A Dog Who Isn’t Food-Motivated, or Just a Picky Eater? Fentu’s Story

Reading time: about 5 min

We increasingly meet owners who say their dog simply isn’t motivated by food. They put down the bowl, the dog sniffs it and walks away. The next day they buy another flavour, and the day after that yet another. Anyone who has lived with a picky dog knows how quickly mealtimes can become the family’s most complicated negotiation.

In our team, the specialist in this subject is Fenton, or Fentu. He has always loved routines and had strong opinions. If dinner is late, he may demonstrate his frustration on a cupboard or blanket. When Fentu was a puppy, however, Irene could not count on him emptying his bowl eagerly at the appointed time. Some foods he would not touch at all.

First, an uncomfortable question: does the dog refuse to eat, or is eating difficult?

If a dog that previously had a good appetite suddenly refuses food, buying another flavour is not the first sensible solution. Nausea, pain, dental problems, inflammation, medication effects, stress and other illnesses can all reduce appetite. It is especially revealing when a dog shows interest in food but backs away as soon as chewing is required, or eats only soft food.

Seek urgent veterinary advice if food refusal is accompanied by lethargy, repeated vomiting, bloating, severe pain, breathing difficulty, refusal to drink or weakness. A multi-day ‘wait until the dog gets hungry’ experiment is inappropriate for puppies, very small dogs, diabetic animals or dogs with chronic illness. Even an otherwise healthy adult dog that has not eaten for about 24 hours deserves a conversation with a veterinarian, sooner if there are other symptoms.

Fentu’s journey: from duck to salmon and Performance

Irene tried many foods when Fentu was a puppy. Raw meat did not particularly tempt him either, so the familiar advice to ‘just add something tasty’ did not work. At around one year of age we tried Wolf of Wilderness and Taste of the Wild. Fentu was willing to sample both, but eventually stayed with Wolf of Wilderness’s duck recipe for longer. At that time there was around a ten-kilogram weight difference between him and Faddy, so we paid particular attention to whether Fentu received enough energy.

When we started importing Winner Plus, we initially planned to offer him Performance. At the time it contained 22% fat and seemed a logical choice to support weight. Fentu refused. Irene even wondered whether she would need to keep ordering the previous food. Fortunately, Fentu accepted the cold-pressed Active recipe. Later he enjoyed salmon and potato, and eventually started eating Performance, which he had initially rejected. He also tried pork and salmon-and-rice recipes. Our fear that he would only ever eat one flavour turned out to be unfounded.

The acceptance of new flavours broadened over roughly three to four weeks, but his persistent pickiness only disappeared after about a year and a half. We still wonder whether he had become accustomed to very salty food and his taste preferences changed. That is our hypothesis, not a measured explanation. We did not separately control flavour, smell, kibble shape, texture, previous experience and feeding routine. Comparing food packets cannot establish a diagnosis of dependence.

Why does one kibble seem delicious and another not?

Dogs experience food through smell, taste, texture and habit. Some kibble smells stronger, some is harder, some larger; one dog prefers wet food while another likes the texture of cold-pressed food. Fat content and recipe influence palatability, but cannot predict what every dog will accept. An initial ‘no’ after sniffing is therefore not necessarily a final verdict.

Nor can we promise that a dog who takes a few bites will later consume a whole portion. Refusing food can be a symptom, not stubbornness. The practical steps below are appropriate only if the dog is otherwise alert, drinking, maintaining weight and unlikely to have a medical problem.

What can help when the dog is healthy?

Begin with a predictable feeding routine. Offer food somewhere calm and check whether snacks between meals keep your dog partly full. Treats and chews contribute to the day’s calories too. If every refusal has long been followed by another flavour enhancer, this may have become part of the routine. Change that gradually and without punishment.

Try small bags, different textures or a little warm water added to dry food, if appropriate. Let moistened food sit only briefly and safely, then remove leftovers. When changing the main diet, the transition generally takes about seven to ten days, and longer may be necessary for a sensitive stomach. Constant overnight switching is not always friendly to digestion or preferences.

For us, being able to test small amounts was invaluable. Dogs are welcome to sample foods at the FendaF showroom, and 300-gram trial packs may also be available. Check the current size and stock before purchasing. The principle remains: don’t buy a two-kilogram bag on hope alone when you don’t know whether your dog will eat it.

You can still work with a dog who is not especially food-motivated

Even when food is not a strong reward, a dog may enjoy play, walking, sniffing breaks or human attention. These cannot replace finding a suitable main diet, but they can prevent every interaction from becoming a negotiation over food. Fentu taught us that a dog’s preferences are not set in stone, but change calls for observation rather than force.

Sources

• Koehler & Boldan (2026). Dog Not Eating? Causes and When To Call Your Vet. PetMD.
• VCA Animal Hospitals. Testing for Decreased Appetite with Listlessness.
• VCA Animal Hospitals. Nutrition and Pancreatic Disease in Dogs.
• WSAVA Global Nutrition Committee. Feeding Treats to Your Dog.