My Westie won't eat anything but Purina - help!

I have a 14-week old Westie, and I am feeding her Purina Puppy Chow. No, it's not by choice per se, because I did try getting different kinds of food - I tried California something or other (I am at work, I don't have the complete name), and I tried Authority, and she will not eat it. Purina (that is what the breeder fed her at first) is fine with her, but as soon as I try mixing in a few pellets of any of the two, she will not touch it. I give her the Purina mixed in with a bit of the Cesar soft food, and add a bit of warm water to make it more appealing. I tried replacing the Cesar one with Authority or some other soft food - she won't touch it. She only likes this combination, and I don't want to spend any more money on stuff that she won't touch, so I was wondering if any of you have any experience with a finicky Westie who doesn't like change.

Thanks in advance,
Corina

have you tried adding something other than dog food to her old food before trying to switch? for example a little bit of cultured yogurt, grated cheese, oatmeal, ground beef etc.?

the sad thing with poor quality foods like puppy chow is that they are formulated with specifically designed ingredients that dogs find irresistible. better quality, healthier foods don't need additives that make them attractive so switching to a better food can be quite painful.

do you take the food away after 15 minutes if it is not eaten?

Thank you for your answer. I did try adding yogurt, cottage cheese - she will nibble a little, but then go away.

The good news is that I bought Royal Canin last night (after reading some recommendations here), and she went to town! She loved it, so I guess we found our food - hopefully she'll stick with it. I did try mixing a little Nutro soft food, but she didn't quite care for it, so I will leave it out next time. I gave her only Royal Canin this morning, moistened with a little warm water, and she kind of ate - then again, she doesn't really eat that much in the morning, so I hope she'll make up for it at lunch.

As far as leaving it out for only 15 minutes - that's a little tricky. She eats a little, then she'll come back 5 minutes later. I do take it away after 30-40 minutes maximum, so she doesn't have food with her all the time.

Thanks for all your help, I am happy I picked up Royal Canin, I just hope she'll keep liking it.

royal canin is definitely a better quality product than anything you can find at a grocery store.

i recommend slowly reducing the time food is available to encourage your dog to eat right away. a stricter feeding routine will help prevent accidents and it will also be easier to tell if something is wrong and your dog goes off her food.