What do you feed your husky?

[Pretty Poly]

We recently adopted a siberian husky dog Well, actually, she adopted us. She's really a very good dog. Around 3 years old, great personality, house trained, never chews anything except her toys, paper you might leave laying around (it's a good thing we don't have any children.. their homework would be in her belly for real), and the occasional window sill. Why would she chew the window sill anyway??

But I digress. She is the pickiest eater out of any dog I've met in my entire life, and I used to have a pomeranian. She will NOT eat dry food, nor will she eat canned dog food. She loves the wet food that comes in the refrigerated container with veggies, meatballs & gravy - freshpet I believe. And a similar non-refrigerated version from Ol Roy. But, alas, those are around $2 each and don't do anything for her teeth. When we first got her, we didn't know how long we'd be keeping her since she was a stray, so I just got her some cheap purina one. No dice.

After a while of begging and mixing in various wet foods with no luck, I tried Taste of the Wild dry food. She gobbled it up. Excellent. Until her next meal, where she decided she no longer liked it, unless I mixed in some freshpet wet food. I then tried Blue Wilderness dry. My cats love their version, my mom's dogs and cats love theirs, so what could go wrong? I sucked it up and tried to ignore the price and got her a bag and mixed it in with the Taste of the Wild, and... nothing. I tried a bowl of it by itself... nothing. Added some gravy I had leftover from dinner, and it was the best thing ever and she cleaned her plate. Sigh. For the record, she will go 3 days without eating anything but chewing on her bully stick before she will eat the dry food by itself, which doesn't work well for me or her digestive system.

So, any recommendations on what to feed her? I don't want to keep buying different kinds for $$$ and get the same humph look on her face. I really prefer dry foods that are low-grain or grain-free becuase the wet food gets pretty pricey after a while and the smell doesn't do anything for me

 

[MichelleVW]

We recently adopted a siberian husky dog Well, actually, she adopted us. She's really a very good dog. Around 3 years old, great personality, house trained, never chews anything except her toys, paper you might leave laying around (it's a good thing we don't have any children.. their homework would be in her belly for real), and the occasional window sill. Why would she chew the window sill anyway??

But I digress. She is the pickiest eater out of any dog I've met in my entire life, and I used to have a pomeranian. She will NOT eat dry food, nor will she eat canned dog food. She loves the wet food that comes in the refrigerated container with veggies, meatballs & gravy - freshpet I believe. And a similar non-refrigerated version from Ol Roy. But, alas, those are around $2 each and don't do anything for her teeth. When we first got her, we didn't know how long we'd be keeping her since she was a stray, so I just got her some cheap purina one. No dice.

After a while of begging and mixing in various wet foods with no luck, I tried Taste of the Wild dry food. She gobbled it up. Excellent. Until her next meal, where she decided she no longer liked it, unless I mixed in some freshpet wet food. I then tried Blue Wilderness dry. My cats love their version, my mom's dogs and cats love theirs, so what could go wrong? I sucked it up and tried to ignore the price and got her a bag and mixed it in with the Taste of the Wild, and... nothing. I tried a bowl of it by itself... nothing. Added some gravy I had leftover from dinner, and it was the best thing ever and she cleaned her plate. Sigh. For the record, she will go 3 days without eating anything but chewing on her bully stick before she will eat the dry food by itself, which doesn't work well for me or her digestive system.

So, any recommendations on what to feed her? I don't want to keep buying different kinds for $$$ and get the same humph look on her face. I really prefer dry foods that are low-grain or grain-free becuase the wet food gets pretty pricey after a while and the smell doesn't do anything for me

I personally would buy her what you want her to eat, and when she is hungry enough she will eat it. Only time I ever coddled a dog by giving them what they wanted was my old dog when she hit 15 and wouldn't keep weight on. I fed her eggs, and also healthy choice soups, but I figured she lived for me that long eating dog food I just wanted to make her last days happy!

If my dogs don't eat I pick it up after a few minutes and give it to them the next day. My puppy eats twice a day, and used to not want to eat, but after a few days of me taking the food away from her, she scarfs it down.

