# Is butchers a bad food ?



## tinaK (Jun 12, 2010)

After months of clover eating ziwipeak dry she is now refusing it. Tried mixing it with mince/chicken/liver, but she ain't having it.
Took her to the vets today to make sure no physical cause.. nothing. Vet suggested I tried a tin of Butchers. So I bought a tin of the tripe/chicken and she has eaten a little of it. Trouble is she does this.. eats it once, maybe twice and then stops. So not even sure if she will continue to it it.

I've done the leave it down for 20 mins and nothing to next meal, not having it.. she'd rather starve. Tried every food on the market.. well any food that is OK. I'm lost now


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## babycham2002 (Oct 18, 2009)

tough love is the only way
if she dont eat it, she gets it picked up and put back down later with nothing in between
shes training you that she gets nice things if she doesnt eat it straight away


Rocky tries it on still in this house , but if he doesnt eat it. Someone else does or it gets picked back up for later.


Butchers is not good no, the tripe loaf is the best of the bad bunch but no it is not a good food


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## emmaviolet (Oct 24, 2011)

im sorry, been through this with alfie and it makes you want to pull your hair out!

he is a good eater now though as it was because he had giardia, a bacteria in his tummy.

does she have any other symptoms?


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## tinaK (Jun 12, 2010)

babycham2002 said:


> tough love is the only way
> if she dont eat it, she gets it picked up and put back down later with nothing in between
> shes training you that she gets nice things if she doesnt eat it straight away
> 
> ...


Done the tough love for days on end... she just won't eat, which is why I took her to the vets


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## tinaK (Jun 12, 2010)

emmaviolet said:


> im sorry, been through this with alfie and it makes you want to pull your hair out!
> 
> he is a good eater now though as it was because he had giardia, a bacteria in his tummy.
> 
> does she have any other symptoms?


The vet said she was fine. Just been Yorkie/chi x she will be a fussy eater


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## babycham2002 (Oct 18, 2009)

cloversmum said:


> Done the tough love for days on end... she just won't eat, which is why I took her to the vets


well you done the right thing it taking her to the vets 

But I would really try and just carry on with it, she wont starve herself
Like your vet said some dogs esp small dogs are just fussy eaters, mine are raw fed and I cant get the boys to eat fish at all.

Or try a small amount of the butchers tripe in with the ziwipeak, at least the ziwipeak is a really high quality food.

But like I say they are just there to test our patience. 
Rocky will look sometimes turn his nose up at tripe and heart which is like his most fave meal ever. 
You can actually watch him somedays walk around and see what each of the others have got then reluctantly go back to his own bowl, :nonod:


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## Helbo (Sep 15, 2010)

To be honest - if she's refusing food for days and days, is really starving herself and is just a genuine fussy eater...I'd feed her whatever dog food you can get her to eat. 

In an ideal situation you'd choose the healthiest food you could afford. But this isn't an ideal situation and you just need to make sure she eats. 

Surely its healthier for her to eat an unhealthy food than none at all?


Just wanted to add - I'm assuming you've tried lots of different foods rather than just going straight for the butchers. Theres loads of healthier foods, but if push coves to shove, butchers might have to do.


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## tinaK (Jun 12, 2010)

babycham2002 said:


> well you done the right thing it taking her to the vets
> 
> But I would really try and just carry on with it, she wont starve herself
> Like your vet said some dogs esp small dogs are just fussy eaters, mine are raw fed and I cant get the boys to eat fish at all.
> ...


I was a bit short, sorry, just tired and worried. Just hasn't eaten anything properly since Friday. She's always been fussy, and I'm at my wits end with her today. I love her to bits. but.. yeah


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## emmaviolet (Oct 24, 2011)

well i dont really have any answers sorry. no runny tums ever?

we tried tough love on alfie but he was ill and it didnt work so i know how you feel.


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## tinaK (Jun 12, 2010)

Helbo said:


> To be honest - if she's refusing food for days and days, is really starving herself and is just a genuine fussy eater...I'd feed her whatever dog food you can get her to eat.
> 
> In an ideal situation you'd choose the healthiest food you could afford. But this isn't an ideal situation and you just need to make sure she eats.
> 
> ...


