Feeding the senior dog

[bc4ever]

When we had our home visit with the rescue group several weeks ago, the foster mom said Daniel had been eating California Natural, but when we picked him up the next day, she said he had stopped eating it and wasn't sure what to feed him.

 

We assumed it was a problem with his teeth but once everything checked out there he still wasn't terribly hungry. Then we thought it might be the antibiotics he was on; he vomited bile twice, both times in the morning. We started giving him a little food before bedtime and that seems to have helped with that problem.

 

We've experimented with kibble only, kibble with canned, canned only, kibble with cheese on top..you get the idea. He eats it once, then isn't interested after that. Vet still thinks he's underweight, and I can feel his backbone when I pet him.

 

Is this age related? (Best guess is he's about 9 years old). Is there something else we should be doing? Not having known him all his life, I'm not sure how to tell if he's not feeling well, or if this is just him.

[gcv-border]

I am not sure that this helps, but about 7-8 years ago when I decided to feed higher quality food, I tried California Natural for my finicky sheltie mix. She ate fine for about a month, then didn't want to eat any more. I attributed this 'disinterest in food' to her finicky nature, but after another month passed with her hardly eating, I noticed that her coat was very dull. I switched brands (forget what I switched to), and she started eating better and her coat gradually returned to a healthy state. So I have never used California Natural again.

 

On the other hand, I have a friend whose dog does very well on Calif. Natural.

 

Are you still feeding him California Natural? Perhaps CN is not a good match for your dog. Have you tried another brand?

 

On the other hand, there could be something going on internally that has not yet shown up on a blood screen. (Do I remember that Daniel had bloodwork done?)

 

Jovi

[KrisK]

When Zachary stopped eating (17 1/2 miniature schnauzer), I started feeding him boiled extra lean ground beef with some vegetables. He gets this every day with some kibble. It's not a large portion - just enough to stimulate his appetite. It's kept his weight steady for over a year now.

[nancy in AZ]

If you're feeding canned food, you might try to zap it in the microwave to warm it up. Warming it brings out the aroma, and it may stimulate his appetite. I wonder if his sense of smell has diminished and made food less interesting as a result. If that doesn't help, maybe try small amounts of some smelly foods like liver sausage warmed up.

[alligande]

Our first border collie was a very picky eater, he would not touch some dried foods, others he would eat sometimes. As he got older we used to add broth to his food, usually chicken as he loved chicken (preferably roasted). We also would add ground beef, gravy etc etc. The only thing I never tried was canned dog food as I hate the smell. If there is nothing medically wrong I would just keep experimenting till you find something he likes.

[Pam Wolf]

I had one Pyr that just would not eat-he was way underweight. We finally broke down and had to give him steriod shots-anabolic type. and it helped him. this dog would go 3 days without eating. eyes sunk etc. Worse eater i've ever had.

 

I find soaking kibble works for my 14 year old BC and mixing some canned food-but his teeth are pretty much shot so he needs soft food.

[bcnewe2]

I don't think 9 is that old for things to be going south or appetites to be bad unless there's underlying issues.

 

I would suggest switching to a different brand of food. Some foods are not liked by some dogs.

 

Raven (about 12) will go though the same thing. She eats well for a while then she blows off meals. I usually top their kibble with some extra goodies even if it's only broth out of a box. But not always. Just keeping them guessing.

 

I think that might be Raven's down fall, she now waits for me to "fix up" her dinner. If I don't, she isn't eating it and that's that.

 

But I do notice that since I switched from TOTW to a cheaper food she's really fussing about it. I will probably go back to TOTW just to see her eat with gusto again. Or at least mix it.

 

If Daniel's only been at your house a short while, he could still be adjusting. Is he skipping meals altogether or just some? Cottage cheese is always a favorite topping. But I do make sure I mix it in or Raven will just eat the top!

 

Is Daniel happy and healthy otherwise? Is he active? Again, time is probably what you all need!

 

Good luck I'm sure you'll get it worked out.