 

[jlewisinsyr]

Big fan of Raw Food here for all dogs, brands like Primal and Instinct, not much of a dry food fan at all unless it's like Primal Freeze Dried.

Honestly, the whole fascination that you need to give dog dry food to keep their teeth clean is a bit odd to me and the Primal and Instinct really don't smell all that much (compared to can foods).

 

[MichelleVW]

Big fan of Raw Food here for all dogs, brands like Primal and Instinct, not much of a dry food fan at all unless it's like Primal Freeze Dried.

Honestly, the whole fascination that you need to give dog dry food to keep their teeth clean is a bit odd to me and the Primal and Instinct really don't smell all that much (compared to can foods).

Ugh, I know the whole Raw food diet is good for them, but no way with 4 dogs that I would want to do that!

 

[kamik86]

Could you just get a couple cans of gravy and mix a bit with whatever dry food you want her to eat?

I had a part husky and although he would eat most things anything with gravy (including this brand of dry food they had for a while that you were supposed to mix with water to make gravy) was the best thing EVER... dry food was just food.

 

[chamonix]

Canned green beans (cheap, no salt), some dogs like canned carrots, but I just give my dog fresh raw carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, etc, some dogs like apples too. I also give him rice for bulk, and some meat. I make him treats from canned pumpkin and peanut butter (google for recipes, super easy to make and you only have to make them about once a month, you can freeze the dough too)

Dogs don't need special dry food for their teeth. Sounds like your dog is getting plenty of hard chewing experiences, lol. The treats I make are hard, and my dog does eat a small amount of dry commercial food because he likes it. He's a golden retriever, btw.

 

[tmarquez]

Buy what you want her to eat and put it out for her. She won't let herself starve. Don't give her people food...not even a bite! I get the impression that is what she is used to having (before you got her) and she likes it!

It might take awhile, but she will eat. Huskies are notoriously stubborn, so be patient.

 

[jlewisinsyr]

Ugh, I know the whole Raw food diet is good for them, but no way with 4 dogs that I would want to do that!

Just trying to understand why you wouldn't? It's not that difficult to handle/prepare. You keep it frozen, pull out nuggets/patties (depending on dog/size to how many) and unfreeze for a day in the refrigerator and just serve into a bowl as needed.

 

[Auggietina]

I have a Husky/Shepard mix, who is picky.

He will not eat anything other than TOTW Bison and Venison.

He refused all other proteins, but loves this version.

 

[Casperina]

You might just have to try cooking for your dog. Or feed them what you are making for dinner.
Just make sure to keep away from what they can't eat! Like chocolate!

Your vet can help with how much calories, carbs, fat, and protein your dog needs in a day.
Make "doggie bags" in a tupperware of dogs balanced meal and store then serve, and treat with bones from the butcher.

The theory that dogs shouldn't eat "human food" is such BS, we all eat the same food from the same earth, none of it is ours alone.

Good luck! And may the google powers be with you for this quest!

 

[Hrhpd]

We recently adopted a siberian husky dog Well, actually, she adopted us. She's really a very good dog. Around 3 years old, great personality, house trained, never chews anything except her toys, paper you might leave laying around (it's a good thing we don't have any children.. their homework would be in her belly for real), and the occasional window sill. Why would she chew the window sill anyway??

But I digress. She is the pickiest eater out of any dog I've met in my entire life, and I used to have a pomeranian. She will NOT eat dry food, nor will she eat canned dog food. She loves the wet food that comes in the refrigerated container with veggies, meatballs & gravy - freshpet I believe. And a similar non-refrigerated version from Ol Roy. But, alas, those are around $2 each and don't do anything for her teeth. When we first got her, we didn't know how long we'd be keeping her since she was a stray, so I just got her some cheap purina one. No dice.

