Skip to content

Having trouble getting your basenji to eat their food?

Basenji Talk
  • I agree that it is good to switch around the food…

  • try mixing in a little peanut butter. Yum.
    or try putting a teaspoon of plain yogurt in with the food.

  • little warm baby food works too, it doesn't have any added sugars or salts and is good for them and they LOVE it, makes nice little gravy/sauce for them

  • Yes i'm sure it is a basenji, but it is not the short one he has long legs and is light brown and white.The reason why i said he doesn't want to eat or do not eat enough is that i can see his ribs and backbones and the vet also said that he is to thin. I don't have pictures of him right now but i will take pictures of Nano and post it so that you can see why i say he is thin.Thanks so much for your reply.

  • Yes, there is always food available for my dogs, they eat when they are hungry.Maybe i should try giving them food only in mornings and in the evenings and see if that helps.

  • That is fair enough but my other two dogs, a BOXER and a JACK RUSSEL eat the same food for almost over two years now and they are still doing graet.Now and then they will get a bone or dinner food aswell as NANO but NANo will eat it but not eat his pellets, WHY. Is it because he knows there is other food and so thats why he dont want to eat his pellet so that he would get my attention to give him the left over dinner, ex. rice or vegetables and meat.I am cluelless with this dog and i love him so much.

  • Peanutbutter you say.I have never tried it but what about my other two dogs, the eat their pellets.If i give NANO this won't he would never learn to eat his pellets because everytime he dont whant to eat he knows that i will give him something else, and isn't that wrong. Dogs should be able to eat pellet and now and then a bone here and there abd maybe the left over of dinner but not everytime, they will get used to eat left overs and not eat their pellets?

  • NANO is almost a year old. Friends of ours gave him to us because he was nauty and always jumping over fences, but since he stayed with us he still tries to get out but that problem has beeb fixed the only problem left is the food. I dont want to give him everytime something else to eat because they are going to get used to not eat their pellets because he know if he doesn't eat i will give him something better. MY other two dogs eat the same pellets for over two years now and they still love it, sometimes they all get a bone after a braai but not everyday.

  • I think you misunderstood - keep feeding Nano the pellets but occasionally mix in the other suggested food items. And feeding him at regular times instead of leaving the food available all day is better.

  • I almost wish i had that problem with Maya she will eat anything and everthing. I regularly find her IN the bags of dog food helping herself. She is a little pig.

    I had a pug who was a terribly fussy eater as a baby. Breeder said she definately will eat sooner or later, keep offering her a bowl of food etc etc etc. After about FIVE days of her eating nothing i had to start hand feeding her cooked chicken!! She is also a little pig now. Its so worrying when they are so fussy though.

    I've yet to have a dog that doesnt like the raw food though :)

  • @Maya:

    I've yet to have a dog that doesnt like the raw food though :)

    Unfortunately i did. I used to feed flank of lamb (before the Mad Cow crisis which put Lamb prices through the roof). One of my dobe boys used to grab his flank of lamb, run to the bottom of the garden, i presumed it was to eat in peace - but he would leave it for the girls to find - took me a few weeks to find out why he was losing weight and they were gaining.

  • @sky:

    NANO is almost a year old. Friends of ours gave him to us because he was nauty and always jumping over fences, but since he stayed with us he still tries to get out but that problem has beeb fixed the only problem left is the food. I dont want to give him everytime something else to eat because they are going to get used to not eat their pellets because he know if he doesn't eat i will give him something better. MY other two dogs eat the same pellets for over two years now and they still love it, sometimes they all get a bone after a braai but not everyday.

    First, check his teeth. The vet should have done that but if not check yourself. One may be absessed or something else may be wrong. You could also go to a different vet and get a second opinion. Did the vet think he was too thin?

    I personally do not change my dogs food, but I will add bonus treats to it. My dog loves green peppers, sour cream, gravy etc. If you didn't want to add a topper to his current food, you could try just adding hot water. That will give it some flavor.

    You could also try feeding him in his crate. Maybe he feels threatened by the other dogs.

  • I think that "free" feeding is a mistake to anyone that does it. (In my opinion and in 99% of the cases)
    It is best to develope good eating habits by giving them a certain amount of time to eat and when that passes, its gone. Also that they all are fed separate in a crate or in different places so that they can all "eat" in peace….

    What food are you using?