[urge to herd]

Warming the food can help. You can try adding an odoriferous fat, such as bacon grease, any drippings from roast beef, chicken, etc. A tablespoon would do it. Salmon oil is smelly, too.

 

You can scramble an egg, sprinkle parmesan cheese or any grated cheese. Some dogs like the taste of nutritional yeast.

 

Try using a different bowl. Sometimes dogs just don't like the table setting!

 

If he goes for a good tasting additive, I'd mix up a few, so he doesn't get tired of one.

 

Good luck!

 

Ruth

[OurBoys]

Once you decide which kibble Daniel might kinda like you could also scramble a raw egg and mix in it. He might like a chicken liver flavor gravy. Boil a container of chicken livers. Once they cool down enough, liquefy them along with the water you boiled them in a blender and put it all in a pitcher. Mix about 1/4 cup in his kibble at each feeding along with some water. In fact, if there's anything he might find appealing (my Jake loooves bananas), make a deluted gravy out of it to see if it might get him to eat better.

 

Good luck!

[Kelleybean]

A spoonful of plain yogurt mixed with the kibble might help.

[Carson Crazies]

I think my old guy's sniffer is deteriorating a little. A small spoonful of the Solid Gold green tripe seems to have garnered his sustained interest.

[Laura L]

Yes, to all the suggestions above. Soaking the food in some hot water and adding something like cottage cheese or yogurt to give it more of a smell helped for my older dogs. Also try a dish that isn't on the floor. With older dogs, it could be that it's uncomfortable to eat on the floor. We haven't bought a the raised dish set, but just put the regular dish in an ice cream bucket. It's the right height for a Border Collie sized dog.

Laura

[diane allen]

All good suggestions provided for additions; I would add to the list: sardines (find them packed in water, and just rinse to rid as much salt as possible), canned salmon or jack mackeral. Fish oil can rarely hurt (get body oil, not liver oil).

What was he on antibiotics for?

Have you (or the rescue) had blood work done? I suspect nine is way too young for this, but kidney disease can cause lack of appetite. If it gets bad, there are several prescription "appetite stimulants" (megesterol acetate & mirtazapene - but both carry some minor risks). I use one or two every now and then when my old girl goes "off" her food. I probably have 10 different "meals" I'll try at one time or another! One thing she really loves is frozen raw food brand Northwest Naturals (which I buy as an "emergency backup" for my younger dog who normally gets homemade raw) - cooked! (Don't tell the company I cook it....LOL!) I put small pieces of this in a frying pan, cook it till it's done, then pour some water into the pan to make "juice." Because she does have kidney issues, I boil a white potato, cut it up in chunks, add the cooked raw, and pour some juice over it. That almost always turns her back on to her food.

 

As someone mentioned, if it really is a food aversion (which is a real thing!), you can try all sorts of thing: different bowl, raised, different location, different time of day (mine will often now eat at noon what she turned away from in the morning). Even an occasional hand feeding sometimes only needs to be done once.

 

Best of luck to you,

diane

[cmsgyay]

Try making some satin balls and adding that to his diet. It really works wonders for underweight dogs, especially older dogs.

 

A few people I know with huskies and GSDs that were very very hard keepers and picky eaters managed to get their weight up to a nice and healthy range with satin balls.

 

Here's one of the many many many recipes. You can try a different one if you don't like this one. Since I don't really like giving my dogs cereal, I change it to something else like rice flour. Some people skip the gelatin completely.

 

You can also freeze the remainder in serving sized balls. You can feed it alone, or mix it into the kibble like some people.

 

10 pounds hamburger meat [the cheapest kind]

1 lg. box of Total cereal

1 lg. box oatmeal

1 jar of wheat germ

1 1/4 cup veg oil

1 1/4 cup of unsulfured molasses

10 raw eggs AND shells

10 envelopes of unflavored gelatin

pinch of salt

 

Edit: Here's another version that has a lot more fat and a lot less carbs. However, I probably wouldn't feed this to a not so active dog. I would probably only feed it to dogs that are doing lots of agility/flyball competitions or actually working a lot during the day because I'm afraid of giving dogs that lay around pancreatitis.

