Hi Guys, its been awhile

[Cassidy]

Well, I posted on this board some time ago, after I got Ladybug at six weeks. Well now she is 6.5 mos and I have survived! I have been used to smaller lapdogs, most recently a maltese for 14 yrs. It has definitely been rough and I know I probably have about 6 more mos to go. They tell me it will get better. She has absolutely made some progress though, has settled down a bit, and I do think she has adapted quite well. But she has definitely let it be known that she is bc! We have gotten through the zoomies, although almost lost a friend over that one, and then when she got big enough to countersurf, well, im sure you get the picture. She has recently stopped eating almost completely and started to lose weight. She started looking very thin. But the energy level stayed the same she was still completely happy and energetic. The vet said to get some canned puppy food to put in her meals and put her on a vitamin. She started eating normal again for about a day. Now, she is back to not eating. I dont think its just that she is picky because when she was very young she ate constantly. what can I do to get her to start eating? Any suggestions?

[Meg's mum]

Cassidy,

Keep your vet close at hand. This may just be her body starting to express digestive preferences due to food allergies, or it may be her growing into her adult personality...which may just be finicky about food. I have been on a roller coaster trying to keep Meg eating consistently. Right now I know what she will eat....but that may change tomorrow - again. Sigh.

I don't feed raw...but I would ask you to consider it.

It is often not recommended practice to mix raw and canned/kibble diets, but I do. Meg will ALWAYS eat raw beef especially if I toss it in a saute pan with a tiny bit of butter for a second and add garlic paste. She will also ALWAYS eat Cheeze-itz Finding one meal that she will always eat helps keep your anxiety down.

Remember, the dog you knew at six weeks is not the same dog you know now, and will not be the same dog tomorrow.. They evolve preferences, fears, skills etc...

Warmly, H

[RaisingRiver]

River did the same thing, but around a year and a half old. She's active, but was losing weight and sometimes refused meals. She's fed twice a day. So I started switching foods. I went from regular Canidae to the lamb version which had more protein. But then she started having diarrhea. So I decided we needed another switch and I went with Merrick's Granny's pot pie. These are all kibble versions. She's been on it for many months now (she just turned 2) and is at a great weight - she's thin - athleticly lean, but not too skinny that if she gets sick and drops a few she'll still be ok.

 

Everyone once in a while (but less often now that I've figured out how much to feed) River will still skip a meal (last night in fact) - which just tells me to back off her quantity for a while. This might be what your dog is telling you - that you're just feeding her too much - and she doesn't need that much all the time.

 

On the other hand, Diesel, also now on Merrick will eat every meal without hesitation - and doesn't gain any extra weight even though he's slightly less active (ie. runs less often) then River.

 

My neighbor's BC got a taste of Merrick one day when my dogs were being watched at his house and he LOVED it. Apparently he normally isn't too interested in his own food which I believe is Beneful.

[BustopherJones]

We sometimes have this problem with the girls. One way we have addressed it in extreme cases is to mix a bit of all-natural spaghetti sauce in with the food. With Annie (who is on a bland prescription moist food), we sometimes tempt her by mixing in just a bit of Missy's Merrick canned food. But for the most part, cajoling in a pleasant and reassuring manner usually works.