Anna Still Giving Us Trouble Eating

[Guest ishapespace]

Okay, so Anna is still giving us a hard time eating. I've explained what she does before, (though it's been a while since my last post about it and it has gone on since June or so) but I'll brief it again. Sometimes she just walks to her food and walks away. Sometimes, she stands over it and will eat some. Other times, she just eats with no issue. She will eat any treat with no issue. We have changed them to another flavor of Nutro, with the plan of switching every couple of bags back and forth between the 3 or 4 available flavors. The boys and all the recent fosters eat just fine. We changed the first time recently and she ate with no hesitation for about 5 days and then went back to her old habits. Sometimes she tries to eat Berry's food, which has water added. We had done that for Anna before, but then she started her eating issues and was wasting food. Water peaks her interest some but not all of the time, so I won't do it. I am not wasting food. We talked about switching to the Sam's Member's choice I think it is, but we are too far away from any Sam's and would have to make trips out just for that, whereas now we have close access to a small local pet store and Tractor Supply which carry the Nutro. It seems like the Nutro is the best we can afford. We go through so much food, it would be a financial strain to switch to anything more costly. I'd consider doing it just for her food, if she would eat it, but I'm not sure that anything would keep her interest for more than a few days. I also will not add cheese or anything like that to her food. I have done it before but the boredom thing persists after a few days no matter what we have tried. Sometimes, if she does not eat her breakfast, about 20-30 minutes later she will scope out all the bowls like she is looking for food, but I can't just leave her food out, especially since during the week we are on such a tight schedule in the mornings and any unattended food for any amount of time will be eaten by Dax, who is the opposite of Anna, as he is ALWAYS hungry. I am just getting tired of fighting her to eat. Nearly every meal is a battle. I just don't know what to do with her or if anything could be wrong. I'm getting my Mom to bring me a scale today. I'm going to start monitoring her weight....

 

I have caught flack before about why don't you just add this or that, but nothing keeps her attention for more than a few days. I understand that yes, I would be bored if I had to eat the same thing every day argument, but I have 2 other hounds of my own that don't seem to mind at all. My biggest concern is that something could be medically wrong, but we just don't know it or even know where to start looking.

 

Has anyone ever experienced anything like this before? Is it likely she is just being picky, but if so, what changed 6 months ago? She had no issue the 2 years before that?

 

Thanks.

[Batmom]

1. Check her teeth/mouth -- make sure there is nothing inappropriate going on in there.

2. Try giving her a pepcid (10mg famotidine) 30 minutes before her meal.

3. If her weight is OK and she's not actively losing, just ignore her. She'll eat what she needs when she's hungry.

[PrairieProf]

Are you only trying different flavors of Nutro? Have you tried a different brand? "Best" isn't best for her if she doesn't like it. I think Tractor Supply carries Pro Plan, I've heard that's very palatable, and many greys do well on it (I've only used the Selects, but my dog loves it). Even if you tried a brand that isn't "good" (but might be inexpensive) and Anna liked it, you'd know for sure it isn't a medical condition, just pickiness.

Edited November 30, 2008 by PrairieProf

[duncan41]

Batmom and PrairieProf give very good advice. Nothing to add, but I would definitely start with the teeth first. If she's having a problem with her mouth, she may equate it with any food that you offer. Do your hounds eat once a day, twice a day? Does she go out to potty before she eats or after? Does she eat out of bowl on the floor or from an elevated feeder? Is her bowl close to Dax or Berry's bowls? Just some food for thought..........pardon the pun. Good luck and let us know how it goes.

[Remolacha]

I agree with checking her mouth and teeth. When Sugar started getting picky about what she ate, it turned out she had a couple of bad teeth. Once they were gone, she went back to eating normally. Well, until all her other health issues in her later years. If her teeth are ok and she seems otherwise healthy, and not loosing weight, then just her her skip a meal when she's not hungry. It can be sooo frustrating when they don't eat!

[Guest ishapespace]

Thanks for the input. I think the tough answer is she is just being a butthead.

 

I checked her teeth and they look fine. I poked around her mouth with my fingers and she didn't care at all. She is not losing any weight and has always been thin. I wish she would gain a little, but I guess that's just her.

 

I don't think switching brands or even flavors really makes much of a difference, because after a few days of anything, she is done. If I thought she would eat it, I would even feed just her something different, anything, but I really don't see it mattering. It started after eating the same food for over a year. I think she's just being difficult.

