What to add to kibble?

My pup is 8 weeks now and is on James wellbeloved complete. He's eating it, wouldn't say he's loving it so I'd really like to put a little something in there to make it a bit more interesting for him. I've been looking at tuna, sardines in oil maybe a little minced beef or casserole steak.

Would I have to be careful of fish bones?

Any other suggestions to add with his kibble?

Nothing wrong with tinned fish or mince in the food. You could try a little wet food, such as Chappie or Natures Menu mixed in, or a few table scraps of meat and veg. Some people say that you should never add to dry food as it encourages dogs to be picky, but I like my dogs to enjoy their food so they get a variety.

My pair have a range of things in with the kibble to help then eat it and as a semi raw diet.

Chicken wings, sardines, tuna, mackrel, minced lamb, minced beef, minced chicken, tripe, cooked white fish, eggs (raw and scrambled) and butchers wet food.

I mixed the minced tripe with mine from P@H, they love it and it'll tempt her to eat. Tinned tuna in spring water is good, pilchards in brine but rinse off the brine under the tap, boiled chicken breast maybe.

If the dog never did eat very well, and has seen the vet since the problem existed, you may be over feeding it. A vet check still won't hurt. Many dogs will wolf down more than is good for them and look for more. Others refuse to eat more than than they need. You may want the vet to confirm your judgment. Adjust the dogs food and exercise as needed to reach its ideal body condition. Some German Shepherds and other breeds may refuse to eat enough to completely hid their ribs. As long as you are feeding a concentrated, meat based chow, the best thing is to accept it.

The worst thing you can do is to bribe a dog with rich foods into eating more than it needs. Instead, Put down the dish with what the dog should eat, and give it 15 minutes to eat. Then take it up. Do not give it anything to eat until its next scheduled meal. In a few days, it should be eating what it needs. Continue to check its ribs and adjust the food as needed. This is not easy. I had a Shepherd go 3 days on a few nibbles. I was a wreck, but she was fine. It is almost unknown for a healthy dog not to eat what it needs. Unfortunately, in too many cases, it is less than the package says, and less than the owner thinks the dog should have. Many dogs are quite good at holding out for tastier chow. Like kids, sometimes it calls for tough love.

Hi Beth when to comes to food smell plays an important part for dogs, it is thought texture comes second and taste last (this is born out by those whose dogs will eat any old rotting thing) .

A lot of complete food has virtually no smell so I guess it isn't particularly appealing to dogs . Sometimes moistening the food with warm water can make it more appetising or adding a little something with a strong smell like a small teaspoon of grated cheese mixed in well, sardines or the things other members have suggested.

Take care not to feed any food which is high in salt (like gravy mix) or soaked in brine . Most tinned fish comes in oil and this can be poured away. The bones in tinned fish have become soft with the canning process and they are fine to feed.

With fresh fish you need to remove the bones for a puppy. 'Raw' feeders feed whole fish but not sure if this applies to puppies.

If your puppy is not eating at all or seems unwell in any way (not peeing or pooing/quiet) it is best to get him checked by the vet.

mine just have kibble with a little water. occ i add tuna, fish, scraps, yoghurt. but not all the time as i dont want them to get fussy.
ATD x

Have you tried a different flavour? JWB have several. You can order samples off their website, or I picked some up from the vets. They only do one flavour puppy sample but if its just a case of flavour testing it might be ok to use the adult samples?

Atlas is fed on complete kibble developed by his breeder in Sale. As its complete it needs no supplementing. He absolutely loves the stuff with nothing added to it. However we do give him raw hake twice a week to keep things interesting for him.

You can find the Moss Cottage Kennel food here...
http://www.alaskanmalamute.uk.com/sales.htm

Hi Labman, I didn't see any problem based upon what the OP posted; I saw a dog that just wasn't overly happy with the food. My dog was like that - he began to hate kibble - but when I changed to home cooked and then raw, he wolfed it down like there was no tomorrow. Still does and there is no question of him being over-fed. The point I am making is perhaps the puppy just doesn't like the food, end of.

This is excellent advice.