How to Feed Baby Food to Dogs

Despite what some television commercials would lead you to believe, not all dogs are finicky creatures. In fact, some dog owners find that their dogs will eat many things, edible and inedible. But when your family dog is sick or recovering from surgery, she may have a diminished appetite and refuse food and drink for several days. To ensure she heals quickly, consider feeding her baby food -- as long as it doesn't contain onions or onion powder.

Things You'll Need

Meat-flavor baby food
Soft cloth
Bowl
Small spoon or baby spoon
Large medicine dropper

Instructions

- 1
  Mix in a little baby food with your dog's regular food before you try hand-feeding. If you mix the baby food in thoroughly with the regular food, she won't be able to eat just the baby food.
- 2
  Clean your dog's nose of any nasal discharge with a cloth moistened in warm water. Dogs respond to strong food smells, and if her nose is full of discharge, she is less able to smell the food.
- 3
  Empty the baby food into a bowl.
- 4
  Sit on the floor next to your dog's food bowl and call her to you. Dip a spoon into your bowl and entice your dog to eat the baby food off the spoon by holding it directly under her nose. Once she begins to lick the food off the spoon, gradually transition her to eating the baby food out of the bowl.
- 5
  Place your dog on your lap if she is small and hand-feed her with the spoon. Encourage her to eat directly from the bowl after she eats from the spoon.
- 6
  Squeeze baby food into a medicine dropper if your dog has a mouth injury or still refuses food. Squeeze a little food onto the tip of the dropper and hold the dropper under her nose. Try to entice her to lick the food from the dropper. If that fails, gently insert the dropper into her mouth and squeeze out a little food to get her to eat.
- 7
  Restore her normal diet within a day or two of healing, adding less baby food to her regular food at each feeding.