Older pup that won't eat - Page 1

Hi all, I've found some great help by many on this messageboard, and am hoping for some more. I've read the old threads on dogs who won't eat (ie. offer food twice a day, 10-20 per time, and nothing else until they eventually eat, plus make sure there is nothing physically wrong, etc). My girl's situation is a little different, so please let me know if you have ANY suggestions or have experienced this with one of your dogs.

My showline GSD is 10 months old, and she's always been a picky eater, but she's always EATEN. Maybe the food would sit there for a half hour before she'd eat it (no, I dont free feed, thats the longest I leave it down), but she'd eat it, most if not all. Well, about a month ago, I ran out of the Royal Canin GSD and had to use Science Diet (I know, I know), and thats where this started. She was also halfway through her first heat at this time.

Well, since then, she went from "kind of" eating (maybe one 2-cup meal a day, or a total of 1 cup a day) to going 5+ days without taking a single bite of dog food (at which point I'd feed cooked chicken mixed with canned food; then she eats, albeit slow and calm). She has high energy, no vomiting, no lethary, no medical problems, normal, consistent stools. She will eat treats in training (soft treats, chicken), or canned food if there is nothing mixed with it. She will also eat normally on an inconsistent basis (this weekend she went two days eating 4 cups a day, now won't touch ANYTHING).

I have tried:     canned food, canned food mixed with dog food, going back to RC GSD, Eukaneuba Naturally Wild, cooked chicken mixed with canned and hard food, hard food soaked in chicken broth, and those raw meat chubs made for dogs. No luck.

Any suggestions? I can't stand this! She's losing weight and acts like she's depressed, and tonight I could hear her stomach growl for the first time. Should I just stick to one dry food, twice a day, for (how long???) until she eats? Please help; she's my first experience with a dog who wouldn't eat everything in sight :)

Ps. if it helps, I did ask the breeder, who said he's never experienced a dog who'd do this for so long (excpet in a sick dog or one who's about to go into heat), and all the pups he's had out of my girls' mother have been total chow hounds. THANKS!!!!

have you tried just RAW diet,  chicken leg quarters ect? Could she just be bored with her diet?
try a little grease on her food, (like if you cook meat, bacon or something,  poor the juice off the meat and keep it for the dogs).

does she do any exercising before the meal?

I had a female do this,  but only when she was bred.  She would stop eating 1/2 way thru and it was a constant battle to get her to eat daily.

Thank you for your response Uber Land. She will sniff raw chicken, but not even lick it, just walk away. I can try adding meaty juice tomorrow, maybe that will help. I know she'll eat cooked meat.

With your female who stopped eating 1/2 way through, how did you get her to finish meals?

I would give my female what ever she wanted.  I'd feed her from the table, I'd offer dog food, raw,  whatever I could get her to eat.  a hotdog here and there, and even then she might have eaten 1/2 of what was set in front of her.  She would lay by the food and guard it from the other dogs,  but wouldn't eat it.

like I said,  it was a constant battle with her.  and I never kept any of her puppies due to that reason.  the owners have never had issue's with them eating but I didn't want to risk it.  the one I kept back would be the picky eater.

when her pups were a few weeks old, she'd start eating like normal.
 

Try Orijen...my extremely picky showlines girl will eat Orijen consistantly, & nothing else as consistantly....although we've been doing pretty well with Evo, too. Good luck! jh

Hi, I am sorry to hear about your pup. It must be quite worrying for you. My female went through a phase like that, however because she knew she would get "other  tasty food" such as treats etc, she would hold out. After I had taken her to the vets a few times to make sure there were no medical reasons it was just a case of being really firm and sticking to the one food and a batte of wills. It is hard and it makes you feel awful, but she soon learnt that if she didn't eat start eating her food within 10 minutes, then it would be thrown out or given to my other dog and I would make sure she could see me give her food away or throw it out. It soon worked and she is no longer fussy in the way that she was. Occasionally when she has her season ,her appetite decreases, however she will no longer turn her nose up at food put down for her.

I know you said in your post that she has no medical problems. I take from this she has been checked by a vet. I know with my girl I took her to the vet several times for piece of mind and even had bloods done to make sure there were no underlying problems. If she is medically fine, I would say it is just a matter of holding out, not even giving training treats and putting down a fresh portion of the same meal each morning and  night, also to give her lots of exercise to stimilute her appetite. I hope that the problem will resolve itself soon as I know what such a worry and heartache it can be to see your dog not eating and being fussy with food.

Good luck and kindest regards.

At about 10 months, after her first heat, my female GSD also went off her feed for a while. I just let her go without eating and eventually she became hungry enough to resume her feed. I didn't give her any treats, didn't change her feed, didn't add anything to her feed. All of these things just train them to be picky eaters.

At 11 1/2 months she eats less then she did, but is not losing any weight. A guess when they get past that super fast growth stage, they need less food.

Good luck.

Try Satin Balls - no cooking needed. I've never had a picky eater, but there are plenty of testimonials on the internet which say this recipe works where all else fails -

www.sonic.net/~cdlcruz/GPCC/library/satinballs.html

I'd make a small amount to begin with and see if she likes it. (Note: dogs gain weight pretty quickly on this, so keep an eye on that.)

My dogs eat mainly raw but do like Orijen by itself. Its getting awful spendy to buy though but in your case it might be worth it if you want to stay with dry dog food. If you want to try raw, it sounds like she kinda turned her nose up to a chicken quarter. It sounds unreal but she most likely didn't know what it was. I grind my raw chicken for piece of mind. But I would suggest to try some burger and warm it just a bit, or chicken I guess. Don't use your microwave though. Cold meat doesn't have as good a aroma as when it is cooked or at least warmed some. It may get her going on it. I think raw is best for any dog so it would be my suggestion. Or second,  just cook it... I think human grade food is better than any dog food. At least you know what they're eating, with dog food you take someones word. It seems to long to go, five days... and loosing weight too. I have also heard somtimes vets can do a B12(?) shot to get them eating.