She Is Eating Inconsistently

[Guest MurphysMom]

Our 6 year old grey Murphy, whom we adopted this past Saturday, is inconsistent with her eating. The adoption agency said she should be eating 5-7 cups a day and she's maybe only eating 2. The first day she ate so quickly she puked (something I should have anticipated) so the second day I added chicken broth in her bowl and placed that in her crate; she ate that just fine! Then the next day she wasn't into her breakfast, so for dinner I added a bit of turkey dog to her kibble, with broth, and she gobbled that up! No puking! Then she didn't eat all her food the next day... but she picked out all the turkey dog bits and ran upstairs. Her poops are solid. She's not interested in treats unless they're turkey dogs. Any recommendations? She's not excessively gassy but we have definitely smelled the toots. She's not listless, walkies are exciting and she's performed a few mild zoomies since she got here. I try to feed her in the AM around 7 then again in the evening around 6. We're giving her the kennel food they gave us while trying to slowly switch her over to Dynamite dog food (a SUPER brand of dog food, I give the same brand to my cat and my horse and I'll never feed anything else).

 

Any advice would be great! I worry about how little she's eating overall.

[JAJ2010]

5-7 cups is an insane amount! 2 cups sounds much more reasonable for a female...

[Guest Lygracilux]

Yeahh, 5-7 cups is a ridiculous amount. Fusion is a big boy at about 68-70 lbs and he gets about 4 cups a day on average ( along with treats )

 

With that said, shes still new and adjusting, so I'm assuming shes still anxious and unsure of her surroundings which will all have an effect on her appetite. If shes hungry, she'll eat.

[rsieg]

Two cups is reasonable, especially if you are feeding him high quality food. My two males (75-80 lbs) get 3-3.5 cups/day (plus treats). Usually need more of a lower quality food (e.g. grocery store brands) than of a higher quality food.

[tuff]

My two 75 pound boys get 4 cups/day and my 75 pound girl gets 2 1/2 cups per day (hers is a higher calorie food). It probably will depend a little what the caloric content of the food is, but I cant think of any food that you would feed 5-7 cups/day. I would give her time. She is still adjusting and will eat when hungry. I wouldn't start with too many add ins or you might create a picky monster Oh, and congratulations on your new family member!

[Guest MurphysMom]

Yeahh, 5-7 cups is a ridiculous amount. Fusion is a big boy at about 68-70 lbs and he gets about 4 cups a day on average ( along with treats )

 

With that said, shes still new and adjusting, so I'm assuming shes still anxious and unsure of her surroundings which will all have an effect on her appetite. If shes hungry, she'll eat.

Phew. That does make me feel better! Of course as soon as I post this she ate half her breakfast. Lol. I know she's under her racing weight... would that be why they recommended feeding her so dang much?

[OwnedBySummer]

That's a crazy amount. My girl only gets 1 1/4 cups with water for breakfast (350 calories) and 1 can of moist for dinner (another 500-550 calories) with salmon oil. Then a few dehydrated treats during the day. Raced at 64 lbs. and currently weighs 68 lbs. But rather than the number on the scale, I prefer to go by how she looks and feels. Whether your dog is above or below racing weight in her retirement, it's more about her condition.

[Guest Lygracilux]

Phew. That does make me feel better! Of course as soon as I post this she ate half her breakfast. Lol. I know she's under her racing weight... would that be why they recommended feeding her so dang much?

 

Haha! Of course she did. Shes already messing with ya ;P

 

I mean, maybe as a guideline? I am not sure.

But overloading a dog with food never really works. Either they wont eat it all, or gobble it up and can get an upset tummy. Or be fine, then gain wayyy too much weight and you got a porkchop grey on your hands lol. Which not only doesnt look good but is very bad for their bones.

Edited May 7, 2015 by Lygracilux

[Guest MurphysMom]

Thank you all so much. I feel a lot better! I was super surprised when they told me how much to feed her, since I had read that 2-4 cups a day was average, but she is our first grey (in fact, our first dog not including ones we had growing up) so I didn't know for sure. I really, really appreciate the feedback!

 

Haha! Of course she did. Shes already messing with ya ;P

 

I mean, maybe as a guideline? I am not sure.

But overloading a dog with food never really works. Either they wont eat it all, or gobble it up and can get an upset tummy. Or be fine, then gain wayyy too much weight and you got a porkchop grey on your hands lol. Which not only doesnt look good but is very bad for their bones.

"Porkchop grey" bahaha! Definitely going to avoid that!

