Our little dachshund, Trixie, finds that the Nutro Max mini-chunk food
we have been giving her is too big. I don't think Nutro Max doesn't
make anything smaller. Can anyone recommend a food that is good for the
dog but comes in a size this little one will be able to handle?

On 26 Nov 2005 14:35:17 -0800, "Big Phil" , clicked
their heels and said:

Our little dachshund, Trixie, finds that the Nutro Max mini-chunk food
we have been giving her is too big. I don't think Nutro Max doesn't
make anything smaller. Can anyone recommend a food that is good for the
dog but comes in a size this little one will be able to handle?

several foods have small kibble. Innova's Evo is really tiny stuff.
Find a store that has or will give samples, so you can evaluate the
size and your dog's interest.

Honestly though, I doubt it is too big, but perhaps not to her liking.
If you gave her a giant sized milkbone, I'm betting she'd figure out
how to eat it pretty quickly.


--
Janet B
www.bestfriendsdogobedience.com
http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/bestfr...bedience/album

Yes, I am almost positive nutro comes in small bites.... I bought some for
some of our fosters,,,, I am from Buffalo pug and small breed rescue so most
of our rescue dogs are small,,,,,,




"Big Phil" wrote in message
oups.com...
Our little dachshund, Trixie, finds that the Nutro Max mini-chunk food
we have been giving her is too big. I don't think Nutro Max doesn't
make anything smaller. Can anyone recommend a food that is good for the
dog but comes in a size this little one will be able to handle?

Big Phil wrote:
Our little dachshund, Trixie, finds that the Nutro Max mini-chunk food
we have been giving her is too big. I don't think Nutro Max doesn't
make anything smaller. Can anyone recommend a food that is good for the
dog but comes in a size this little one will be able to handle?

Are you sure Trixie finds the kibble size too big? It's an interesting
phenomena that in nearly every published study whenever dogs are
presented with two different kibble sizes or exactly the same food,
they always prefer the larger kibble. I suspect it's because dogs like
to chew. Does Trixie get any kind of treats? Is the treat in small
pieces? Much of the time the preference for the smaller kibble is
based on pet owner perception and not the dogs perception. You might
try a simple test and give Trixie two different bowls of the same
kibble, most manufacturers make a small bite version of the regular
food. Check the label and make sure the food is identical, label
ingredients, nutrient panel etc and see what Trixie prefers. I suspect
you may be in for a surprise.

Thanks, Steve, -- and everyone. Trixie certainly does like to chew, and
she does get treats occasionally (well, maybe more than she should, but
she is still under 9 pounds). You guys have all been very helpful, and
I do appreciate it.

"Janet B" wrote in message
...

several foods have small kibble. Innova's Evo is really tiny stuff.

Yes, it is. I would add the caution to be watchful when feeding the highly
caloric Evo. Dogs seem to love it, Fancy did, but if the dog isn't highly
active the chance for significant weight gain is pretty high.

Turns out that was cause of Fancy's sudden 10lb weight gain (you may
remember from a *behavior thread) even though her exercise had increased. I
switched her to Merrick foods at only 352kcal/cup and, in something like 6
weeks, she lost those extra 10lbs the Evo put on her.

I highly recommend the food for rescues who need to quickly slap weight on a
dog though!

--
Tara

"Big Phil" wrote:

Can anyone recommend a food that is good for the
dog but comes in a size this little one will be able to handle?

I have to wonder a bit about her not being able to handle the size - my
JRT weighed 4.2 lbs when I got her, and never had any significant trouble
tackling dog biscuits, bones, and chew toys that were WAY bigger than any
piece of kibble.
However, FWIW, ProPlan - which is a good quality kibble despite being
made by Purina, and won't break the bank like the so-called "premium"
kibbles- is in small, flattish, rounded pieces which even a very small dog
ought to be able to handle.
My JRT (now full grown at just under 14 lbs) has no trouble chewing it up,
and my elder dog who doesn't chew, but swallows kibble whole never has
problems with it.
I feed the turkey-barley formula, and my dogs do extremely well on it.

Can anyone recommend a food that is good for the
dog but comes in a size this little one will be able to handle?

I have to wonder a bit about her not being able to handle the size - my
JRT weighed 4.2 lbs when I got her, and never had any significant trouble
tackling dog biscuits, bones, and chew toys that were WAY bigger than any
piece of kibble.
However, FWIW, ProPlan - which is a good quality kibble despite being
made by Purina, and won't break the bank like the so-called "premium"
kibbles- is in small, flattish, rounded pieces which even a very small dog
ought to be able to handle.

I use Pro Plan small bites for small breed dogs. It works well for Maui.
Cali still gets what her breeder feed her since I was given a 10 pound bag
of it (its Diamond brand). I was thinking about getting the regular Pro
Plan for Maui so the bites are bigger but he doesn't like to chew so I am
thinking he'd choke trying to swallow them whole like he does with the small
ones now.




My JRT (now full grown at just under 14 lbs) has no trouble chewing it
up,
and my elder dog who doesn't chew, but swallows kibble whole never has
problems with it.
I feed the turkey-barley formula, and my dogs do extremely well on it.

"Sionnach" wrote in message
...
However, FWIW, ProPlan - which is a good quality kibble despite being
made by Purina, and won't break the bank like the so-called "premium"
kibbles- is in small, flattish, rounded pieces which even a very small dog
ought to be able to handle.

The only thing w/ ProPlan (at least the kind I used to buy) is that it is
hard as a rock! It takes quite a bit to soften it (w/ water) as well.
Coda had lost a molar, and I knew that the sensitive skin & stomach was one
food that he could eat while he recouped.
(He has several allergies, and it fed a mostly raw diet)

When I buy kibbles now, I get a bag of Prarie's Nature's Variety (I'm
currently feeding that mixed w/ their raw frozen until I acquire more
freezer space, my husband had a bounty hunting year and our 14cu ft. freezer
is FULL!). They are very tiny round pieces, and even Coda, allergies &
all, can eat it. In fact, I'm really pleased with the outcome I'm seeing
with feeding this to all three of my dogs.

Since many little dogs are known for dental issues, I'd make certain that
the OP's dog doesn't have any teeth issues that may be causing her
reluctance.
Shelly w/ Coda & The Black Pack

On Sat, 26 Nov 2005 18:18:03 -0500, Janet B
wrote:

Honestly though, I doubt it is too big, but perhaps not to her liking.
If you gave her a giant sized milkbone, I'm betting she'd figure out
how to eat it pretty quickly.

Sammie the poodle keeps stealing German Shepherd food because he likes
to chew down the big kibble instead of snarfing down the little kibble
food that we get for the little dogs. I'd think it more likely taste
than size related.

--
Paula
"Anyway, other people are weird, but sometimes they have candy, so it's best to try to get along with them." Joe Bay