Loss Of Appetite

[hopkirk]

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Hi

I hope you can help please. My 9 month whippet has just suddenly gone off his food. This has never been a problem before as he always has had a really healthy appetite.

He has also become lethargic around meal times and shows no interest in his usual food and his playful routine (around that time) has changed.

We have changed his food from dry to wet and tonight we are going to give him freshly cooked chicken and vegetables (anything he may like more) to tempt his appetite back.

This has also coincided with him feeling a bit “randy” with our other dog and I was wondering if anyone has experienced a sudden loss of appetite at a certain age?

The only other thing I can thing of is if he has ate something not right on a walk and is feeling under the weather- though last night tea time he managed to eat a little of dog food and he passed it out this morning ok. I am now wondering if he has a fear of eating from a bad experience.

If he does not eat later on I will be taking him straight to the vets.

Any help or thoughts would be appreciated

Thanks

 

[Avalonia]

If your dog is showing no actual signs of illness, and is drinking water regularly, it is not uncommon for whippet dogs to go off their food for a day or two or even three and just nibble. As a young pup your dog may have nibbled or chewed something he found around the house or property and be a little out of sorts in his tummy -- in which case his own good sense takes hold and he stops eating till he feels better. We feed the same amount of food each day to our dogs and while most days their dinner is quickly wolfed down, some days one or another dog will barely touch the meal at dinner. Sometimes they will save it overnight for breakfast, and sometimes they won't eat it then. But a day or two later they will be scarfing down their meal again.

I am assuming that this is a quality food and your dog routinely likes it and eats it all when served. Not all foods are equal, and if the dog is food adverse to a particular type of food you may have to shift it to something new. But before you consider that, observe him for the next few days and try to figure out what his relationship to his meal is.

The worst thing you can do is worry too much and try to tempt the dog to eat by offering it a special food it normally would not get. Dogs quickly learn what they have to do to get this sort of special treatment all the time, and before you know it, you have a dog who will forever be a picky eater, and whom you will forever end up having to find new special meals for as they get bored with one selection and seek something new.

I am assuming there are no other changes at home -- someone gone away, or whatever, because often dogs will pine for a favourite human if they go on holidays too.

For the record, we have a small boarding kennel and often a first time dog who has never been boarded can be traumatized by the disappearance of Mom and Dad. These dogs will not eat their meals (even the ones the owners may have elected to leave so they stay on their same diet) for one or two days, but we have learned not to worry because we monitor them to see that they are drinking. And if they are drinking eating will come when they are hungry and ready. The record for a dog not eating was a near feral dog shipped up to us by a Canadian school teacher in Mexico who adopted a street dog and then sent it to her brother to care for while she was finishing her term with Canadian University Services Overseas - a group that sends volunteers to work in communities around the world for one or two years. After 24 hours at her brothers house which he basically trashed he was delivered to us in the hopes we could get control of him (all of which is another horror story... but with a good ending). That dog did not eat one mouthful of food for five days, but we knew he was drinking. On day six he finally decided he was stuck with us and he might as well adjust. He cleaned his dish and never left food again.

Monitor your pup and if there is no sign of illness keep him on his regular routine, take him out for walks and potty breaks, and keep the fresh water readily available and he will shortly come around.

Lanny

 

[hopkirk]

Hi

Thank you so much for responding i really appreciate your advice - you know after years and years of looking after dogs - my little boy just worries me as he is so emotional and you can just tell any slight difference in character. He melts my heart and I even took a day off work -to make sure he was ok I was there for cuddles if he needed them ( i know to obsessed)

Good news - he has eaten basically a whole chicken.

He seems to be avoiding anything crunchy at the moment as i think he may have eaten some of his dry food to quickly and this has made him a bit waery of this texture- but hey it's fresh warm chicken !!! i could not even resist it !!

We have spent a lot of time playing with my sock (his sock) which he has taken a shine too. Basically anything that is mine - socks - shoes- even gets my bra's !!! which not too happy about but is back to his normal self.

Thanks for taking the time to get back to me and here is some pictures to say thank you from me and Hops xx :huggles:

 

[Avalonia]

Glad he is eating. I knew he would when hungry.

I love blues! There are so few over here I have to get my blue fix when I go to England!

Good luck with your boy! I am sure you never actually had much to worry about.

Lanny