Moistening Dry Kibble For Puppy

[GoEmGo]

Hi there,

I have found this forum super informative and a lovely little community that I'm very pleased to be becoming a part of.

We have had Monty now for five days and he's settled in well. We are currently transitioning him from Royal Canin to Barking Heads very slowly, and it's going good. His poos are firm, although they are getting a little wider, and he has gone from being a picky eater (new home anxiety I think) to gobbling up his grub.

I just had a couple of questions regarding his Barking Heads Puppy Days kibble. At the moment, he can't (not won't) eat it dry. It's just too hard! He's 8 weeks, 5 days old, so we are moistening it. We are feeding 120g split into breakfast, lunch and dinner, so 40g per meal. But we are moistening it to help him eat it. With this added water, the grammage (?!) increases. Is this ok or does it mean we then feed him too much? Also, does anyone have any idea when he will be able to eat dry kibble alone? His teeth seem to be growing (like he is) every day.

And last night he slept in his crate from 10pm to 6am without a wee break. Amazing!

Thank you. Emma

[Schnauzer Sam]

Hi Emma, don't worry about scalding the kibble to soften it, there is no effect on the amount that he needs to eat. Many people who use kibble do this as it helps lessen the chances of bloat, though it's rare in a small breed.

He'll start to lose his deciduous teeth around 18 to 20 weeks and his adult teeth will find harder bits easier to crunch.

Just a thought though, check the date on the pack and the storage advice. I'm surprised the kibble sold for pups would be so hard and I'm wondering if it's dried out?

In any event, as mentioned above, just continue to soak it.

[GoEmGo]

Thank you for that advice!

Yes, it does appear quite dry even for dry food, but he adores it. We chose Barking Heads after checking out the allaboutdogfood website. Here are the ingredients:

Composition: 62%* Salmon, Chicken & Egg includes – Salmon *(27%), Dried Chicken *(21%), Sweet Potato, Potato, Chicken *(10%), Peas, Egg *(4%), Lucerne, Salmon Oil, Seaweed, Fructo-oligosaccharides, Yeasts (MOS), Glucosamine 355mg/kg, Methylsulfonylmethane 355mg/kg, Chondroitin Sulphate 250mg/kg, Tomato, Carrot, Mixed Herbs (Marjoram, Basil, Oregano, Sage, Thyme, Parsley) (0.4%), Minerals

The kibble bits themselves are like thin mini polo mint shapes if that makes sense. It soaks the water well (about 6 tablespoons of water) and moistens to make a nice consistency - still kibble, just a little softer. It's not a paste.

We have noticed that his poos are getting a little larger now (hopefully just because he is growing!) but they are firm. Sometimes he goes to the toilet 5 mins after eating or an hour afterwards, like this morning. There's no real pattern. And I think we are on about three poos a day at the moment.