food question I like feeding hard food, even the cats eat premium hard. I think it is better for their teeth and my girls, and boys have all their teeth. Problem, my new rescues have teeth issues. Brie had numerous teeth removed so she has great difficulty chewing hard kibble, I've mixed it with soft and that helps but I don't want to sacrifice the health of her remaining teeth. Bridget has more teeth and she just had a dental before we got her, but her bite is very off and with them not meeting properly she also has bite issues. She can chew hard food but it is time consuming. I've been separating Brie and Bridge during feeding from the rest of the pack and giving them a mixture, and the oldsters are not real happy with that arrangement..as you can imagine...they think the newbies are getting something special and it is causing some jealousy issues.. but I'm hoping there is an alternative that I could possibly feed all my kids that is going to keep their teeth cleaner and stronger but enable the newbies to eat. Yeah, I'm asking for the moon here. Any suggestions would be appreciated. |
What if you crush the kibble a little for the newbies? That may helps so they can all eat together.... |
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Btw, thank god for your washables...just throwing that out there! |
The best thing you can do for teeth is brush them regularly. My dog is 10 and has NEVER needed a cleaning and his teeth look as white as a puppy's. I've fed soft home cooked food their entire lives. Kibble will not remove or prevent buildup on the teeth - you need to brush and do dental care. If you want a 'gravy train' type kibble, Merrick Grammie's pot pie kibble is such that if you add water to it, it makes its own "gravy." While I do not use this food now (or any commercial dog food for that matter), I have used it in the past and my dog's liked it and it was a little softer. |
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you could just add water to the food they are eating now and it should soften it up. I usually add hot water to the kibble and then let it sit until its room temp (30mins). By that time it should be soft enough for them to easily eat. This way they are all getting the same food and the others won't be jealous. |
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I realize "theories" change often, but I think the consensus of opinion, now, is that wet food is better for the pups' teeth, than hard....I'm all on board w/raw, which is soft, but mine get after dinner bully sticks, for their chewing instincts...Their teeth are all wonderful, w/the raw and the bully sticks... |
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Don't try to play the game of pleasing all of them. You will end up having dogs that are so picky, you will go crazy. As long as it's a quality dry food, I say stick with it. If they aren't eatting it now then you need to pick it up in ten minutes then put it down on the next feeding time. They are mental geniuses. If you give in, they win. They know what they're doing. |
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Just read an article the other day saying hard kibble does nothing for keeping a dog's teeth clean. Old wives tale.... I feed kibble because I feel it has more nutrients in it than canned. I mix 3 cups of kibble with 1 small can and fill with boiling water till it covers the kibble. In about 15 minutes it expands the kibble and I put it in their dishes for further cooling, but I do feed it warm. I refrigerate the rest, and add more boiling water when I dish it out, to warm it up before feeding. I feel they benefit from the extra water too. My old dog has a few missing teeth, and has difficulty eating... sometimes. Also for my oldster, I've been experimenting with different food bowls for him, he has trouble getting the food out out the bowl. I found that a stainless steel kitty bowl with greater sloping to the sides of the bowl helps him with getting the food into his mouth, as opposed to most dog bowls that are straight sided. I also bought him a kitty feeder, the slightly elevated ones at WalMart ($6) so he doesn't have to get his head all the way to the floor to eat. I also leave a bowl of dry kibble out if they get hungry before meal time. and the past few mornings I have witnessed my oldster chowing down on the dry! He'll also clean everyone's bowl if there are any left overs... including the cat food, dry or wet. I don't think he would reliably eat dry food all the time though, hence why I feed what I do. And if he's bluffing, I do know he likes the special bowl and the extra attention, so for me that is reason enough to continue, bc to me he's worth it. As for cats, mine get dry and canned... I read where cats are strictly meat eaters, and even though the dry foods are formulated to be nutritionally correct, I feel strongly that for them to be really happy, they need to eat meat at least occassionally. My last kitty was raised on dry, until his ancient years I added canned to be sure he was eating enough. Especially with my Bengal, he just loves meat. Fresh, frozen, cooked, or raw, he doesn't really care which, he loves it all. (No I don't feed him frozen meat, he has been known to steal it though). They do eat dry as a staple, but I do feed them at least one can daily. |
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