[yorkietalkjilly]

Baby food chicken works for some. Usually I will make a paste of their usual food and place a portion on my finger and if they refuse to lick it, I place it in the side pocket of the mouth to "prime the pump" a few times and keep it up even if they spit most of it out. Once they get a sufficient taste and get a bit of a blood sugar level from that bit of food in their system, they usually realize how hungry they are and will eat some all on their own, even if they feel bad. Others have to be "force fed" like this for days, especially the panicked or very nervous dogs. Very occasionally I will sprinkle a tiny amount of Butter Buds on the paste before I offer it. Just a hint of that buttery flavor can help some dog. I will feed them this way every 4 - 6 hours as some won't allow you to give them much at one time and will start to try to get away and become really good at turning their heads and avoiding more food. Then I remove the food and refrigerate it to hopefully make them realize that when the food is gone, it is gone and they need to eat while it is out and available. Unless a dog is very ill or panicked, he will usually start to eat this way. A friend of mine had to force feed her very old cat who'd stopped eating altogether for 2 1/2 weeks or something like that and the vet said the old cat was probably trying to die, had likely lost the portion of her brain that governed eating to senility and would slowly starve so she needed to be put down. But after 2 1/2 weeks or so of force feeding, Kitty picked up her appetite again and began to eat and lived several more years, enjoying her food again.

I forgot - sometimes I syringe in a bit of sugar water in the side of the mouth or rub local honey on the gums about 15 mins. before I try to feed the dog to get their glucose levels up and help their attitude.