  • First of all, not all dogs like the same food and your Nano may just not care for the food.

    On occasion Jazz will refuse to eat for a day or so. I will flavor up her food then – a little broth or egg or cottage cheese, whatever I have handy -- just a bit. I can do that for a meal or two and she'll eat okay, then I cut out the flavoring and she eats her kibble just fine.

  • @etzbseder:

    Are you sure it's a basenji? 20.1kg is too heavy for a basenji. Medjai is a light basenji (also a little short) and he only weighs about 8.1kg. I think standard for a male should be about 11.3kg.

    He will eat if he's hungry enough, just do the best you can with picking something he'll like based on what the rest like and he'll eat it in time. If the vet says that nothing's wrong, go with it. It'd help if you could post pictures.

    Yeah, that does sound HUGE….like almost double the accepted weight for a male Basenji. Must be a mix with something. Can't wait to see pictures.

  • We feed Tupper Blue Buffalo with the life sources bits. He loves it. On special nights try adding a little pumpkin to the dry food. Make sure you get real pumpkin and not pumpkin pie filling and add NO MORE then a tablespoon. Anymore then that the dog with have a bathroom problem. As soon as we put the pumpkin mixed food down Tupper goes crazy, it's so cute

  • The vet told me that he is to thin.I found an absessed in his mouth, took him to see the vet and now everything is fine.He started to eat a bit more then usually but not like my other 2 dogs.There are 3 bowls for each dog but i place it far apart from each other and they eat in peace.Thenk you so much for everything.

  • Every morning and evening they will get some extra with their food but i know that Nano loves and going crazy if i pour some meat flovour soup over his pellets. He doesn't like to share his food but that's okay, i never share my food not even with my kids or husband.I put a red light in their kennel so they can sleep warm during the night in the winter because Nano easily get cold and the he doesnt want to play but i understand it's too cold outside so he would rather snuggled. Oh, i LOVE MY NANO>

  • @wizard I have tried that no luck, so left food out all day no luck. he will eat SOME food at night when I put him in it for bedtime. I hate to see him go with out food for so long. we are on our 6 food still no luck.

  • @badbasenji - Should be feeding on a schedule not free fed... NOTE that they will NOT starve themselves unless sick.... give them 10 minutes to eat and then take it away until the next feeding time. If they are hungry they will eat.

Suggested Topics

  • 4 Votes
    29 Posts
    3k Views
    RugosaR
    My Rosa wrote the "How To Be a Basenji DIVA" manuscript - as many rules there were, it was so worthy of a 'script' at the end! She, and all her offspring, had spring and fall heats, but I only bred her once in the spring. That produced one puppy, my Captain. She always ruled over her pups, except when Captain came along - she did what HE said when he was about 2 weeks old!
  • How did you get your basenji to walk off leash?

    Basenji Talk
    17
    0 Votes
    17 Posts
    13k Views
    DebraDownSouthD
    @eeeefarm said in How did you get your basenji to walk off leash?: What I find interesting is the change in attitude to dogs on leashes. At that time, many people walked their dogs off leash, and many left them loose on their properties all day long. First, and probably foremost, you're a excellent owner. We disagree on a lot of training things (like e-collars) but you are uber responsible. On the "in the old days"... I see parents talk about not how they roved the neighborhood or all over small towns and how safe. But I also worked with women over the age of 70 who had been sexually assaulted as children and never reported it. I am not sure kids were massively safer in the good old days except for the fact that back then, your neighbors DID look after your kids... they'd scold them or call you without being fearful of being called meddling... because it was about caring. We've lost that. As for dogs, yep... we're similar aged and I remember my grandmother's farm and the fairly steady stream of new farm dogs because they got killed by wild life/snakes etc or roving dogs. It was business as usual. Dog disappeared or dead-- get another one. I know many still feel that way. Rather have to dogs run free and happy and dead young than "cooped up." Our value for dogs as companions has dramatically changed, and our view of our responsibility for them. We always had cats and dogs who were allowed out, and like you, most stayed on the property. But I remember 3 dogs who didn't (one small, probably stolen) and cats didn't live long. We just took that as the norm. Obviously I have look back at that and am horrified. (Though there was an Irish setter who would NOT stay on his property and if the owners weren't there, he followed me about a mile to my house when I walked home from school. His owners laughed, would come get him when they got home if he didn't go back. I thought that was kewl back then but not so much then.) But my experience, and I lived in a very small town then, and a smallish one now, is very different. Then and now, dead dogs and cats on the road are incredibly common. The litmus test is research statistics. Cats who are even allowed out a few hours a day loose have dramatically decreased life spans. I haven't bothered to look about dogs, though a look at shelters should be enough to prove that dogs loose are often dogs lost. The number with electric fence collars demonstrates how ineffective even that is if prey drive kicks in. (for the record, your dog your choice. Loose cats however have an almost unimaginable impact on wildlife, so it IS my business if your cat runs loose.) Yep, times have definitely changed.
  • Mistake getting a Basenji?

