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My dog refuses kibble after bland diet. How do I get him to eat?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Mixed Breed Large (61lb +) | Male | neutered | 1 year and 1 month old | 61.2 lbs

My 1yr old dog was on a bland diet for a eeek and now I have reintroduced his normally food slowly. However, he doesn’t want his normal food to eat anymore despite it being mixed with chicken and rice. How do I get him to go back to his normal food? It’s like he is no longer excited about his meal since it has the kibbles that he used to love to eat.

2 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Dr. Elizabeth

Veterinarian

Published on July 18th, 2019

It is important to keep in mind that a reluctance to eat could be related to the initial illness that started the bland diet in the first place. If you are not sure if this is medical or behavioral, I recommend to have Milo examined. If this is behavioral, you will transition the diet. A good formula to transition any diet is to start with 50% bland diet and 50% regular food. Feed this for 2 days. If all is well, switch it to 75% regular food, 25% bland diet. Do this for another 2 days. if all is still well, then move to 100% regular diet. Some pets may need a slower transition. I hope this helps and best of luck.

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Other Answers

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    Answered By Shaneez Wallani, DVM

    Veterinarian

    Published on January 14th, 2019

    I'm glad to hear Luna is feeling better! You can try soaking the kibble in homemade seasoning-free chicken broth and mixing it until it is soft to encourage Luna to eat it, or mixing canned dog food in with the kibble. Slowly increasing the amount if kibble and decreasing the amount of rice over the course of a week can help make the transition easier. Hand feeding and varying the temperature of the food may help as well. Sometimes tossing the kibble in the air and getting the dog to catch it can encourage them to eat, as it makes it seem like a game. Good luck!

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