New home problems?
 

Hi:
I have a newly rescued 1.5 yr Yorkie who seemed very healthy when we adopted him. He had been rehomed a couple of times before he came to us, but is so friendly and mellow. He however has little appetite, and apart from spurts of high energy and play, sleeps A LOT (for such a young dog).
He is being fed the same dry food as previously in his foster home, and will eat small amounts of it if sprinkled with (a little) parmesan. (I have also fed him the Vet formula wet canned food plus boiled rice to tempt him after he threw up yellow bile liquid once.) All food he eats stays down and he pees and poops well. He appears well and hydrated, and will walk faster than we can, given any chance. Could his lethargy and lack of appetite be just due to the new home and routine and the resulting stress? He does seem bored and we cannot seem to keep him amused for long with play. The one thing that really livens him up is the walk and meeting other dogs and people.
I would appreciate any comments and advice please.
Thank you.

You didn't say when you got him. When I place a dog, I try to tell the adopters as many of the phrases I use as I can, so the dog understands what is being said to him. Many people assume the dog understands everything they say when nothing can be further from the truth. Case in point, "go out" means something very specific in agility, ie go away from me and do the obstacle in front of you. It doesn't mean go out to go to the bathroom, so at my house, I say "go potty" or "let's go potty" and once outside, I chant "go potty" until everyone does. So things really can be confusing for him right now, and that on top of being rehomed a few times already, which is a shame.

Also with rescues, from my own experiences, some dogs come into your house as though they own it the minute they step foot in it, others are more reserved for a little while. Also, your little guy might have been conditioned, or trained to just hang out. Hopefully, with a little more time, he will become livelier. The adjustment period can be one hour for some dogs, one month for others.

If you got him from a rescue, did they have him fully checked at a vets? If he remains unusually lethargic, you might need to have your vet look him over. Find out if the rescue had any bloodwork done and if so, if you can get a copy of the results to have as a baseline.

Good luck with your little guy. And congratulations on the addition to your family.

Congrats on your new addition. I too have a rescue and they are very special. When we got Toby, it took a few weeks for him to warm up to our other dog and to us. Now I can't keep him off my lap! And thank you for rescuing.

New Dog
 

Hi Lizzie and Dianne:
Thank you so much for your helpful, comforting, input and advice. I have only had him a few days, so it seems too early to expect him to be his 'normal' little self. I agree Liz that we tend to forget that dogs do not speak our English and we must be consistent and persistent with our verbal commands, but sometimes we forget. LOL. He did not have known bloodwork when he came to us but did have a neba