Not interested in his food

[debsallen]

I don't know what to do for the best, Barney is so not interested in food

once again today (now 11:25) and Barney has not had his food, I have put it down, and he just sniffs it and walks away,  I have taken it away for a few hours and then tried again but so not interested

I have Iams down for him which he has been eating and have put a seperate boel of JWB as I want to see if he will go to it, but he is not interested in either


Any suggestions?   (whilst with the breeder he was fed ad lib which does not help) 

I have already changed from Judges choice, which he was on when he came to us, shich he would not touch after 2 days, and now I am having the same with Iams, and JWB, few days of eating it now does not want to know!


Why is it never easy?

[karen45]

How old is Barney.  My dog Jake, who is 3 in March was always walking away from food when he was a puppy to up to he was about 1 year old.

I tried adding chicken pieces to his food, adding a tablespoon of tinned dog food.  He eventually got very clever and would not eat unless something was added.

I was advised by Jake's breeder that some dogs do better on being fed one meal a day - not 2 smaller meals.  I also found that Jake did better with a small breakfast and a bigger tea.  In fact most days when he was going through the Im not eating that stage, he didnt eat any breakfast.

I stopped adding tasty bits to his food, just put it down and left it for 10 to 15 mins.   If Jake did not eat it I threw it away and made sure that he saw it going in the bin. 

I am sure it is a phase and it will pass but I found it better to be strong and definitely dont leave food down all day for him to eat.

[karen45]

Just wanted to add that if Barney is a puppy obviously he cannot be feed only one meal a day.

[Cazzie]

I would choose one food and one food only, put it down and after 15 mins if he hasnt eaten it, the bin it, dont leave it lying any longer, then do the same for the next meal, he should eat it eventually when he is hungry. How old is he 

[debsallen]

barney is 5 months, and not used to having set meals, upto when we bought him home he was fed ad lib and had food there all day

He has a lot to learn, I know and it is all new to him, but I am a worrier, and I know it is silly but I wonder if his gums hurt he is losing his baby teeth all over the place.

he chose to not eat judges choice the food he had when he came to us, so I went to Iams, not knowing the companies ethics.  and the JWB came free


I will take the food away until dinner time,  and will see what happens

[Cazzie]

barney is 5 months, and not used to having set meals, upto when we bought him home he was fed ad lib and had food there all day

This is the problem, if dogs have access to food all day    Dogs by nature are hunters and will hunt and eat food when they are hungry but if they have easy access to food lying around they will become lazy and choose to eat when they feel like it. It really is up to you but Id get him on set meals 

Good luck 

[debsallen]

Thanks, we are trying really hard, he has been through so much in his little life


I am sure we will get there in the end.   We will keep going   

[karen45]

Also when Jake was Barney's age his gums were very sore through teething and I soaked his food for a short while.  Also I added a teaspoonful of wet cat food to encourage him to start eating.

Dont worry too much.  I know I did with Jake but they can pick up on your anxiety too.  Good luck and let us know how tea goes.

Karen

[debsallen]

Thanks so much


I was wondering that too.  He has lost a few teeth this week, and he ate ok yesterday

I will soak his food a bit for tea and fingers crossed

Will keep you updated

[Cazzie]

Ive never had a dog that goes off their food when teething  Maybe its because most of them were greedy Labs and never crunch they swallow whole 

Im sure you will get there with him 

[Countrygirl]

My last cocker, Sophie, was uninterested in food.  Many nights in desperation to get her to eat something I used to sit on the kitchen floor trying to tempt her to eat out of my hand.  The postlady used to carry dog biscuits round with her and never once would Sophie take one from her, so she used to give it to me to take home for her.

The only thing she would eat was chicken but I couldn't give her that night after night.  I then discovered she loved sausage so I hit on the idea of giving her a piece if she finished her dinner.  It worked!  She used to eat her dinner and then run straight to the fridge for a piece of sausage.  I cooked sausages for years and years but never mind it got her eating her food.

I now have Ellie who is completely different.  The only food I have known her refuse is banana and tomato.  We have had the same post lady for years and years and Ellie leaps in the air when she sees her as at the moment she is carrying bonios around with her.  She also loves to walk past cafes which have tables outside and dives under them in the vain hope someone may have dropped something!

Its really funny how they can be so different.

[debsallen]

I have been thinking about this all afternoon, and I think I have worked it out, Barney needs to do more playing, he if left will sleep all day long, he is not allowed out for walks yet until he has his second injections next week,  I am so angry that the breeder left him without injections, poor lad has never been out,  we run around the garden if I can persuade him, and DH is trying to get him to run around the kitchen now with a toy, trying to worl up an appetite for him


He loves my food and I am sure he would eat a plate of tuna and pasta, but I don't want to make a rod for my own back, as I am now convinced he is just not hungry as he is lazy and can't be bothered to play

But DH is now making him play and hopefully he will eat later


He has had some food today, but not as much as I thought he would be eating

[Karma]

Honey has always had set meals (though she does have a treat ball, so there is a small amount of food available all day - but she gotta work for it!), but she is pretty uninterested in food.  There are days she'll barely touch it, and other days she'll eat the lot.  She is 5 months, so similar age to Barney.  We've always stuck my meal times, and if she doesn't eat it tough (we are a little lax on the within 15 mins thing, but it doesn't sit all day).  We do find she prefers to eat it if it has a little bit of warm water drizzled over, but that's all we do...

Barney is still on a huge learning curve, and it sounds like you are doing everything you can to help him overcome his difficult start... I think the advice on here is right - choose one type of food and stick to it (changing foods can upset tummies), and stay strong on set meal times - he will learn quickly enough. 

Developing his ability to play will help too, as he is more likely to feel hungry if he is burning off energy!!!
 

[Ian B]

Our two dogs - 12 yo and 17 mo - have two small meals per day instead of just the one. (This came about because the old fella developed megaesophagus a couple of years ago)
We feed them Royal Canin dry food for breakfast and Burns dry food with something extra added for flavour for dinner, tonight it was pilchards in tom sauce.
Our cocker Misty will leave food once she is full or walk away and leave it untouched if the food is uninteresting so we vary the added extras between pilchards, sardines, tuna, mackerel or leftover pasta - no problems getting her to clean her bowl nowadays.

[barb]

Pippa is 4 months and she isn't eating much either, just a mouthful or two if I'm lucky. She's teething too and it's hot here so I don't know if that's it.
It's worrying when they don't eat, she seems lively enough.
She gets Advance dry food with warm water on and a spoonful of chicken mince mixed in.
She's going on to 2 meals a day (when she eats them!) Up until now I gave her Weetbix and puppy milk for lunch.