    Basenji Talk
    35
    0 Votes
    35 Posts
    13k Views
    PearlsMomP
    Hello! I wish to comment on my dog Pearl. She is Very quiet, hardly a sound. I try to encourage her to speak. She does a lot of nonverbal communication. About the child issue. Pearl came to us as a puppy. My kids (12 & 13 at the time) spent time with her, the neighbor kids played with her, and she loves kids. No problems socializing with young people. I guess the point is, your pup will love anyone who treats it well and cares for it. At 5 , I'm sure your child understands the importance of being gentle with dogs. Pearl has done her fair share of chewing. Interesting what she likes. She will be 2 in October, and is better, but she has lots of bones! I love Pearl, however, I am easy going, and enjoy taking her on walks, playing with her, and having her as a family member. Its up to you what you want from a dog. Pearl is pretty free, and thats what I like!
  • So what did your Basenji eat today?

    Basenji Talk
    13
    0 Votes
    13 Posts
    3k Views
    ComicDom1C
    @Nemo: how weird. Nemo tried to eat off his martingale collar today. He only wears it when his leash is on. Luckily it is still usable. Glad to hear Roo is well. Thanks Nemo, We strongly suspect that the Vet or Vet Tech loosened his collar when they took it off before his Neuter. When the Vet Tech put his collar back on him, they neglected to check it for proper fit and we never thought about the possiblity that hit had been loosed, so we did not bother checking the fit. We bought Roo a new Red Martingale Collar the other day and I made sure it properly adjusted. I can just get about 2 fingers inside it. It does not hang down where the leash connects so we do not see anyway he can get any part of the collar in his mouth or lower Jaw. We have been watching him the last few days and we now believe it is a non-issue. What we did learn is that when we do take him to the Vet, we need to make sure his collar is properly adjusted when we pick him up. I am sure we would be much safer taking his collar off when we are home, but from what I see if the Martingale Collar is adjusted properly it's no longer a problem or concern. So we will chalk this experience up to owner error. Most likely it was mine for overlooking and not checking the collar after we picked Roo up from the Vet. Jason
  • Poll: Where Did You Get Your Basenji?

    Basenji Talk
    19
    0 Votes
    19 Posts
    6k Views
    youngandtiredY
    Well, it started when I was out with my 22yr. old son at the mall. He said, "Hey, Mom lets look at the dogs in the petstore ", I replied, "I don't have time besides your Dad has too many ideas what a dog has to be like for us to get one", I'll never find a dog like he wants". That was 3 yrs. ago this Jan., and I had never heard of a Basenji. I called DH about 3 times the night I found Sahara to persuade him we needed this dog, but she was very expensive so it took some work talking him into me buying her. She is owned by my son, me and my husband, she lives with my husband and I. She is the best dog I have ever owned, and I have had many through my lifetime. I would never get another dog from a pet store (didn't know about puppy mills)but I would have not known of this breed if I hadn't stopped and looked that night. My husband loves this dog so very much, he buys her whatever she wants or needs. I love her also, she is my joy and I can't stand to be from her for very long, we just got back from a trip and it was so hard missing her. My son said that she didn't eat very good while we were gone and was very destructive in the house. Guess she missed us as well!
  • Foods basenjis love

    Basenji Talk
    49
    0 Votes
    49 Posts
    17k Views
    JazzysMomJ
    @wizard: I forgot to mention that my previous basenji loved to eat rabbits that he caught and muskrats. (I did my best to get those away from him) Oh. ew. We have found one or two squirrel carcasses in the yard over time, but I'm not sure who's killing them. Gypsy has in her youth, but I'm not sure she has the eyesight or speed for that anymore, so it's probably one of the Basenjis. Grosses me out! I know they'd both like to make lunch out of my cats.