 

Tonight, she kept trying to get into Berry White's food, until I finally got between them so he could finish, he would move aside for her as she is our Alpha. Then, she would not eat, so I took a little of her kibble and poured some water over it. She ate that, so I did it with the rest and she ate it all. I don't have time to do that in the mornings though. She eats or she doesn't. If the water seems to become successful for a while, I'll go with that, since we do it for Berry already. I just don't like to waste food.

 

To answer Duncan41's questions:

They eat twice a day

They potty before (something we hypothesized as a possible issue early on, but doesn't seem to matter)

They each have their own elevated feeder with two bowls, one food, one water

She eats about 8 feet to the right of Berry White and Dax eats away from them both, in another part of the dining room... funny thing is sometimes if one of them comes near her while she isn't eating but by her bowl, she will bark at them then eat

 

She is just an odd little 4.5 year old girl I guess....oh well. Like many people on and off here have said, it just sucks when they won't eat, but her appetite is there, so I think she's just picky and trying to mess with us to see if she can get something "better".

[CaliforniaGreys]

Try the Nutritional Yeast and see if that perks up her appetite. It's done wonders for quite a few of us

[Guest ishapespace]

Where does one acquire this nutritional yeast?

[Guest MorganKonaAlex]

It sounds like a behaviorial issue but you may also think about checking her kidneys. The early sign of kidney issues with Kona was picky eating. Any new food was ok for a few days and then she'd stop eating.

[CaliforniaGreys]

Where does one acquire this nutritional yeast?

Most health food stores carry it

[Guest Greensleeves]

It sounds like a behaviorial issue but you may also think about checking her kidneys. The early sign of kidney issues with Kona was picky eating. Any new food was ok for a few days and then she'd stop eating.

 

I SECOND THIS. Seriously--I was just getting ready to post the exact same thing. In fact, for Nelly, this was the *only* symptom she had.

 

funny thing is sometimes if one of them comes near her while she isn't eating but by her bowl, she will bark at them then eat youcrazy.gif

 

That's not funny--that's pack competition, and it's natural (particularly for greyhounds who may have fed from communal feeders). She doesn't really want the food--but she wants them to have it even less.

 

I understand your frustration (we've had two now where it was a daily struggle to get them to eat), but in situations like this (particularly if there's something medically wrong) it's necessary to be flexible. Maybe she doesn't like her feeder. Maybe she's not hungry *when* you're feeding, and you need to choose a different time. Maybe she'll eat if you hand feed her. I'm also not sure what you mean about wasting food--if all three are eating the same thing, and she skips a meal, I'm sure one of her brothers would happily eat it at dinner time.

 

And if you're pressed for time in the mornings, get up a little earlier. If it's the difference between a few minutes' sleep and a dog who may happily starve herself sick...?

 

Trust me: I get it. It's infuriating when things that are working perfectly well *for you* don't seem to work for the dogs anymore. You just need to keep trying different things. And I don't mean different foods--I mean different ways of looking at mealtime, your schedule, etc.

[Guest KateWantsaGrey]

As long as this isn't a health issue I would think she is just being a bit spoiled. I remember an episode of the Dog Whisperer where a woman's dog wouldn't eat, and she was cooking it home cooked food everyday. It turned out that the dog wasn't getting enough exercise. As soon as his exercise regimen was boosted he started eating dog food with vigor. Maybe she just needs a little boost in activity?

[CaliforniaGreys]

Just wondering how your girl is doing?

[Guest ishapespace]

Thanks again for the continued advice.

 

An update:

Yesterday (Monday) morning: Typical routine. She ate some of her food.

Monday Night: Anna kept trying to get to Berry's food. I kept her back and then took half her food out and poured water in the rest. She ate it and then I added the rest and she ate that.

Today (Tuesday) morning: I just went ahead and put her food down with water. She ate.

This evening: Repeat of this morning. Food with water. She eats with no hesitation.

 

My verdict: She's just being picky. She definitely is hungry, as she goes for Berry's food if she finishes first and is looking for more.

 

Also, I got a good look at her teeth last night, as she let me brush them. She's got some pretty good build-up, but I think it's ok. No sensitivity or pain that I could find or get her to respond to. So, I'm sticking with picky for now.

[duncan41]

Sounds like adding water was a good thing! Not sure that she's being picky, she may have just wanted water in her food like Berry's!

[Guest ishapespace]

Yeah, water in both meals today and she ate like a champ. No hesitation. We will give this a go for a while. I am definitely thinking picky must have been the answer. Let's hope she keeps it up.