That was the vets attitude.. something is better than nothing.. he then said try Butchers. I know it's crap, but so is her not eating. I've cut out treats and everything trying to get her to eat


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## missnaomi (Jun 4, 2010)

I know that you've probably tried this...Have you tried putting sardines with it? Or salmon oil?
Sometimes Ringo used to be a bit fussy about eating his breakfast - he is pretty lazy in the mornings and wouldn't eat if he thought it was too early...but we had to go somewhere so he had to get up. A bit of salmon oil on the food really did the trick, or sometimes some tinned sardines...
Naomi x


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## tinaK (Jun 12, 2010)

missnaomi said:


> I know that you've probably tried this...Have you tried putting sardines with it? Or salmon oil?
> Sometimes Ringo used to be a bit fussy about eating his breakfast - he is pretty lazy in the mornings and wouldn't eat if he thought it was too early...but we had to go somewhere so he had to get up. A bit of salmon oil on the food really did the trick, or sometimes some tinned sardines...
> Naomi x


Thanks, she won't eat sardines or tuna or any fish really  I feel a right cow shooting down suggestions. Just tried most things and feel so lost now. I could cry


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## rose (Apr 29, 2009)

One of my long gone cavaliers wouldnt eat unless I hand fed her with a spoon. She was only a puppy then, when I let her eat with my older dog she wolfed it down. They usually do if they have a bit of competition.


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## SophieCyde (Oct 24, 2010)

Have you tried naturediet?

I feel like I rave on about it all the time but murphy is/was very fussy and we had to swap his food round all the time just to get him to eat , we tried tough love but I wasn't comfortable with him not eating for days on end , 

Naturediet has really helped though , he eats it very happily and seems to enjoy it , supplemented with a couple of raw meals a week 

I would definetly consider trying it if you haven't before :w00t:


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## Manoy Moneelil (Sep 1, 2011)

Have you tried warming the food slightly, minute or so in a microwave then stir and stand before serving.

Or, rest the bowl in a larger bowl of freshly boiled hot water for a few minutes, again stir and serve *as long as it is no hotter than finger warm*.

Warm food is more interesting for dogs, they are ruled by smell.


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## Halifu (Jan 22, 2012)

Have u tried exercise 1st then dishing up her food ,as well as something
For yourself even if it's just a cracker then munch on yours and then offer hers when your finished.
Only an idea.
Hope it All works out ok


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## happysaz133 (Jun 5, 2008)

It's better than most of the brands available in the supermarket. I feed it and my dogs love it and are very healthy


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## Guest (Jan 26, 2012)

Have you tried the Ziwipeak tinned? I know they're expensive but maybe you could mix them with with some of the regular ZP?


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## Andromeda (Nov 21, 2010)

and again...

I had similar problem with my Max, since I changed his food for raw, all problems gone.


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## Horse and Hound (May 12, 2010)

babycham2002 said:


> Butchers is not good no, the tripe loaf is the best of the bad bunch but no it is not a good food


I don't think it is the best, but I also don't think it is the worst.

Its on the wet food sticky as an orange colour.

Mine get it as a topper to their kibble after they went off WW and neither of them will touch Nature Diet.


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## Halifu (Jan 22, 2012)

Andromeda said:


> and again...
> 
> I had similar problem with my Max, since I changed his food for raw, all problems gone.


Thats what we did too, one of ours was being very fussy with his 60 quid a bag kibble so we tried some chicken legs and hey presto absolutley loves meal time now.


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## Nataliee (Jul 25, 2011)

1 of mine used to be such a pain getting him to eat, he'd happily go 3 or 4 days without eating anything. I never changed his food much because i didn't want him to get fussier. I started adding salmon oil and that worked, for a while. Then i started shutting him in the crate for 10-15 mins with his food, if he didn't eat it he went without till next feeding time, then it got to the point where i was literally leaving him in the crate till he had eaten which sometimes took an hour, he soon got the hang of it and started eating pretty quickly because he knew he'd get to come out the crate once he had.
Since he was neutered and had HGE though hes become the complete opposite and is now a doggy dustbin lol


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## babycham2002 (Oct 18, 2009)

Horse and Hound said:


> I don't think it is the best, but I also don't think it is the worst.
> 
> Its on the wet food sticky as an orange colour.
> 
> Mine get it as a topper to their kibble after they went off WW and neither of them will touch Nature Diet.


