My puppy refuses dry food and will only eat meat

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Hi everyone,

I have a 2-month-old puppy that we brought home at 1 month old, and she won’t eat anything except meat, fish, and bones. I’ve been trying to give her dry food but she won’t touch it. I even tried leaving her with nothing but dry food for two days, thinking she’d eventually get hungry and eat it, but no joy. Since she doesn’t eat much anyway—barely a quarter of her bowl and she never finishes it—I started adding meat to her dry food, along with a bit of veg, some rice, a little oil, and occasionally eggs (basically half home-cooked, half dry food) just to get her to eat something. But she always manages to pick through it, eating the meat and leaving the rest. I’ve even tried blitzing the dry food and veg in a blender and mixing it with tiny bits of meat, but it makes no difference; she just picks out the meat and leaves the rest.

The strange thing is that for a puppy who supposedly isn't a big eater, as soon as I start cooking or open the fridge, she gets super excited. She’s also very interested when we sit down to dinner and whines for us to give her something. Since we only have coffee tables, if I leave anything out, she’ll try to nick it—I even caught her licking the butter the other day!

Anyway, we’ve just come back from the vet who told us she’s in great health and that she’s gained about 4.4lbs in a month (I’ve no idea how!). She weighs 11lbs at 2 months and should be around 3 stone 2lbs as an adult.

How can I get her used to dry food? I don’t mind her eating meat, but not just meat and bones on their own.

Translated from French
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    Anonymous user Icon representing the flag French
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    Hi Tania I got her so young because I live in Morocco and there aren’t really any regulations here for puppy breeding (most dogs are just strays). She doesn’t come from a breeder, just a farm. She’s a Sloughi and comes from the Sloughi region, where we actually have a farm ourselves. She arrived in our lives quite unexpectedly. I know, zero preparation on our part... To explain a bit about how she ended up with us: one day while we were on our way to our farm, my husband told me that someone had a little Sloughi puppy for us and that he’d reserved her. Right. I wasn’t expecting that; I knew my husband had wanted a guard dog for the farm for a long time (to be honest, I’ve never been keen on the idea of a dog kept for guarding, especially since in Morocco guard dogs are left chained up and alone all day—basically, not my cup of tea at all, and there was no way I was having a dog that was chained up, and therefore aggressive and, above all, miserable). I had two hours during the car journey to do some research on Sloughis, as I knew nothing about them. The bit of info I found appealed to me and intrigued me: independent dogs, almost cat-like, Arabian greyhounds (not really guard dogs), and instinctively I thought, why not? She might be a good match for me and we might get on. It sounds a bit daft, but the more I learned about Sloughis, the more I wanted to meet her.
    Translated from French
    Doudou229
    Doudou229 Icon representing the flag French
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    Want to find out if your dog is a carnivore?

    This is a great little documentary that explains it all really well.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_LaWLecPHX4

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    Doudou229
    Doudou229 Icon representing the flag French
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    Hi Cindy and Oreo, What breeds of dog are you talking about? Every dog, regardless of breed, is built to eat meat and RAW bones with the meat still on... At a push, a dog might have an intolerance or an allergy, or they might just not like certain meats... simply a matter of taste. But I can assure you that Mother Nature made them all to tear into meat or gnaw on bones... and eat fish too. 🙂
    Translated from French
    Tania28
    Tania28 Icon representing the flag French
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    Mind you, the vet will just sell their dry food with grains, and it’s really not great at all.

    Dogs can eat meat, but they need more than just that.

    Translated from French
    Cindy_et_oreo
    Cindy_et_oreo Icon representing the flag French
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    If you normally feed him meat, he’s only ever going to want meat.

    You could try using some dry food to play with him. It might just be that the dry food isn’t right for him, so go and see the vet and they’ll be able to give you some advice.

    Bones can cause real problems for puppies.

    There are some dog breeds that don't eat meat because it can cause them issues.

    That’s about all I can tell you.

    Translated from French
    Doudou229
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    Hi Jujud, Is it not possible for you to let her have the things she actually enjoys eating? Fish, meat, eggs, veg, fruit, meaty bones (chicken thighs, rabbit saddle, chicken carcasses...), offal and maybe some dairy... Are you the one based in Tunisia or Morocco? Or have I got that wrong? She’s a greedy little thing, and butter is packed with vitamins! ;-)) Butter is a real treat for puppies and dogs, just like dairy (yoghurt). The only thing is that some dogs don't digest lactose very well, while others handle it perfectly fine. Oil and butter (just watch out for any sugar or salt in them) are fine as long as they're raw and given in small amounts. (You'll need to stop her from stealing from the table, though – you've got to nip that in the bud now she's two months old). Reward her when she doesn't give in to temptation; you need to practise the "leave it" command with her. Two months is the perfect age to start with basic obedience and training through play. 👎 https://www.pinterest.fr/Doudou229/le-barf-pour-chien/
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    Tania28
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    Why did you get her so early? At only a month old, she won't even be weaned yet...

    Have you tried any other types of dry food? Or you could switch to a BARF diet, but you'd need to do it properly (just bear in mind that any food might or might not agree with a dog).

    Translated from French
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