 

1 lb ground beef

1 8 oz pkg cream cheese

1 jar all natural peanut butter

1 jar (smaller of the sizes) wheat germ

1 doz egg yolks

1 cup or so of flaked oats soaked in heavy cream

[bc4ever]

Thank you to everyone for all the good suggestions.

 

He had blood work done when we first got him and everything checked out--kidneys, etc. so I don't think it's anything serious, but we never know...

 

Some days he's eager to eat anything we put in front of him; other days, not so much. I know the feeling. On those picky days, I try some of the ideas posted here. He is no longer on California Natural. According to his vet records, he had some food allergies so that may be part of his iffy appetite. I think possibly the antibiotics he was on for his teeth may have been making him feel a little bad too.

 

He's suddenly taken an interest in what we're eating, which I see as a good thing; food must smell good to him and he wants a taste. When we open the fridge door, he's right there beside us, peering in. LOL. So far we've discovered he likes cottage cheese, shredded cheddar, chicken, turkey, scrambled and boiled eggs. Doesn't seem too thrilled with peanut butter, unlike Scooter. What seems to be working best for now is using the kibble and varying the toppings, or moistening the kibble with warm water or warm chicken broth.

[NorthfieldNick]

Some days he's eager to eat anything we put in front of him; other days, not so much.

 

This is Hoot. He sometimes goes on a "hunger strike" for a day or so when he'll barely eat. The next day, he inhales everything. I generally don't worry about it, but he's only two. He's skinny, but in great shape, and I add a fair amount of fat & protein (raw) to his diet. He'll almost always eat raw, but sometimes, even that is left.

 

I've found that the more Hoot gets to run around, the more he eats. On days when the dogs are put up most ofthe day, he won't eat. When he gets to work or zoom around all day, he eats with gusto.

[alligande]

Some days he's eager to eat anything we put in front of him; other days, not so much.

This was bandit for the 10 years we had him, we stopped worrying after awhile and just kept an eye on his weight. He liked to eat in the middle of the night, luckily for him our other dog never took his food, he would ignore his bowl at dinner time and then get up for a snack.

[bc4ever]

This was bandit for the 10 years we had him, we stopped worrying after awhile and just kept an eye on his weight. He liked to eat in the middle of the night, luckily for him our other dog never took his food, he would ignore his bowl at dinner time and then get up for a snack.

I think that's what we've pretty much decided--as long as he doesn't appear ill (which he doesn't) and isn't losing weight, I assume he'll eat when he's hungry. I'm not a fan of free feeding, but it might be the best solution for him. He also isn't into treats. He loved the expensive ones we bought at the vet's--for a while. Now he turns his nose up at them. Breath still is a little funky, so nephew suggested Greenies. Loved the first one. Hasn't touched one since. He doesn't play, he isn't tempted with treats. Talk about low maintenance!

[alligande]

I'm not a fan of free feeding, but it might be the best solution for him.

We did not free feed in the sense they could eat what they want, every evening both dogs got a measured bowl, Bandit just choose to eat at a latter time sometimes the bowl was empty, other days he just got a top up. As he got older (around 10) we put more effort into bribery just so he got a couple of good meals a week.

[Jo&Tex]

My Tex is having some issues with his kidneys and his liver. He is 12 and always has a terrific appetite. That is a blessing, since the vet has him on a prescribed vegetarian homecooked diet to support his liver. Tex happens to like alfalfa sprouts and beans. At least, I think he does since he hovers it down as quickly as any other food type item he comes across.

 

We're using a veterinary nutritionist who has a company called completeandbalanced.com. For a fee, she'll do a specific diet based on your dogs lab test results. The powdered mix of essential nutients that I add to eat meal costs me about $50 for 70 meal portions.

 

Tex has perked up since we've started the diet. I dont know what I do if he was a finicky eater.