Our chesapeake, Sally, is a great dog, but she's diabetic, needs
insulin shots twice a day, and eats a special prescription diabetic
food, Hill's "W/D." This is made specifically for diabetic dogs, and
doesn't have a lot of the sugars and other junk that regular foods do.
The problem is, it's very bland-tasting, and Sally really doesn't like
it. She'll usually eat most of it IF we mix in some regular canned
food, but she almost never finishes it. Plus, mixing the canned food
kind of cancels out the purpose of using the prescription food.

The other day we ran out of W/D and I picked up some Pro Plan Senior
dog, just to get through two days while the vet was closed for
Christmas. She DEVOURED it, licking the bowl completely clean, every
time. I've never seen her eat like that before!

So we were wondering if there's SOMETHING out there we can mix in with
her W/D that would make it tastier for her? We've tried liquids like
chicken broth, etc. and that doesn't work, it just makes it too wet and
gooey. There's a commercial "gravy" you can buy in a bottle to add to
dry food, but she doesn't like that, either. Heaven knows what's in it.
Any suggestions?

Thanks,
Ron M.

Will she eat some cooked vegetables mixed with the W/D?


"Ron M." wrote in message
oups.com...
Our chesapeake, Sally, is a great dog, but she's diabetic, needs
insulin shots twice a day, and eats a special prescription diabetic
food, Hill's "W/D." This is made specifically for diabetic dogs, and
doesn't have a lot of the sugars and other junk that regular foods do.
The problem is, it's very bland-tasting, and Sally really doesn't like
it. She'll usually eat most of it IF we mix in some regular canned
food, but she almost never finishes it. Plus, mixing the canned food
kind of cancels out the purpose of using the prescription food.

The other day we ran out of W/D and I picked up some Pro Plan Senior
dog, just to get through two days while the vet was closed for
Christmas. She DEVOURED it, licking the bowl completely clean, every
time. I've never seen her eat like that before!

So we were wondering if there's SOMETHING out there we can mix in with
her W/D that would make it tastier for her? We've tried liquids like
chicken broth, etc. and that doesn't work, it just makes it too wet and
gooey. There's a commercial "gravy" you can buy in a bottle to add to
dry food, but she doesn't like that, either. Heaven knows what's in it.
Any suggestions?

Thanks,
Ron M.

Marie - we really don't have time to mess with cooked vegs, especially
since she must eat on a strict schedule. I did get a tip from a friend
of mine whose dog had the exact same problem. He poured a capful of
vegetable oil over his dog's W/D, and the dog ate it instantly. I tried
it, and it worked!! She cleaned the bowl. I need to check with the
vet, though, to see if it's OK to do this on a long-term basis. Seems
like it wouldn't be harmful. It's vegetable oil, not animal fat or
anything.

Have you tried adding a little water to the food and warming it slightly in
the microwave?? ... From experience at work I know that some of the Hills
foods can be very bland tasting and it does seem to make them a little more
appetising if they are warmed up.

Good luck

Nik

"Ron M." wrote in message
oups.com...
Marie - we really don't have time to mess with cooked vegs, especially
since she must eat on a strict schedule. I did get a tip from a friend
of mine whose dog had the exact same problem. He poured a capful of
vegetable oil over his dog's W/D, and the dog ate it instantly. I tried
it, and it worked!! She cleaned the bowl. I need to check with the
vet, though, to see if it's OK to do this on a long-term basis. Seems
like it wouldn't be harmful. It's vegetable oil, not animal fat or
anything.

Ron M. wrote:
Marie - we really don't have time to mess with cooked vegs, especially
since she must eat on a strict schedule. I did get a tip from a friend
of mine whose dog had the exact same problem. He poured a capful of
vegetable oil over his dog's W/D, and the dog ate it instantly. I tried
it, and it worked!! She cleaned the bowl. I need to check with the
vet, though, to see if it's OK to do this on a long-term basis. Seems
like it wouldn't be harmful. It's vegetable oil, not animal fat or
anything.

A "capful" of vegetable oil may be OK, but of course it depends upon
the size of the "cap". Typically adding anything to a Prescription Diet
is a bad idea. There is a company called FlavorX than produces a number
of different flavorings which can be sprayed on the food without
interfering with the diet in any way. They were predominantly a human
medicine flavoring company but have branched out to pet flavors a
couple years ago.

http://www.flavorx.com/flavors.html

Grilled Tuna
Chicken Pot Pie
Red Angus Beef
Fish Chowder
Crispy Bacon
Scrumptious Peanut Butter
Cheesie Cheddar
Roasted Lamb
Chopped Liver
Salmon Steak
Whitefish Salad
Shrimp Cocktail
Sardine Splendor
Mother's Milk
Gooey Molasses
Mom's Banana Bread

Ron, my lab mix, female of 7 yrs was diagnosed with diabetes. We have spoiled them with table scraps. I asked the vet about cooking some venison with garlic to put over her dry food. He said that would be okay as long as we did it every day. Perhaps you have access to lean meat that would do as well.