After a while of begging and mixing in various wet foods with no luck, I tried Taste of the Wild dry food. She gobbled it up. Excellent. Until her next meal, where she decided she no longer liked it, unless I mixed in some freshpet wet food. I then tried Blue Wilderness dry. My cats love their version, my mom's dogs and cats love theirs, so what could go wrong? I sucked it up and tried to ignore the price and got her a bag and mixed it in with the Taste of the Wild, and... nothing. I tried a bowl of it by itself... nothing. Added some gravy I had leftover from dinner, and it was the best thing ever and she cleaned her plate. Sigh. For the record, she will go 3 days without eating anything but chewing on her bully stick before she will eat the dry food by itself, which doesn't work well for me or her digestive system.

So, any recommendations on what to feed her? I don't want to keep buying different kinds for $$$ and get the same humph look on her face. I really prefer dry foods that are low-grain or grain-free becuase the wet food gets pretty pricey after a while and the smell doesn't do anything for me

Sounds like she has you very well trained. Offer her the dry food (I would stick with the Blue Wilderness) for 10 minutes. If she doesn't eat it, take it away. Offer it again at the next meal. Same deal. If she doesn't eat it, take it away. When she is hungry enough, she will eat it. Make sure she is not getting any treats or leftovers in between meals. Right now you are just teaching her that if she refuses her food, she gets all sorts of goodies.

 

[Pretty Poly]

Sounds like she has you very well trained. Offer her the dry food (I would stick with the Blue Wilderness) for 10 minutes. If she doesn't eat it, take it away. Offer it again at the next meal. Same deal. If she doesn't eat it, take it away. When she is hungry enough, she will eat it. Make sure she is not getting any treats or leftovers in between meals. Right now you are just teaching her that if she refuses her food, she gets all sorts of goodies.

Yes, I know.. she has us trained to a point. When we found her, she has been lost for a few weeks and was super skinny. When we first had her, she was quite spoiled because I wanted to try to fatten her up. The vet said she was a bit underweight and she could stand to gain a few pounds, and when she wouldn't eat her wet food, I couldn't stand to see her go hungry again. But now that she's settled in her permanent home with us, we're trying to get back on a good schedule.

PS - I did some research on saw diets, and as nice as it sounds, I literally couldn't stomach it. I don't even like cooking my own meats if they have bones in them. If steak and bacon weren't so tasty, I'd totally be a vegetarian. But in my research, I found this. I was laughing so hard I was crying - it's fantastic.

http://www.jerrypournelle.com/reports/jerryp/dogsinelk.html

 

[Nature Mom]

Buy what you want her to eat and put it out for her. She won't let herself starve. Don't give her people food...not even a bite! I get the impression that is what she is used to having (before you got her) and she likes it!

It might take awhile, but she will eat. Huskies are notoriously stubborn, so be patient.

They are very stubborn. I promise, she won't let herself starve and will eat when she's hungry. You are already giving her good food, you be the alpha...she'll learn to like what you give her.

Sounds like she has you very well trained. Offer her the dry food (I would stick with the Blue Wilderness) for 10 minutes. If she doesn't eat it, take it away. Offer it again at the next meal. Same deal. If she doesn't eat it, take it away. When she is hungry enough, she will eat it. Make sure she is not getting any treats or leftovers in between meals. Right now you are just teaching her that if she refuses her food, she gets all sorts of goodies.

Another Blue Wilderness is a good food if you don't want to do raw. Stick with it. Also, make sure she isn't sneaking the cat food or like mentioned above, other treats.

Congrats on your new family member! A great book for husky owners is Siberian Huskies for Dummies. I know it sounds stupid, but it really is one of my favorites out of all the husky books I own, and even after being a husky mom for over 16 years, I still pull it out to refer to occassionally.

 

[Casperina]

I also don't agree with letting the dog go hungry or taking the food away from them. This will teach the dog to eat too fast, which can make them vomit up dinner, or get aggressive about food, which can get you or your loved ones hurt.

My mother's *lovely* husband did this to our dog when she would have been just fine, and now she scarfs food down so quick she sometimes gets sick ):

 

[bdcp]

We had a Husky 30 years ago and he was a doll. He was the sweetest dog in the world. We got him at 6 weeks old and he ate Purina puppy chow and then dog chow. He was never picky and always ate his food.

