Mercedes55 Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 We had always been so used to our old labrador eating pretty much anything and wolfing it down in seconds that we are becoming concerned about how our little shih tzu is just such a fussy eater to the point of at the moment pretty much refusing to eat her normal food. When we got her last Summer she was eating Nature Diet food and seemed fine on that and never had much of a problem other than the odd day when she didn't seem too keen on it. However she developed what the vet thought was colitis and after 6wks of being on a diagnostic diet the vet said she was either grain or chicken intolerant. We bought her some Taste of the Wild kibble and started mixing that with the diagnostic food with the plan to move her over to the Taste of the Wild completely. However she has now decided she doesn't like it and will go about 2 days without eating anything. I have some Natures Menu grain free raw food and it's been in the freezer for nearly a week as I'm a bit unsure about raw food and worry about germs cross contaminating things in the house, which I know is a bit daft as lots of people safely feed it to their dogs. I had always planned before we got Daisy to feed her a raw diet but got sidetracked with everything when she got sick back in January as my vet said it wasn't a good diet to feed her, although I am aware that vets know very little about nutrition. I know shih tzu's have a reputation for being fussy eaters and I know she isn't sick but by the same token I don't want her to get ill by not eating as she is only 5.6kg so not very big. If I knew she would be happy on the Natures Menu then I would give it a try, but I guess I would have to also give her raw chicken wings according to their website and once again that grosses me out too. I'm also a bit unsure as to how to cross over to raw food as from what I understand you shouldn't mix processed with raw, so would I just defrost a whole block and try her on some or could that possibly cause problems taking into account her colitis? Sorry to ramble but I've got myself in a right pickle about her food Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bramble Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 Hello Mercedes55! I've been thinking about you since you lost your lab, a horrible time for you all, and I did wonder if your little Shih Tzu might be missing your lab which is putting her off her food? I feel exactly the same as you about the raw food, but did get some of the Natures Menu stuff for Willow when she is in full on fussy mode (which fortunately isn't too often, touch wood ) and I know how you feel about feeding the raw stuff. I'm veggy so not wildly keen on having raw meat around, but keep the Natures Menu in the freezer and then just defrost it as I need it - whilst defrosting I keep it in its own sealed box in the fridge (it takes longer in the fridge but I feel happier about it that way) and have to say I've had no problems at all and Willow LOVES it - it's just remembering to defrost it in advance which is the prob as I often forget! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mercedes55 Posted June 6, 2013 Author Share Posted June 6, 2013 Thanks for the reply Bramble. I don't think Daisy is missing Mishka as they didn't really get along, was more a case of Mishka not wanting to be bothered by a puppy I think, so for the most part they were in separate rooms and the only time they were together was when out walking. Obviously we are still missing Mishka and the house is so quiet without her, just glad we have Daisy or I think I would have gone out and just bought another dog, which wouldn't have been the most sensible thing to do. I've popped a pack of the Natures Menu into a container and put it in the fridge to defrost and will see how she gets on with some of it tomorrow. I think she only needs about a third of a block a day and as long as she can tolerate the chicken in it then I may get some more. I have phoned around the local suppliers as I bought the lot I have now direct from Natures Menu website and it cost me over £7 to have it delivered and as I was paying so much for p&p I added on a bag of their nuggets which had defrosted by the time I got them. They sent me a replacement, which had also defrosted when I got it, so not sure ordering directly from them is the answer. Fortunately the blocks of food were still frozen so they seem to be okay. Just need to get my head around raw food Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bramble Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 It's the nuggets I use - so much easier as you can just defrost as much or as little as you need. If you have a Pets @ Home or Countrywide Stores near you, they usually have this in stock - or you could do a postcode search for stockists on the Natures Menu website to see if there's anyone near you that stocks it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mercedes55 Posted June 6, 2013 Author Share Posted June 6, 2013 It's the nuggets I use - so much easier as you can just defrost as much or as little as you need.If you have a Pets @ Home or Countrywide Stores near you, they usually have this in stock - or you could do a postcode search for stockists on the Natures Menu website to see if there's anyone near you that stocks it? We have a Pets@Home but they don't stock the grain free one and as we think Daisy may be grain intolerant we wanted to try her on that. I did phone Natures Menu and they suggested I ring around local stockists and I found one about 20mins away who are willing to order in the grain free ones for me. If she likes the ones I have I may get the nuggets too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dogmother Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 Can you see if a nearby butcher will provide you with pet mince? Mine does that at a fraction of the price, they also supply raw, frozen bones. Dogs are rather like chickens (and children)... unless they are sick, then they will try anything on if they think they will get something else out of you. Mine know that if they don't eat what's given, then they'll not get anything else so they wolf it down. they did try it on with LBB when they stayed with her last week, but she has the same approach and they were soon back to eating it' they won't starve themselves. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lavenders_Blue Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 Can't add any advice as what has already been said is excellent. However,if it's any help, feeding raw meat does get easier as you get used to it. I'm also a more or less lifelong veggie but have got to the stage where it doesn't faze me any more. I bulk buy my raw meat as I have a great supplier about 15 miles away. It's all stored in the garage in a £20 freezer from Gumtree. The last bulk order saw me and hubby chopping up 35lb chicken carcass in the garage into meal sized portions - with the door shut so the neighbours didn't think we were totally cuckoo! Re hygiene, it's no different to having 'human' meat in the house. I wipe down the worktop with antibac spray after doing Tango's meals and have a steam mop for the kitchen floor where she drags her bones around Bowls and any utensils go in the dishwasher so come out sterile. It's exactly the same routine as when I cook meat for hubby (although he thankfully doesn't drag his meat across the floor). I also defrost and store the meat in containers in the fridge (plastic takeaway tubs) to keep the fridge clean. No upset tummies here so far! ETA - the usual advice with switching to raw is just to go for it! Perhaps stick to one variety of Nature's Menu until you know she is okay with that and that it's not upsetting her tum if she's got some allergies, then you can gradually add other varieties in until she's getting a varied diet. I also second the suggestion to look round for alternative sources to NM, as it's expensive to feed long term. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dogmother Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 It's exactly the same routine as when I cook meat for hubby (although he thankfully doesn't drag his meat across the floor). Sorry, I had to laugh at that; I had images of him dragging a bison across the floor in a caveman-type way. I've always fed dogs on a raw diet, with a few additions such as tinned pilchards (real treat) and a small amount of gluten free, fish-based kibble with their morning meat. As L_B says, the hygiene aspect is no different from with human meat, mine are very fit and healthy on this diet, with clean teeth and sweet breath; even the vet has had to admit that they are the healthiest dogs he's seen, and has stopped trying to sell me their 'special dried feed'. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lavenders_Blue Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 It's exactly the same routine as when I cook meat for hubby (although he thankfully doesn't drag his meat across the floor). Sorry, I had to laugh at that; I had images of him dragging a bison across the floor in a caveman-type way. I'm sure he'd like to cultivate his hunter-gatherer image. I'll only start to worry if he clubs me over the head and drags me back to the cave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
