I am wondering if there my be a Nutritional Expert on the group that may be able to help me.

I have been struggling for a long time now, with my youngest Lab (18 months) who has been a nightmare to feed.   He is much leaner than I would like but not seriously though - however, it has been frustrating and really hard work just to get him to have an interest in his food.  That said, I have tried the 'pick it up and leave him' approach and it works to a degree but he's never ravenously hungry if he hasn't eaten for a day.
What ever food I have tried, he approaches it with his nose turned up almost and there are days when he just backs away from it.
Other times, he will eat like there's no tomorrow!! 
Despite spending money on only the best food - I never buy cheap brands and always check the ingredients - it makes no difference.
Now I'm looking at home cooking but wonder if I would be providing the correct nutrients.
I don't like the idea of raw - I do have good reasons for this but would rather avoid this topic at the moment and purely look at the home-cooked option.
Does anyone feed this way?

many thanks

What and how much are you feeding at moment, also of that amount how much does he eat?

Have you tried dry food on it's own and wet food on it's own and then a mixture of both, and does he have a preference ?
Also, don't dismiss the cheaper foods if he likes them.
I put grated cheese on top of my pups food when it's having a fussy day.

I'm certainly not an expert, but I did go the home cooked food approach for some time for my dog, when she went off kibble and then off wet food. For home cooked it was mince, various sorts, cooked with various packs of frozen veggies, added herbs sometimes, bit of tomato puree etc etc, plus a dog multivitamin tablet, and fish oil. However, my dog was also getting raw bones (lamb ribs mostly, the occasional beef marrow bone), as I was fully aware that my home cooked diet wasn't complete. She did, however, do very well on it for a couple of years. I would not have been happy without the added raw bones, and I don't suggest anyone tries it as I did.

In the end I moved over to fully raw feeding, but buy the food pre-prepared (minced meat, bone, offal and veggies with added vitamins etc). All I have to do is thaw it out and put it in her bowl. I still provide marrow bones and lamb ribs. Bracken would probably turn herself inside out for a raw bone, but if presented with a cooked (human-like) dinner, would prefer it over her raw food. I add various types of stock to her raw dinner to make it more pleasant - you can buy quite a few fresh stocks with no added salt, and occasionally I might boil a chicken carcase to get my own.

In the end, I think you have to find some complete diet that your dog does like. It's hard. Mine went through various dried kibble, various wet, ending with nature diet, and then onto home cooked and then raw. Mine is also a small dog (fox terrier) so the cost has not been an issue - I'm sure it would become an issue with a larger dog.

Claire

Like wireyfox has mentioned I'd be inclined to find some middle ground first.  I'm pretty sceptical about home cooking as a viable option

I feed raw but have previously fed kibble (and still keep it for the odd meal) and I also prep my own stock for the dogs when I have the right sort of leftovers, mainly chicken carcass.  I just don't like to waste food and if I don't need the stock for soup, then I prep a dog friendly version to add to kibble from time to time.  I also like to have some in the freezer that I can feed with rice if anyone has a dodgy tummy or just needs light convalescent food :)

I appreciate you don't really want a full on discussion about raw but I think it will be worth looking at your reasons for not feeding raw as it might enable us to provide you with some workable or 'work-around' options.  Could you feed chicken wings or other bones, do you not have freezer space, is it cost etc?

In theory, home cooked food is quite do-able but easier for the odd day, or to accompany kibble, than as a full time solution.  If you want some recipes have a look at the book titled "Cooking For Your Dog"

Have you had him checked out at the vets? I had a fussy eater and wanted to rule out a health reason first, when he had the all clear then I had to work at finding the right food, my colleagues were benefiting from my failures as they got the food for their dogs, I had a 15yr old cocker and I'd let him eat Rhuari's food but he was very polite and just sat back and watched his dinner disappear, we then had 10 months of him being an only dog bar for visits from my Mums dachsie, he only really improved when I got my second dachsie[ he was a few days off 2 yrs old] and he had competition plus they were constantly playing so burning off calories, no one had come across a dog in my breed who didn't "inhale" their food.

It is frustrating and worrying but be assured that he won't starve himself to death.

I free feed my adults because I found they didn't all want to eat at the same time so kibble is available 24/7 and then extras[ chicken wings etc.] offered a couple of times a week.

Puppy food has more calories so you wouldn't need to get him to eat as much in quantity and then gradually wean back to adult food when a regular pattern has been established. Adding strong grated cheese,yoghurt or cottage cheese gives variety, calories as well as a change in texture.