I know
Thats why I said its not a good food, and the best of a bad bunch
Certainly the best available in most supermarkets.

But I wouldnt want Clover to have Butchers as her Only food forever more.


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## Shrap (Nov 22, 2010)

I'll need to find a link on canine anorexia


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## tinaK (Jun 12, 2010)

Thanks all. She finally ate a few mouthfuls of ziwipeak dry out of my hand this morning, I really didn't want to get into feeding her out of my hand, as I don't want her getting used to it, but felt it had gone on long enough. 

I warmed it with warm water, to try and get the smell of it for her. All the above suggestions are great.. just I've tried them all  Thanks again everyone for your support, means a lot


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## SLB (Apr 25, 2011)

Benjie decided (before I switched to raw here) that the food he'd been eating fine, suddenly he didn't like. He ate nothing for 3 days and his exercise was upped slightly (just to add a little more need to eat it) he finally ate it, but my softie of a OH hand fed it him :rolleyes5: He does this every so often - there's nothing wrong with him, he just tries to train me how he's trained everyone else. 

You get what you're given in this house  I don't do fussy dogs...

Hope you manage to get her back on the good stuff soon.. if not you'll just have to switch to raw  :lol:


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## Shrap (Nov 22, 2010)

Management of anorexia in... [Vet Clin North Am Small Anim Pract. 2006] - PubMed - NCBI

Immediate Appetite Stimulation of Anorexic Dogs with Propofol « Hungarovet

Nutri Plus Gel 120.5g - Vetmedsdirect.co.uk


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## tinaK (Jun 12, 2010)

SLB said:


> Benjie decided (before I switched to raw here) that the food he'd been eating fine, suddenly he didn't like. He ate nothing for 3 days and his exercise was upped slightly (just to add a little more need to eat it) he finally ate it, but my softie of a OH hand fed it him :rolleyes5: He does this every so often - there's nothing wrong with him, he just tries to train me how he's trained everyone else.
> 
> You get what you're given in this house  I don't do fussy dogs...
> 
> Hope you manage to get her back on the good stuff soon.. if not you'll just have to switch to raw  :lol:


lol.. I've tried raw and she won't eat it. Tried most things now


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## emmaviolet (Oct 24, 2011)

tbh i dont see that hand feeding is that bad in this situation.

if she wont eat then give it a go.

i know how you feel as ive been there and you feel desperate for them to eat, alfie now eats his wet foods in his bowl but i hand feed him his kibble as he likes it like that plus it has helped him overcome some nervousness through touching when he eats it etc, this is recommended by some behaviourists too s it strengthens the bond plus if she eats like this it might help her get an appetite back!


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## SixStar (Dec 8, 2009)

If hand feeding is the only way she will eat, then do it for the time being!

Having had a dog that we eventually lost to anorexia nervosa, I'm very much in the "feed what'll they will eat" camp when eating problems get bad, when it's gone beyond fussiness. 

Riley ate pretty much steak, pouches of whiskas cat food, pedigree kibble, shortbread biscuits and chicken soup - now, I'm not suggesting for one moment you do the same with Clover, but what I'm trying to say is when things get this far, when all the usual tricks have been tried, where no medical problems are found and it's been going on for a period of time - then a can of Butchers certainly isn't going to harm!


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## tinaK (Jun 12, 2010)

SixStar said:


> If hand feeding is the only way she will eat, then do it for the time being!
> 
> Having had a dog that we eventually lost to anorexia nervosa, I'm very much in the "feed what'll they will eat" camp when eating problems get bad, when it's gone beyond fussiness.
> 
> Riley ate pretty much steak, pouches of whiskas cat food, pedigree kibble, shortbread biscuits and chicken soup - now, I'm not suggesting for one moment you do the save with Clover, but what I'm trying to say is when things get this far, when all the usual tricks have been tried, where no medical problems are found and it's been going on for a period of time - then a can of Butchers certainly isn't going to harm!


