Skipped meal and sleepy - doesn't feel well. - Page 1

OK, it may seem obvious to some, but it's new to me, so please bear with me.

My GSD didn't eat her breakfast this morning and has been mellow and sleepy - obviously I'm guessing she doesn't feel well.  We went for our regular (hour long) walk this morning and everything was fine/normal.  After settling down for awhile when we got home, I fed the dogs as usual, only she didn't eat and I couldn't coax her to.  (My other dog (a Lab) has *never* not eaten a meal that I can recall, so this is new for me...even if she didn't/doesn't feel well, she never passes up the opportunity to eat.)

When the GSD came to us a year ago, there were issues with her not eating, but that's all been resolved and she looks forward to her meals just like the the other one.  I gave her a dose of Benadryl last night (after her dinner, which she ate), so could this be just a delayed/prolonged side effect?  Again, I've given Benadryl to the other dog and haven't had a reaction/side effect like this occur.  She (the GSD) appears to be breathing fine and is just sleeping...much like she does every morning after our walk and breakfast.

My question is, if she doesn't seem to perk up and want to eat later or this evening, at what point would it be long enough to have "waited and seen", so to speak, before making an appt with the vet?

Thanks.

How old is she? Anything else out of the ordinary (ex: vomiting)? Any chance she could've gotten into something or chewed up a toy? My pup does this occasionally. She doesn't really get mellowed out, but occasionally won't eat her meal, sometimes will skip 1-2 and then go back to eating normally. Why did you give her benadryl? I wouldn't jump up and go to the vet unless she's vomiting or has loose stool, or hasn't perked up by tomorrow evening.

She's 3yo, no vomiting, diarrhea, etc. and, to my knowledge, she's not gotten into anything.  She's not usually interested in anything dropped or on the ground and isn't food-driven, but (after working through issues she had when we got her) is good about eating her daily meals.

The Benadryl is for itching, possibly due to allergies, (50 mg as directed by the vet) and last night was the first dose.  My other dog has allergies and I've used Benadryl for her, but just not with any type of reaction....so I was thinking that it might be a side effect of the Benadryl, although it would be a little prolonged.

She perked up and played outside for awhile, which makes me feel better.  I'll try to give her dinner tonight and see how she is.  Perhaps she's tired and just not hungry and I'm mildly concerned over nothing.  Not having much experience with a dog who skips a meal or doesn't eat when she doesn't feel well, I wasn't sure how long to ride it out before checking with a vet.

Thanks for your feedback.

Is she spayed? My girl will not eat when she's coming into heat. Also, the first time my girl got 50mg of Benadryl, she was wiped out for 24 hours, just picked at her food, & was clearly snockered. When I told the vet, they giggled about it, but did not change the dose. I never had a dog that was a picky eater until I had a GSD. But my girl clearly watches her figure, & often looks at me like, "I just can't!" when I offer her a treat. We were just out & I drove through Dunkin Donuts & got a coffee for my hubby & I, & a vanilla glazed for her, would she eat it? Hell, no. She looked at me like I was nuts! She very daintily took it, laid it down in the back of the Sorrento, & stepped on it once, then sniffed it again, & pushed it to the side, then laid down with her back to it. Then looked over her shoulder at me with this baleful look, like she was saying, how could you? LOL! Good luck with your GSD Diva! jackie harris

 "I never had a dog that was a picky eater until I had a GSD."

LOL, yes yes yes!!  This is totally new territory for me.  The Lab is convinced she's starving and, therefore, thinks she should eat everything in sight, smell, proximity, etc.  It doesn't matter if she's just eaten her dinner, anything that might be offered to her is accepted and consumed in short order.  Lack of appetite is not anything that she's ever experienced and I definitely have to watch her on the walks.  So to have the GSD, who really could care less and will actually walk away from a treat is quite a sight to see.

Yes, the GSD is spayed, but not until she came to us at 2yo.  Last afternoon and evening they ate their dinner (with a few bites of hamburger, which the GSD seemed to enjoy) and their before bed treats, as is usual.  The only difference besides the hamburger was the Benadryl.  Before I was certain of her weight, I'd given the GSD 25mg a time or two and didn't notice any adverse reaction.  However, at the last vet visit, was told to go ahead and give 50 mg 2x/day, if needed for itching/chewing.  Last night was the first 50mg dose for her (the Lab has had 50 mg before also and has never reacted this way).

I just heard her belly rumble a bit, so perhaps she's nauseated and using sleep as an antiemetic.  At this point I'm thinking that either the hamburger didn't agree w/ her or the 50mg dose is just too much, despite her weight.  I plan to keep an eye on her - definitely no hamburger or Benadryl tonight, LOL - and see how she is tomorrow.  If there's no improvement, I'll check with the vet.

Thanks!!



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Just as an aside, you do know about bloat and it's symptoms? If your girl acts like she's sick, or wretches & nothing comes up, or tries to poop & can't, you need to take her to a vet immediately, irregardless of the time. If she's bloating she needs attention right away. I didn't mention it before because I didn't get that feel from your post, but it warrents mention, just in case! Good luck! jackie harris

Yes, I've been watching for s/s of bloat (scares the bejeebers out of me, so that's what I wanted to pay close attention for).  She was heaving earlier, but vomited some grass (and bile) that she'd been nibbling on - which I've seen her do on occasion.  I've not noticed any drooling or dry heaving and her breathing appears normal, her last bm was early this am on our walk.  She doesn't seem labored or uncomfortable, just tired and not hungry.  Although she didn't eat dinner this evening, she's a little more alert and barking when she hears kids outside (her norm).  I've foregone the long walk this evening, but plan to take her on a short outing later, if she's interested.

After the vomiting, I'm leaning toward upset stomach and maybe the Benadryl being too much.  Thanks again for your feedback and any/all info is appreciated.

Happy Valentines Day! Any update? jackie harris

Thanks and yes...the update is she seems to be feeling much better.  She ate her breakfast and was ready to play this morning, although she did have some loose stool with her bm this am.  I'm encouraged that she's more alert today and even overnight.  My husband was called in for something overnight and said he took her along for the ride because she was up and ready to go, LOL.

I really think the 50mg dose of Benadryl is the culprit...while she was so groggy and sleepy yesterday, there was no itching/scratching, but I've already noticed she's scratching a bit this am.  It's possible it also upset her stomach in addition to wiping her out, so I really don't think I'll be giving her that dose in the future....or if I do, I think she'd have to be scratching herself raw and gnawing off her foot or something, LOL.

Thanks for your concern and information