Good Luck

No expert here, but just to offer sympathy, having struggled with my own picky princess ever since she was weaned, for nearly 2 years now. Everything we try, she either ignores, or eats for a few days and then gives up on. We've tried 'eat or starve' and she will choose starve. We went through a period where she was eating kibble with a hard boiled egg mashed in and we have got her up to a nice weight at last, but she's gone off that now so I'm not sure how to keep her at the right weight. *sigh*

It is possible that when mature he will grow out of this, certainly unusual for a Lab but it may be age related. I would feed anything he will eat and wait for him to come to his senses.  Had one like this and I used to cook offal and serve a little on each meal of complete chopped up fine and mixed in or a small amount of cat food. Oh! Only other thing is feed at least twice a day.

Thank you to all the replies - they all have useful remarks.
In answer to the question about feeding just dry or just wet....yes, I have done this but he isn't particularly keen on just kibble.   I have tried soaking it - not keen but will have it dampened.
I have tried something called Nature Diet.....not keen and this made his stools loose as well (I do intro gradually).
Quantity-wise.....well, I haven't been measuring it.  I feed a large plastic measure (cola-size) almost to the top,  twice daily.   So to give an idea I measured it and it weighs around 200grms slightly less.   I add a small amount of topper to this, be it minced turkey or beef/vedge or sardine or whatever I can get down him to be honest.   His favorite is Kedgeree that I make with white fish fillets and sardine, hard boiled egg chopped up and brown rice.

The comment about getting a health check crossed my mind and I have had him checked at the vet - who could find no immediate problem but has suggested that if he continues with his poor eating,we could take blood tests etc.
I would have thought that if there was a problem though, he wouldn't eat at all or struggle to eat if it was a mouth problem but this isn't the case.
Whilst not dismissing the health point it isn't something I feel I need to do at this point in time, purely because he will eat..it's just that he doesn't eat regularly and of (what i feel is) a sufficient an amount.  Also, he has so much energy and strength.
That said....tonight he hate a whole Turkey fillet with potatoes and yam/greens and about 100 grms of dried food mixed !!!!!!!!!    This is how he goes.
Tomorrow he may not eat his breakfast...actually, thinking about it, it is mainly the breakfast that  have most trouble with as well.
Is there a good multi vitamin that can be recommended to feed with home-cooked I wonder?  

Also, someone mentioned puppy food and this might be worth a try - to try and build up body-weight but I wonder if it would do any harm putting him on this at 2 years old?  (I expect not - short term).

Finally,  I think the comment about age related (possible hormonal) issues may be right...I really hope so.  
My neighbour runs a farm and says with her dogs that she finds her Bitches much easier and says the boys can be hard to keep body on until they get to about two/three.

Hi
My goldie is 17 months and I can honestly say was a complete and utter nightmare to feed so bloody fussy and would happily leave and not eat for a day, I spoke in length to her breeder he told me to starve her I told him I had she hadn't eaten for a dy and half he said it can definately take longer, she is a dominant alpha girl. So on returning from hols full of resolve I offered her her meal no eat taken away etc and it took her nearly five daysi was frantic and beside myself as you can imagine then she ate what I'd put down and we have never looked back she eats all her bowl up and can now have treats as a treat not instead of food, she is perfect adult weight and we aRe all so much appear and life is stress free . She was just ruling the roost as the saying goes

There's a useful series of articles on nutrition on the Champdogs Blog by Steve Hutchins. He recommends this book which I've bought, though not finished yet.

Also Kymythy Schultze has lots of info on her site about feeding, including home cooking.

Good luck with him Cindy. Fussy eaters can be very frustrating, but on the whole they do OK in the end. Just as long as they don't drive their owners nuts along the way ;-) (I'm including myself here as an owner of a distinctly hormonal bitch who grew out of it eventually!)

Most mammal species including our own have lean adolescent males, it does seem to be the norm although you will also find the exception. Look at most peoples wedding photos and you will wonder who that skinny young man is and I think in most cases it also applies to canine males, when the hormones are rampant the appetite goes, they remain slim ready to fight or flee for the lady (so to speak) so would not worry too much feed when he will eat and try not to worry when he will not.

True bitches are not so difficult but they are prone to having PMT twice a year.

When my Roxy was truly ill she went off her food, really excited and hungry while I put it in her bowl, put it on the floor for her and she would turn her nose up at it.  Stool tests showed giardia and french heartworm - one of the symptoms is anorexia.  She was only 4 months old and losing weight rapidly so very different circumstances but my vet advised to feed her anything she would eat (cold heinz chicken soup) and blitz kibble to dust in the blender and mix with the food she would eat so she was getting some sort of a balanced diet.  Obviously this was a short term emergency solution but it did work and I have not ended up with a fussy pup who will only eat chicken soup.  Might be worth a try if you get really worried but to be honest I think it sounds more like he is still growing up and maturing.  Lean labradors look fab anyway :D

Thankyou for all the latest messages......you have all been so helpful and given me a lot reassurance.