9 Year Old Labrador Retriever Will Not Eat Hard Dog Food

Question
Hi Dlee,

My 9 year old chocolate female labrador retriever will not eat hard dog food.

She will eat the soft canned dog food (and she loves it), but not hard dog food.

She has lost about 20lbs over the last year and a half and has leveled out at about 48 lbs.

We keep giving the dogs different hard dog foods (just from buying at different places and etc.), the other two labs don't have a problem with it. (both are her daughters, and are about 3 years old, from the same litter)

Is there a sauce or something similar that I can buy to put on the dog food to get her to eat? I tried putting the dog biscuits in her dog food and let her watch me put them in there, but she'll just push the food with her nose and get to the treat or just not try at all. I was thinking about chicken liver or something like that. Something inexpensive and will get her to eat.

Should I try just softening the hard food with water first?

I don't mind getting the soft canned food, but it isn't as easy to find as hard dog food and obviously costs more. If I could find a cheaper and easier-to-find solution then I definitely want to use that.

This isn't an emergency, she is fine, I just want her to eat, she hasn't eaten hard dog food in a day or so.

I took her to the vet last month and they claimed that her largest tooth towards the front of the bottom row, on the right side (when you are standing above her looking down and she is looking in the same direction). I don't trust this vet however, as they charge outrageous amounts for everything ($24 to bath a dog (40-80lbs), $90 for a checkup, etc.). They wanted about $500 to do a root canal on her tooth. The vet pushed on her tooth and she squirmed, and that's how she came to the conclusion (along with the cavity in her tooth). However, I pushed on the tooth at home and she didn't show any sign of discomfort or pain. I just think she didn't like a stranger sticking her hand in her mouth.

Anyway, I hope I provided more than enough information to help you answer my question and fully understand the situation.

Sincerely,
Brandon

Answer
Hello this can be a big problem...it will cause plaqe coated teeth and eventually tooth loss....tooth loss is much more common in dogs few soft diets. The simplest way to get her to eat dry food and when you want her to is do this: Each day twice daily works great for most dogs over a year old place each dog in a bedroom/bathroom/outdoors..in there own areas with half there daily portion of DRY food don't wet it its not needed leave them for 15 minutes check back and pick up the dishes repalce the food in its container(what isnt eaten and do the same in the evening don't give what they never ate from tehre first meal give the second half of there meal they were supposed to get, again seperate and leave them for 15 minutes when you return pick upo the dishes and whatever is left goes into there food bin and they dont get anything else until tomarrow...limit treats at this time perferibly only a small biscut or two during the day. After the second evening or third evening the dogs relize humm if I don't eat then and there well I am hungry most of the day and will be eatting there entire meals around the forth or fifth day... the dogs will not starve themselfs and my three dogs were iffy the first day...so ate barely anything....the second evening they ate almost all there meal and had picked through that days breakfest and on the third and forth day were eatting there entire meals without fuss. It helps if the food your feeding isnt a cheaper grocery store brand dogs like to have good flavored food just as we do and the pet store brands such as Technical, Nutro, Nutreance, Blue, Bil-Jac, pruina Pro plan are more flavorful. Best of luck to you and as long as you can hold your ground for a few days and not worry about the dogs starving themselfs(trust me they will eat on the second day at lest more then the first day) they will be on feeding sheduals in no time and eatting the food you provide them with.