This Little Brat Wont Eat!!!

[TootiesMom]

OK, I read the health and diet threads over and over and over and still cannot come up with anything that makes sense for Hopey!!!!

This little dog really refuses to eat! Dog food, people food, whatever, she just wont eat more than a few bites at any one time.... is that safe? I know it is not normal but my mom insists that she just doesnt require mucha t one time???

whe will not but about 10 kibbles of dry food, if that! The vet said to feed her can food if that is all she will eat, just to keep her going, she wont eat more than a few bites of that. I resorted to COOKING for her, chicken, green beans.... she will eat a bite or two and walk away...

she acts normal, plays ALOT and does not seem to be bothered but it just worries me that she wont eat!

She weighs 4.8 lbs so I know her stomach is very small but it is worrysome...

any ideas?

[TootiesMom]

no ideas?

[Sweetums]

We went thru the whole not eating thing with our little girl when we got her and then at various intervals up til now. She's 6 mos and finally seems to have developed an appetite altho she still doesn't just chow down totally on her food.

When we got her, the breeder said she just eats kibbles. Well, three kibbles two or three times a day is not enough to live on. So we started feeding her soft food. She really went for that for about 2 days and then turned up her nose. So we got a different canned food, and again she ate it for a day or two and then turned her nose up. Then she started teething, and completely turned up her nose at food.

So there we were cooking for her when we don't even cook for ourselves. We went through chicken, chicken livers (she really liked those) ground lamb patties, ground veal, ground venison, ground bisson, pieces of baby carrots, a few raw green beans, more canned foods. The only one she has really seemed to care for over the long run is Cesars. Everyone says that's no good, and they are probably right, but if she eats anything at all, I'm thrilled.

So here's what we do now and it seems to work. We cut chunks of Cesars and put them on a saucer (she does not like eating from a bowl, and in fact prefers the floor to anything like other Yorkies I've read about on here) on the floor for her. My husband takes one of her favorite treats (Wellness lamb, cut up) and holds it out to her, so that she wants it, then he leads her more or less to the saucer and sticks it in one of the chunks of Cesars. She usually hunts around for the treat, finds it and eats it and then starts in on the Cesars. We also keep crunchies out for her all the time if she wants them and she will eat them now and then in between.

If she won't eat at all, we have now got a back-up system. We bought a syringe, one of those plastic ones that you give babies their medicine in. We mix up a recipe we read that one breeder recommended to another Yorkie owner with feeding problems and keep it in the fridge. And if she hasn't eaten in over 6 hours, out comes the syringe and the mush which we put in her mouth and give her a couple of syringes full. Usually once we get her started, she will start licking it voluntarily. Here's the recipe:

1/2 cup half and half
1/2 cup baby cereal (sometimes rice, sometimes oatmeal) instant
1 whole jar of Gerber's baby meat (anything but turkey)
1 tsp. karo syrup or maple syrup

Heat up the half and half in the microwave and mix in the cereal, meat and syrup. Cool to room temp or lukewarm and fill syringe. After it's refrigerated, I usually put a small amount in a cup and warm it to lukewarm in order to feed it to her.

The interesting thing is that I think, since we have the back-up plan, we are more relaxed about her eating, and the more relaxed we are, the better eater she is. Hope this helps.

[TootiesMom]

Thank you so much for the info! yes, she will only eat off the floor too! that is so strange but whatever works!
People say they wont starve but that just scares me... your pattern sounds exactly like my girl.... stubborn little things they are....
THANKS AGAIN!
d

[Sweetums]

They are stubborn little stinkers, but precious beyond precious. I don't know if I could put up with all the special attention our little furbaby requires is she weren't such a cutiepie and so smart. I think that's what makes them such a challenge, the fact that they learn things so quickly and they can outsmart you in so many areas. One article I read on the Dog Owners Guide online described Yorkies (and other terriers) to a T:

"The qualities that make terriers so appealing: courage, boldness and a fun-loving spirit can also make them difficult to live with. Unlike most breeds, terriers were bred to work independently of people. Retrievers, for example, instinctively know how to retrieve but they expect their people to tell them when, how and what to retrieve. Terriers, on the other hand, were intended to roam their owner's property on their own, seeking out and killing rats and assorted vermin. They were expected to work by themselves without human intervention and make their own decisions. Many terriers, in fact, don't see people as their "masters" at all but as nuisances that are interfere with their fun!"

[TootiesMom]

LOL.. HOW TRUE! They are so headstrong.... my other terrier(Boston) is that way too, just not quite as stubborn.. I love these babies!
d

[mistyinca]

We should form a club!! I'm right there with you. Chloe is content to not eat for days at a time. Right now, she's got me whipped because I'm really enhancing her food for her, but after a couple of meals of the same thing, she just isn't interested.

she won't even take nutrical anymore, and I've stopped trying. There's no way she'd go for that syringe thing. She'd thrash about if I tried that.

I was hoping it would go away someday and she'd just start eating regularly, but I've pretty much decided it isn't going tohappen.

Aren't you jealous when you hear others say, "I have to measure out my dogs food and keep him on a strict schedule or he'd eat all day long..."

[TootiesMom]

you are so right... I have 4 others, and trust me! They have no problem eating... I can leave her food out tho, they dont like plain dry.. haha.. she still wont eat it! spoiled little brats, they are! but then again, yep I did it.. haha

[shawnna_marie12]

idk about that at first that was how buddy was but he grew out of it but i think tootie is cute in ur avatar were hes barking or howling comment on and on and on about everyones yorkies they r just cute !

[shawnna_marie12]

oops my comment got messed up stupid keyboard !

[TootiesMom]

well, the little brat ate some pork roast today but no "food".... she seems to be acting fine and her tummy feels ok, I guess she just doesnt require much...
yes, Tootie is such a little man... he is the sweetest thing!

[chattiesmom]

Maybe your precious little Princess just has a very tiny stomach and a tiny appetite to match. What about giving her several small meals a day rather than 2 or three larger ones?