Please sir, I want some more... Let’s talk about FOOD!
In just a couple of days, Adelaide turns 13 weeks old and we can’t believe how our little girl has grown. More and more each day, she starts looking like a little dog! Her Italian greyhound features have become more pronounced (her long nose and lengthy legs). We thought we’d take this chance to talk about the fuel behind that growth... FOOD.
Our breeder had kibble for the puppies, so we decided to keep her on a kibble diet. For our lifestyle, the dry food makes more sense (especially when mom and dad go on their honeymoon and family will be stepping in for puppy care).
In the first two weeks, we tried hand feeding (recommended by one of our training books). When eating out of the bowl, Adelaide’s little legs and body used to shake. It appeared to be nervousness. Hand feeding her helped calm her while eating as well as helped mom and dad build a relationship with her. We wanted to make her feel safe and to know that food came from us, her human parents. The hand feeding was mostly successful. She ate more food this way and didn’t get nervous or distracted.
In these first couple of weeks, leaving the bowl on the floor for her meant kibble became a game or secret. Adelaide would grab one piece, take it away from the bowl and play with it until she would take it off to a corner and chomp in privacy. While sneaky secret games sound found...she left a lot of meals unfinished. She got distracted and didn’t want to return to the food, even if lured. We continued to hand feed but started brainstorming and researching what the next step could be.
Adelaide’s secret food game inspired mom and dad to buy a feeding ball toy! Her new favorite way to eat is from her feeding ball. This way, she has full permission to make meal time also play time. We just fill the toy with kibble and as she plays with it, the kibble slowly falls out. She now knows that with careful tipping technique, she can release kibble little bits at a time and the reward is so exciting she eats it right then and there. The more she plays with the feeding ball, the more we see her becoming independent with her eating. Today, Adelaide still plays with the feeding ball but will also eat out of her bowl at a good pace when she’s very hungry, like first thing in the morning (without too much shaking).
We’ve been looking into real human foods that Adelaide’s stomach can handle (according to the kennel club). So far, Adelaide has enjoyed banana, pumpkin purée, green apple, peanut butter and above all else - hot dogs. Adelaide likes her food just fine, but nothing compares to hot dogs. We’re happy to know that hot dogs work as the perfect treat for training. We look forward to experimenting with more food/treat options as she grows. If you’ve got any food suggestions for us...let us know in the comments!