The Magic Meatloaf recipe....

[MichelleB]

One more question.....

I am studying the Magic Meatloaf recipe posted by jpy, and I was wondering how much of this to feed at a time for Clarice. Should I use it as a straight diet for now, until she puts on adequate weight ( that seems like a probable no-no ) or should I use it as a supplement to her regular kibble? If it's a supplement, what should the ratio of meatloaf/kibble be?

I may have to make extra for my own dinner tonight...the stuff sounds kinda yummy! LOL

[Dina]

Michelle,
The recipe is technically a complete & balanced diet, so you could feed it as the primary meal if you wanted (if you could afford to- usually costs me at least 20.00 per batch!). What I do, is split the recipe into meatballs or cook as a meatloaf and slice and freeze in portions of about 1 cup. Depending on the size of the dog, I give 1-2 of those per day, as a treat, seperate from meatime. I normally see a difference in weight in just a few days to a week.
If she is cleaning her bowl at times, and has already begun to put on weight, don't worry! You have to remember that they do take some time to adjust, and there are alot of factors that could affect her appetite. First, she was spayed & vaccinated & poked & prodded the day you picked her- that would be enough to chase away my appetite for a day or two. Then, you don't know what situation she came from & routines she is used to- she could have fed only once a day (sometimes it takes a while for them to adjust to eating twice a day), or only sporadically. You don't know what kind of kibble she was fed, if fed kibble at all. Just changing homes seems to be a traumatic enough experience for most danes, even if the new one is much better than the previous one (or ones).
Dina

[MichelleB]

Thanks Dina....you've been so helpful. I took your original advice, and yesterday I stopped mixing the canned with the kibble. She didn't do much but pick at it yesterday for the 15 minutes I left the food down but kept going into the kitchen and looking at where I put her bowl after mealtimes so I knew she was hungry. Once I cut her some slack and put the kibble back in front of her after her regular dinnertime and she just looked at it and walked away. This morning I put the kibble in front of her and she ate the whole bowl, including everything that dropped on the floor. I agree her schedule is messed up right now from where she lived before so that influences her. Also when I give her breakfast she hasn't seen us all night ( our bedroom is upstairs so she sleeps on the enclosed sunporch because I don't want her going up and down stairs ) and she is more worried about visiting than eating. This morning I stood right beside her and she ate fine, knowing I was in her presence. I may hold off on the Magic Meatloaf....as great as the meatloaf sounds, she is gaining weight pretty rapidly even on the small amount she has eaten in the time she has been here and is looking much better. I may just not mess with the routine we are making right now.

Thanks again!

Michelle B.