Willie doesn't want to eat
 

Hello J
Willie is my furbaby and our little spoiled monster. He is a one year old yorkie, 1,3 kilos, is very skinny and very very picky.
He simply doesn’t want to eat anything 2 times in a row. I used to cook for him, but he won’t even touch the same food twice. For the last week I was strong and only gave him dry food, he eats only 20-25g a day.
What I tried so far:
-only giving dry food
-vitamins for appetite
-taking his food if he doesn’t eat in 15 minutes
-cheering him up when he eats ‘good boy” even a little reward when he finishes – he finished his food only once
I simply don’t know what to do anymore to make him eat. Anyone has any idea what I can do to make him eat more?
Thank you for reading J

I was at the vet today with my new baby. Although mine is still a puppy I too am having a hard time getting her to eat. Or so I thought. The vet said at her size (1 lb 11 oz) a few kibbles every couple of hours is sufficient as long as she's not lethargic and drinks enough. I keep expecting her to eat a bowl full I guess :) I also have her on High-Cal until she reaches 4 pounds. I've got a finiky eater on my hands but I've found that she tolerates Eukanuba bites even though it's not the higest rated grade of food :)

When Bilbo gets in one of those moods where he doesn't want to eat, I feed him one piece of kibble at a time out of my hand. Is the kibble too big or too hard for your baby? That was sometimes the issue for Bilbo.

Ahhh....

Well...when I read about a tiny pup being picky about eating food (esp. home cooked yummy food), I think of Liver Shunt or MVD.

Unfortunately Liver Shunt and MVD are so common in Yorkies and not wanting to eat is a symptom, as their livers cannot filter the toxins produced from high protein food, it makes them feel really sick and they associate it with food and refuse to eat.

Anything else that would be considered odd behavior that he does?

In any case, I would have your Vet do a Bile Acid Serum (BAT test), it shows basic liver function.

Please keep us posted.

Thank you for your replies. I don't think he is sick, because he is cheerful and full of energy. The vet told me some dogs are just skinny.

I keep thinking if there is anything else but i dont think it is, he is full of energy, looks happy, hhhmm.. lately he chews his paws a bit too much. Other then that nothing.

Maybe he doesnt eat much because he is so tiny (2,2 lb = 1,3 kg) ?

Taylor is the same...she will devour something new and tasty and then turn her nose up if i give it to her again.

Generally I feed her dry food in the morning and most times it's carried over for dinner because when i get home it's still in the bowl. My vet told me Vitamins aren't necessary if she's eating a balanced food which she is.

you know what I did the other and it works like a charm!? i tipped her food out the bowl in small amounts onto a place mat and she ate the whole lot but will turn her nose up if it's in the bowl. I just make sure it's a clean surface so she isnt eating sand! I also noticed her tags on her collar bump the dish when she eats and she doesnt like the sound. I have found a "tag silencer" now for that!

they are just fussy eaters. you have to stick it out with them and not cave in. i find that feeding home cooked food spoils her even more and she is less interested in the dry food when I give it to her on it's own.

I also mix some veg into her food...she loves butternut, peas, corn and beans to name just a few. apparently from a previous post i read, low fat cottage cheese also helps the appetite??? i have bought dog gravy too which she loves and i give it to her every couple of says just to give her a treat :)

try some variation...i suppose if i was fed the same biscuits twice a day, every day of my life i would also turn my nose up at it! lol!

just saw this post...mine also bites her paws and im trying to find the cause. it can be from allergies to food or grass etc.

that's why i am now only giving fresh foods like vegetables in case it's an allergy. once a week she gets some rice and chicken livers or some gravy. nothing too rich in animal fats etc.

she is just in my opinion a very active and fit little dog and i would rather her be like that than overweight. I had adopted a dog once off the street and when i took her to the SPCA a few months later (she was going to a new farm home!) he told me she was overweight! when she came to me she was skin and bone and was exercised daily and fed well. in my opinion she was perfect, maybe a little thin even! i think our definitions of thin or obese in animals are different to vets and specialists.

if your vet says he is in good condition then he is. i asked my vet if he thought Taylor was too thin and he laughed and said no she's fine. she's about 2kg.

After talking with many people i think he just doesn't eat a lot and is nothing wrong with him. I gave him dry food from Hill's and he likes it more then Royal canin, other then that i guess he thinks the food we eat is better then his.:)

:luvu:

Hi there

Salmon oil is an extremely good way to get dogs to eat- they love the taste- not sure why, i tried it once- yuck.

Go for salmon oil rather than generic fish oil- much better quality...