Jump to content

Change In Eating Habits / Amount


Recommended Posts

Over the last couple of weeks, Molly has suddenly stopped finishing her meals. She's never been a picky girl and has always eaten quite well. She gets about 1 1/4 - 1 1/2 c. Taste of the Wild (chicken) twice a day. Usually with water mixed in and a dollop of yogurt on top. She used to finish every bite. So we figured maybe she was tired of that food, and started a slow switch to the salmon version. No change in eating habits so we don't think it's the food. Right now she's at a 50/50 mix of both.

 

She'll eagerly run to her crate to eat. Gobble up the yogurt (of course), and then eat for a bit and then just get up and go do something else. She's only eating about 3/4 of her meal. Sometimes a little more. Sometimes a little less. She'll usually go back and finish it later if I leave it there for her --- some days it's an hour later and some days it's much later.

 

I was thinking of starting to just pick up her bowl after she walks away, and make her wait until her next meal. I guess then I'd know if she doesn't like the food, or if she's just not as hungry. But I'm not really concerned about letting her free feed right now since the DH works from home anyway.

 

Her potty stuff is all the same. Energy level is good. So we don't think it's anything medical. Nothing else has really changed (other than she discovered the joys of furniture). The only real difference is the cooler weather. Just wondering if it's a natural cycle? Do some greys sometimes just eat less for awhile, then self-correct eventually?

Edited by arandomchic

 

 

Jennifer, Mike and the menagerie ---

Molly (Blue Sky Dreamin), Tinker (BT My Lil Girl) and their feline brothers Miles and Lewis

Visit Molly's Photo Album

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Try leaving the yogurt off and see what happens. She could be full or she could be having a reaction to dairy (which some dogs do).

Judy, mom to Darth Vader, Bandita, And Angel

Forever in our hearts, DeeYoGee, Dani, Emmy, Andy, Heart, Saint, Valentino, Arrow, Gee, Bebe, Jilly Bean, Bullitt, Pistol, Junior, Sammie, Joey, Gizmo, Do Bee

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Our senior girl recently started what your girl is doing, she used to eat all of her dinner right away but the last two weeks she has been eating a portion and then leaving it, she will then go back after an hour or sometimes longer to finish, since we do free feed our girls I don't worry about it because both my girls will finish their meals before bedtime. Our younger girl has always eaten a portion of her food and then leaves and will finish later, so we figured out that the senior girl has finally realized that her food won't disappear if she doesn't eat it all right away.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well, it seems she just likes her food to be softened. We think that after the first time she didn't eat right away, she realized it was BETTER an hour later. One day I decided to test it, and she ate it all no problems. So now I get her food ready, add the water and let it sit for a bit. Put it down at her normal feeding time, and she gobbles it all up.

 

But she's not spoiled. Not at all. :P

 

 

Jennifer, Mike and the menagerie ---

Molly (Blue Sky Dreamin), Tinker (BT My Lil Girl) and their feline brothers Miles and Lewis

Visit Molly's Photo Album

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Dogs will fast themselves every now and then, and they do sometimes get tired of their food too.

 

I will say this, however - if she doesn't want to eat for a few days, don't make her. Let her go a day or so skipping a couple meals and see if that sorts everything out. No treats etc. Ellie was behaving similarly for a couple weeks, and we just kept trying to get her to eat. Would eat a few bites, then sometimes more, then sometimes nothing, then would gobble up the next meal. Wound up bringing on some nasty GI stuff, and a probable bout of pancreatitis. :(

 

Good luck!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest lasharp1209

How long have you had her?

 

Blade used to wolf down his food in a grand total of 20 seconds. Several months into having him here, he suddenly slowed down and started leaving his food, sometimes coming back to it later, sometimes not. Usually if I stood there with him, he would finish it all but not always. I attributed it to him "settling in"... realizing that this was home and he could finally relax.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...