Need help with Dog Not Eating I adopted Bella, a 6 yr old Yorkie in March of 2016. I have 5 other dogs. I took Bella because she had been returned to the shelter 3 times because she was not housebroken and the head of the shelter begged me to take her. Ordinarily, I would not have considered such a small dog. She has gained 2.5 lbs since I have had her and is a great little addition to my family. She has gotten fussy about food in the past but has always eaten after a few days of fasting. This time, however, her appetite has not come back. After going her self tapering off eating and then not eating at all,I took her to the vet, whom I had been consulting with by phone. She just completed many tests-gastrointestinal, x-rays, bloodworm, stool, etc. There is nothing wrong with her! I did get her to eat steak, which I have been cooking for her daily. Yesterday,she started on Sucralfate 2mg, 3x a day. Today, she won;t eat anything. Also, since all this started, when she does eat, it has to be off the floor (I put it on a place mat). I tried every bowl and dish in the house but it cannot be in a dish. This is crazy! She was eating calves liver for a while but now won't touch it. I have tried every kind of food. If she has given up on the steak, I don't know what else to try. Vet said I could take her to Tufts and have here scoped. I've already spent over $1000 on this problem. I cannot afford Tufts! One other thing-she is running around and playing and barking. She has never appeared sick.Anyone have any advice? |
How is her weight / body condition...skinny or adequate...? Some dogs really do not like the sound of dishes - so just let her eat off the mat - it's a great solution to that part of it. I wonder if you should just be constantly rotating food sources throughout each week for her...? Kibble/canned/raw/cooked/fish. Have you tried cooking white fish for her, btw? Most dogs LOVE fish. Super easy to cook, not expensive (cod, tilapia, sole, etc). Also try sprinkling Parmesan cheese on her food. Use Nutrical daily as a supplement. Have you tried the prescription Science Diet I/D food yet...? Worth a try for sure. Oh also, it seems many dogs who are super finicky do like "Cesars" dog food for some reason. Yes, it's not the most quality food out there, but the key here is that is IS FOOD :). If she'll eat Cesars regularly, who the heck cares about the nitty gritty, ya know?! |
Bella Thanks for your reply! Bella weighs 7.5 lbs and is in good condition. I have tried tuna fish, chicken breasts, Little Caeser (which I am glad she didn't like!), eggs, etc. She still likes cheese but other than the steak,asparagus, and Alpo treats, she will eat nothing else. She was eating liver so I guess she would eat that again. She will not eat the Nutri-stat.I think now that it may be psychological.Or not. I will have to continue buying steak for her. My other dogs get boiled chicken breasts with their dog food but they all want her steak now! With 5 other dogs I cannot afford to waste any more money trying to figure out why she has gone through this change,unless she stops eating what she is now eating.Then,of course, I would have to pursue it. All the tests she has had in the last 2 weeks came to almost $800. |
Got my first Yorkie, Teddy, in 1999. He was 9 wks. Bought dry dog food and mixed just a very small amount of Ceasar into the food. Gradually tapered off until it was only dry food. Free fed him because he was so small. Each morning I measured out 1/3 c dry food and tad of Cesar's. Then no Caesar's. Some days by the end of the day all the food was gone but still some left in the bowl. I worried that he was going to starve to death but soon learned that he would eat when he was hungry. He died at age 14 of kidney failure. Guess I was too casual with his eating but didn't have access to other Yorkie moms. My point is that sometimes we overstress and it passes over to them. My little Gidget weighs 4 1/2 lbs. is almost 10 months old and does the same thing. She's healthy, gaining weight, playing and doing her business with no problems. So I just go with "her flow" and not mine. |
Pipe is a robust 9 1/2 lb Yorkie, but like so many of our babes, she can be very stubborn when it comes to eating. I've been giving her FreshPet which she loves and mixing it with NutroNatural kibble, which she doesn't love... However, she will eventually eat everything in her bowl. Also, after I broke her 'for cats' shallow, ceramic bowl, it took awhile to find a dish she deemed worthy of sticking her little countenance into...it is again, a 'for cats' shallow, metal dish. She doesn't even mind when her 'necklace' clangs against this dish--go figure!! By the way, so very good of you to adopt this pup--especially knowing she had issues; you're something special! |
Maybe, she is bored? Try going back to something you have not fed her in awhile. We feed Cody bison steaks, maybe that would work. How about putting a little dab of peanut butter on whatever it is you are trying to feed her? I really hope this situation improves for you asap. Quote:
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