Not eating

[Marie1958]

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Rosie is 13mths old and dont know whether its normal but wont eat her food justs snifs and walks away. I have tried just kibble.and various wet food.even cooked rice with veg mixed in with meat which she did eat after a while. Shes not in season had her 1st one feb.she will eat treats.so cut down with that.its been going on and off for couple wks now.shes ok in herself weeing.pooing couple times a day. Just at a loss of what to do

 

[JudyN]

She needs to go to the vet to be checked over - it could be any number of things.

 

[JoanneF]

The first suggestion will always be a vet check. If she would eat treats though, she might be going through a teenage "Macdonalds" phase.

Then there are two routes you could take.

The tough love approach is to put down dry food, if she doesn't eat it lift it after 15 minutes. No treats at all. When she is hungry, she will eat.

I feel dogs often have such a dull diet that it can't be much fun and I would far rather my dog really enjoyed his food than just subsisted on it. So that would involve experimenting until you find a food she likes. My dog was a bit fussy until he went on to a cold pressed food - maybe the flavour or texture is better? He gets some raw too, which he loves. Also, I didnt set out to do this but he values his food more highly if he has to work to get it. Just a few simple training requests or a puzzle feeder add that element of effort he has to put in.

 

[niamh123]

Just been through this with Liam although it was a little different for him as I was switching from raw to dry,I tried him with Applaws large breed puppy the pieces were tiny and he point blank refused it then I tried crave he ate it but tiny amounts then by chance Pets&Home had barking heads Large breed puppy on offer the kibbles are large and he loves it,so it's trial and error until you find something your dog will eat but even now if Liam doesn't eat his food within 10 mins it gets picked up and he has nothing else until his next meal

 

[excuseme]

Just wondering how many feeds you are offering, and what is her total daily amount that you give, what type/breed of dog she is ?

 

[Ari_RR]

To me, not eating just because the kibble size is wrong or because he would prefer a hot dog, etc. is unheard of.
The show begins 10 min before meal time, “I am hungry, let’s eat” turning into crescendo “I AM HUNGRY LET’S EAT!!”.
So, 10 min and then we take food away - just never happens.
Not eating means something is off.
Not necessarily vet right away, maybe rice/cooked chicken for a day or 2 if accompanied by diarrhea, for example.
But if more than a couple of days - vet, no doubt.

Is she drinking water while not eating?

 

[niamh123]

Liam never refused his food when he was fed raw I will always promote raw as I know it is the best diet for dogs but due to unforeseen circumstances I had to stop,thank goodness I have found a food he will eat he had his monthly weigh in with the vet nurse 3 weeks ago and in the 3 weeks he had come off raw he had lost 1.4kg in weight I am just so pleased I have found a food he will eat although I am gutted he is np longer on raw

 

[Marie1958]

Thanks for replies. Rosie is a Cavapoo. She has always been a slow eater and picky pup so i have tried allsorts of wet and dried food as she seems to get fed up with same brand. She will eat kibble from a kong or hand but turns her nose up when in dish lol but this last wk she has got worse.she is drinking ok and peeing and pooing ok shes also playful and walks are ok run in morning round park for about 45mins and then after work i get in about 12ish i take her out for a walk
at least 6 times before bed (25mins each walk and sniff and toilet). I bought some food from sainsburys called Naturol today and she woofed that down ( though only gave half of it) will give her other half a bit later. Shes been on 3 smallish meals a day which sometimes she just takes what she wants and leaves it. Maybe i.m just a worrier dog mum as it only me and her. Lol but if she carrys on not eating i will take her to the vet been worried all morning about her and thats not good for her or me

 

[Marie1958]

I.ve thought about raw but havent really got a clue on this i normally cook chicken and veg then have fed her

 

[niamh123]

Raw is quite easy you can buy pre made blocks now

 

[JoanneF]

At this age she might do better on two meals a day. And if she will eat from a kong, you could just use puzzle toys instead of a bowl. Or even try changing her bowl for one of a different material or even a plate. Some dogs find a deep bowl or a bowl next to a wall compromises their vision; if her dog tag makes a noise against the bowl, that might be disturbing her. Experiment with a few things.

 

[merlina]

No you're not a worrier! we're all bothered when a dog won't eat. If the vet says there's nothing wrong, that's fine. But since she's a young dog and still maturing in some ways, I'd carry on tempting her with whatever she'll eat- a variety can be good because then you have the best chance of her getting a complete range of vitamins and minerals. And I don't do the battle of wills eat it or starve! What's the point? I have dogs so they can enjoy life with us- and enjoying food is one of the ways you can return the favour they do us by sharing a home.

 

[JudyN]

What is her weight like? Unless it's a concern, you could try reducing her food a little so that when it's mealtime, she's really quite peckish (reducing to two meals a day might help) and be more inclined to eat enthusiastically. After, say, a week, her automatic response to mealtimes might have changed to 'Food! Yippee!' rather than 'Meh'.

Do make sure you're not attempting to overfeed her, of course - dogs all differ and some need a lot less than the instructions on the pack. But what matters most is that she's a healthy weight and is healthy and happy - some dogs are naturally just picky eaters.

 

[Caro Perry]

Harri will only eat kibble from a ball.... if it's in his dish he won't touch it.

He is a funny eater - some days he'll eat virtually nothing and the next he'll eat for Wales and still be trying to cadge more. He also sometimes needs to be reminded he's hungry. A few pieces of cheese on top of his bowl gets him eating and then he'll carry on. Raw chicken wings used to be a sure fire winner but he's not allowed those any more unfortunately.

I no longer worry about it. He's maintaining a healthy weight even though he eats quite a lot less than the "recommended" amount.

 

[Marie1958]

Thanks everyone the Naturo food went down a treat. Fingers crossed ot was just boredom of food i had been giving her. Will update in few days time. Once again Thanks to all the advice have taking it all aboard.

 

[Rinkydinkydo]

I had a terrier that was picky at times,she would switch from eating like a horse, to vertically eating nothing. I found that if I put the food on the floor and did away with the dish she would wolf it down. After a few days she would switch back to eat out of the dish. Strange but it was one of her things.

 

[JoanneF]

Naturo food went down a treat

That's a good quality food too. If she enjoys it and does well on it, you could keep her on it indefinitely. You could try freezing it in a Kong or a B & M snake too, to keep her busy and tire her out. For variety (and to take advantage of money off offers sometimes) Forthglade is similar.

 

[Biker John]

My parents had a Heeler and all through her life around one day in ten she would simply refuse to eat anything, wouldn't even touch a treat. She behaved in all other respects normally, running and playing, it was also her job to bring letters and the paper in which she did. Every other day she ate quickly. She lived to a good age, (cant remember how old she was but she was very elderly at the end). Never came across this in any other dog.

 

[niamh123]

I know a lot of people who fast their dogs one day a week,sounds like your parents girl took it out of their hands and fasted herself