Fussy, fussy, fussy

What do you do when you have a dog that just won't eat? I've never had a dog like this before and I hope to never have one again; one with this fussy food issue. I think that over the last 9.5 years I've only lost it twice; over the food issue that is. And losing it means whapping myself in the the head and saying a few choice words under my breath. It is tough when you spend time making something that you think that he'll love only to have him come in; look at the food and leave. "Oh no you don't, get back in here and eat." Unfortunately forcing doesn't work; especially with a boy as sensitive as this.

So he is catered to; that's right I said it, he is spoiled. But then again who doesn't like to be waited on? Who doesn't like having a warm apple fritter and a keg of coffee delivered to you in bed on a rainy Sunday morning? I sure do. Back to Luke; he is on a weight gain diet, must be nice. I am trying to put just a few pounds on his skinny little body in the event that something should happen and he wouldn't eat for a couple of days. This alone could be very dangerous with such a lean guy.

There are things that Luke loves; but even when he loves them he does not eat with gusto. He is a dainty eater; don't even try offer him a large sized piece of anything, he'll just drop it on the floor for our Jack Russell (piranha) to devour. He likes small pieces; and then and only then will he even think about he eating a more substantial sized piece of food. For a week he has been on an eating role; very nice indeed. And amazingly enough he already put on a pound or two.

He is simply not normal; even my son can often be heard saying "what kind of dog doesn't eat meat?" This after offering Luke a piece of chicken or steak. Nope; he has to be in the mood and when he is, I keep the ball rolling. If he is in a mood to eat then eat is what we do; it is a very small window that I take full advantage of.

One of Luke's favorite foods is buttered toast; just like his Mom ;) So in the morning when I get breakfast and bring it up to bed I make extra. This morning I made two pieces of toast just for the dogs. Is buttered toast the best thing for him to be eating? No. Is warm apple fritters the best thing that I could be eating? No. But some things are just good for your soul; and if Luke loves buttered toast, buttered toast it is. And luckily buttered toast will put on the pounds. We eat organic whole grain bread so it's not so bad; much better than an apple fritter. ;)

In a perfect world Luke would eat like his house siblings; the girls here chow down anything you put in front of them. Jessie of course will eat just about anything at lightening speed and Tilley is the same but slower; choosing to enjoy her food a tad. So you do what you have to; I never thought I'd be down on the my knees trying to conjure up something that I can say to get my dog to eat, but alas here I am.