Oh thank you. Reading that made me feel so much better. It's not fussiness with her. I've done all the leave it down for 20 mins annd take it up stuff.. she really wouldn't care if she didn't eat for days. Obviously I do. I'm cooking myself lamb tonight, in the hope clover will have some too. I feel bad cause maybe I've made her fussy... but then I remember even as an 8 week old pup she wouldn't eat much. It's just got worse as she's got older. Thanks again, that has really reassured me to try anything even if it's not good for her


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## tinaK (Jun 12, 2010)

Clover is eating  I saw a bag of James wellbeloved food for small breeds the other day, and decided to try it.

She has eaten it since Thursday  She was a bit more wary tonight, but she did eat it. She looks sooo much better. I am so relieved  I just hope she continues to eat it


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## LauraIzPops (Oct 2, 2011)

Izzie my oldest has always been a really funny eater, however we feed her 'Hi Life moist' either chicken or beef flavoured (alterate the bags) and she loves it! I mean she still grazes it because otherwise she probably wouldn't bother so we leave it down, but she eats it and enjoys it  Poppy also loves it even though she should still be eating her puppy food lol, but if she can get to it then she'll eat it! Maybe give that a try? We buy it from asda. Good luck with finding something she likes.

Sorry didn't read your last comment! Glad to hear she seems to be eating  I'll leave the post though just incase you want any other ideas just incase.


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## Pinkchi (Feb 5, 2011)

cloversmum said:


> Clover is eating  I saw a bag of James wellbeloved food for small breeds the other day, and decided to try it.
> 
> She has eaten it since Thursday  She was a bit more wary tonight, but she did eat it. She looks sooo much better. I am so relieved  I just hope she continues to eat it


Thats fantastic news! Having just now read through the whole thread I wasn't optimistic for such a good ending. Thats great she is eating again :smile5:

Perhaps she just got bored of the Ziwipeak? Perhaps a change of food/flavors regularly will keep her interested? James Wellbeloved do lots of different flavors, if she manages to finish the bag, why not get a different flavor to mix it up a bit? It just might be enough to keep her interested in food and to keep her eating. I mean, how boring must it be to eat the same old kibble or whatever for days/weeks/months on end? Perhps little variety could be the key here? Worth a try i feel :smile5:

Good luck. I hope Clover continues to eat well for you x


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## Malmum (Aug 1, 2010)

Britches is the same mix as Clover and she adores her raw chicken wings and mince  perhaps Clover may like a little raw now and then.


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## legin123 (Oct 28, 2019)

Horse and Hound said:


> I don't think it is the best, but I also don't think it is the worst.
> 
> Its on the wet food sticky as an orange colour.
> 
> Mine get it as a topper to their kibble after they went off WW and neither of them will touch Nature Diet.


My two Vizlas like a variety of food mixed rather than just sticking to one. They don't like dry food by itself but will happily eat it if a small amount of olive oil is added to it. I have read that olive oil is also good for dogs in moderation. They also lap dry food up if some left- over gravy is added to it. However, for their main meal, they have 50/50, mixed dry and a can of either butchers or sainsbury's tinned food, which they are prepared to kill for. They are 9 and 10 and both very healthy and very active, and they have been on this regime for years, but only for the past year with the Sainsbury's. I think the secret may be to mix it up a bit. By the way, and this has worried me slightly for the past year or so-is Sainsbury's tinned food any good? Up until that time, they always had the obligatory can of Butchers.


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## lullabydream (Jun 25, 2013)

legin123 said:


> My two Vizlas like a variety of food mixed rather than just sticking to one. They don't like dry food by itself but will happily eat it if a small amount of olive oil is added to it. I have read that olive oil is also good for dogs in moderation. They also lap dry food up if some left- over gravy is added to it. However, for their main meal, they have 50/50, mixed dry and a can of either butchers or sainsbury's tinned food, which they are prepared to kill for. They are 9 and 10 and both very healthy and very active, and they have been on this regime for years, but only for the past year with the Sainsbury's. I think the secret may be to mix it up a bit. By the way, and this has worried me slightly for the past year or so-is Sainsbury's tinned food any good? Up until that time, they always had the obligatory can of Butchers.


Old thread maybe best to start your own thread


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