Growing up, we had a mutt and he was also a wonderful dog, but he wouldn't eat dry food, but that was our fault. We always put leftovers on his food. Gravy, stew, spaghetti, etc. The one thing he wouldn't eat was green peas, but he pretty much loved whatever we put on his dry food. He lived til almost 15 and was always very healthy.

 

[Hrhpd]

I also don't agree with letting the dog go hungry or taking the food away from them. This will teach the dog to eat too fast, which can make them vomit up dinner, or get aggressive about food, which can get you or your loved ones hurt.

My mother's *lovely* husband did this to our dog when she would have been just fine, and now she scarfs food down so quick she sometimes gets sick ):

You don't take the food away if they are eating. Yes, that could cause problems.

But, you do pick a set dinner time and offer the food for around 10 minutes. If the dog does not eat at this time then you pick up the bowl and offer it again at the next feeding time.

The dog will not go hungry. It will eat when it is ready.

 

[AlexWyattMommy]

My huskies like the Blue Buffalo stuff.

My sister's husky will not eat if there are no veggies in her bowl. Seriously. She has to have carrots or peas or green beans in her bowl or she won't eat the dry food. ROFL. Sometimes it is fresh, sometimes it is the no-salt canned, but it is always veggies.

 

[MotifNumberOne]

My dogs both eat raw food and they love it. I don't buy brand name food - I think its gross and over processed. Luckily enough for me, my local farm sells ground chicken in 1/2 lb patties - but if that wasn't available to me I would make it myself by buying cheap chicken (backs) from a local butcher, and grinding it into patties with a manual meat grinder that you attach to the edge of your counter.

I keep the patties in the freezer, plus 1 in the fridge to thaw a little. When I make their breakfast/dinner I pull another patty from the freezer to thaw out in the fridge. I add in some kind of fresh fruit/veggie (apples, carrots, peas etc.. whatever needs to be used up) with a small handful of oats, and a measured amount of "Wholistic Canine Complete" vitamin supplement, which contains all the nutrients they would normally get in commercial dog food. I usually also add a teaspoon of fish oil, especially in the winter when their skin is extra dry.

It may seem tedious if you're used to just throwing some dry food into their dish each day, but I think you'll feel much better knowing exactly what your dogs are eating - and for me, it's actually cheaper - I was paying $50 for a 35 lb bag of Blue Buffalo dog food, and now I buy raw dog food for $0.99/lb.

 

[KandD]

We feed our husky Iams . He is not picky but he is "fussy". He hardly ever eats all of his food at once. He likes to pick and eat when he's ready. Our other dogs gobble down food like they have never eaten before and will never eat again. So don't discount the fact that he may just not be hungry at the moment...try leaving the food down for him.

 

[MichelleVW]

Just trying to understand why you wouldn't? It's not that difficult to handle/prepare. You keep it frozen, pull out nuggets/patties (depending on dog/size to how many) and unfreeze for a day in the refrigerator and just serve into a bowl as needed.

Too expensive and too much of a hassle for 4 dogs.

They are very stubborn. I promise, she won't let herself starve and will eat when she's hungry. You are already giving her good food, you be the alpha...she'll learn to like what you give her.

Congrats on your new family member! A great book for husky owners is Siberian Huskies for Dummies. I know it sounds stupid, but it really is one of my favorites out of all the husky books I own, and even after being a husky mom for over 16 years, I still pull it out to refer to occassionally.

There is a Husky puppy in our puppy class at petsmart and she is sooo cute, but soooo stubborn!!

I also don't agree with letting the dog go hungry or taking the food away from them. This will teach the dog to eat too fast, which can make them vomit up dinner, or get aggressive about food, which can get you or your loved ones hurt.

My mother's *lovely* husband did this to our dog when she would have been just fine, and now she scarfs food down so quick she sometimes gets sick ):

You don't snatch it from them....and you don't take it from them when they are still eating. You wait until they are obviously not interested and put it up. It doesn't cause issues, and dogs won't starve if they miss a meal.