I am having some problems feeding my 8mth lab.  up until a couple of months ago he was on hill's science plan puppy, but appeared to go off it.  we have since tried a couple of other foods (royal canine puppy  and pedigree puppy tins) with little success.  we finally found what we thought was success with JWB adult food (turkey and rice kibble) and he looked absolutely fantastic on it.  however, he seems to have now gone off this, picking and choosing at it.  he does seem very keen on anything else we eat (given half a chance), along with his dog biscuits and occasional liver cake treats.  further he does seem to eat earth and steal pieces of coal to chew given half a chance.  is this ok??

his poo does seem to loose it's consistency at the same time as he is going off his food.

do labs get bored with the same food day in day out?  if so any advice on a varied feeding regime would be greatly appreciated.

Well wot can i say welcome too the world of ive got u playing my games DAD sorry ive got 2 labs my eldest is 7 she was a bit like that i think they just get bored put sayin that 3yrs ago i got my other baby my yellow one and she was fed beta when being wheaned now i would get bored with that same old bland taste  shes always been a typical lab eat anything but when she got to about 7months she was looking at me in disgust but was still eating it after all it was food,so i thought i would try them on bakers complete its quite cheap but really good they both have lovely coats thier teeth have no tartar their breath doesnt even smell, when they are in pup i give them a bit more and i even wean the pups on it so just buy a little box its got every thing in there that your baby needs the coat will be lovely trust me

he does seem very keen on anything else we eat (given half a chance),

Perhaps that is your clue :D  If you feel happy feeding a particular food that appears to be providing what the dog requires then just halve the quantity, put down for 10 minutes and then remove; repeat in the evening and feed nothing else.  This tends to focus a dog's attention at meal times :D

Do they get bored?  Would you if you ate a bowl of muesli twice a day for the rest of your life?

Have you thought of Naturediet?  This is not dry or tinned but vacuum packed meat, rice and veggies available from post pet shops.  Most dogs like this and it is a healthy option.

Beware of dog foods that contain salt, sweeteners and are coloured into tiny shapes to attract the purchaser!

Hiya
Tohme has given this advice before on previous threads - I've tried it.....and as ever, it works :) Reducing the food, then removing it after 10 minutes seems to reduce their 'pickiness' towards a food that they have previously loved :o 
I used to make the mistake of putting down so many diffrent foods (Hills tinned Puppy etc), in the hope that Rosie would take to a particular one. (Also stopped feeding her our scraps....which of course would be more appealing....but not necessarily good for her)
I happen to use Burns (Dry complete), and if she does eventually get bored of Venison & Rice, I'll give her the chicken or fish version for variety.....but I will certainly use Tohme's test first...just to see if we are having a 'picky' day ! ;)
Good luck
Jo

Hello JoBasset,

I take it the change-over to Burns went ok then :). How are you getting on with it.  I've even changed my adult lab onto it, because my pups doing so well on it.  I just wish the kibble pieces were a bit bigger!

Ali :)

Hiya mentalcat

What can I say...Burns is a revelation. Rosie is bouncing around the house like a mad girl....you'd never know she was going through her first season :D
It's truely brilliant....the treats are great too....but the fishy ones sadly gave her a dickie bot...phew...what a relief...they stink...the treats I mean ;)
The only difficult part was the s l o w introduction...she'd craftily get all the Burns kibbles and leave her Hills and mix left at the bottom :)
Think my raving on shows just how please I am....thanks for asking though mentalcat
Jo