an update I mixed his ziwis with meat and he ate it BUT I had to cook the ziwis... so I don't know if that takes out the nutrients as this defies the whole purpose. Does anyone know? Or is it still beneficial cooked?

Also yeh he is having the lamb one and usually gets beef or chicken for dinner. I didn't bother trying the fish and venison as he hates fish hehehe.


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## Becku (Aug 2, 2012)

Also wicked pixie, I checked out primal and it looked great.... until I went to primal Australia and realized they only sell wet food here and not kibble/dry food  The only other raw food like ziwis that I know of here is K9 and that seems much of a muchness so he probably won't like that either. I don't know what to do as he doesn't eat actual organs/fish and he won't eat the alternative either... How can I keep him healthy if he refuses to eat all the good things


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## Wicked Pixie (Oct 14, 2011)

I would definitely try the K9 Naturals, maybe see if they will send you a sample?
Does it have to be a dry food? Most dogs love the canned ZiwiPeak.
I have one that hates/refuses organs, so we have to be sneaky to get them into him. I don't know if it is just time/perseverance, or having four other dogs around, but he is much better at eating his organs now than he ever used to be.


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