That's a crazy amount. My girl only gets 1 1/4 cups with water for breakfast (350 calories) and 1 can of moist for dinner (another 500-550 calories) with salmon oil. Then a few dehydrated treats during the day. Raced at 64 lbs. and currently weighs 68 lbs. But rather than the number on the scale, I prefer to go by how she looks and feels. Whether your dog is above or below racing weight in her retirement, it's more about her condition.

Thank you! I think I read somewhere that we should only be able to see the back 3 ribs, but not the hip bones or backbone... is that accurate?

[Feisty49]

I concur; way too much food. I gasped when I read it thinking it must be a mistake.

 

Regarding picky/inconsistent eating: Assuming it's a healthy dog, they will eat when they're hungry and IMO, they will jerk you around, so to speak, if they know you'll put extras in. Don't give in. They won't starve. If she does need to gain weight, it can be done slowly, perhaps giving her an extra quarter cup of food in each meal once you decide what she should have to maintain her weight where you want it.

 

My girl Annie gets 2-3/4 cups of food a day, split between breakfast and supper plus a few low-calorie treats. She weighs 65-66 pounds. Her racing weight was 61. 2-3 ribs should be easily discernible as well as the outline of the hip bones. As far as the back, Annie's has a dinosaur back. Her spine sticks out like little knuckles. If that's all people notice, I'm sometimes asked if she's been sick because she's so thin.

 

Annie often gets picky about eating her breakfast. Sometimes she eat all of it it. Sometimes she eats nothing. Sometimes she eats two bites. Sometimes she eats half. I've learned over the years not to worry about it because that's normal for her. She always eats supper.

 

Do you put water on Murphy's kibble? That can slow her down so she doesn't gulp and vomit.

Edited May 7, 2015 by Feisty49

[OwnedBySummer]

This may be helpful.
http://greyhoundcrossroads.com/index.php?page=weight

[Guest MurphysMom]

I concur; way too much food. I gasped when I read it thinking it must be a mistake.

 

Regarding picky/inconsistent eating: Assuming it's a healthy dog, they will eat when they're hungry and IMO, they will jerk you around, so to speak, if they know you'll put extras in. Don't give in. They won't starve. If she does need to gain weight, it can be done slowly, perhaps giving her an extra quarter cup of food in each meal once you decide what she should have to maintain her weight where you want it.

 

My girl Annie gets 2-3/4 cups of food a day, split between breakfast and supper plus a few low-calorie treats. She weighs 65-66 pounds. Her racing weight was 61. 2-3 ribs should be easily discernible as well as the outline of the hip bones. As far as the back, Annie's has a dinosaur back. Her spine sticks out like little knuckles. If that's all people notice, I'm sometimes asked if she's been sick because she's so thin.

 

Annie often gets picky about eating her breakfast. Sometimes she eat all of it it. Sometimes she eats nothing. Sometimes she eats two bites. Sometimes she eats half. I've learned over the years not to worry about it because that's normal for her. She always eats supper.

 

Do you put water on Murphy's kibble? That can slow her down so she doesn't gulp and vomit.

I do put water in her kibble for her, it's definitely helped! This morning I made sure she had no extras in her food, I don't want a little piggy on my hands... just kibble and water and she ate about half. I think I had put 1.5 cups in her bowl. Even though the woman at the rescue told me to feed her that obscene amount I never came near to putting even half of that in her bowls, never fear! It sounded like so much and I'm glad I wasn't wrong thinking that.

 

It's so comforting to know your Annie doesn't eat consistently; maybe that's just how Murphy will always be!

This may be helpful.

http://greyhoundcrossroads.com/index.php?page=weight

This is awesome. Thank you! Definitely putting this in my Pinterest to keep as a reference!

[Guest MurphysMom]

My two 75 pound boys get 4 cups/day and my 75 pound girl gets 2 1/2 cups per day (hers is a higher calorie food). It probably will depend a little what the caloric content of the food is, but I cant think of any food that you would feed 5-7 cups/day. I would give her time. She is still adjusting and will eat when hungry. I wouldn't start with too many add ins or you might create a picky monster Oh, and congratulations on your new family member!

Oh, maybe the brand of food they gave us is not a high quality food?? I don't know what it is for sure, they put it in a plastic bag for us to take home and it stinks to high heaven. Either way I'm so relieved I wasn't nuts thinking it was soooo much food they told us to give her. I'm pretty sure my heart stopped for a bit.

 

Her tummy growled SO LOUDLY the other day, and that's the day she ate her whole dinner after not eating breakfast (about 2 cups) I'd never heard such a loud tummy! Thank you for being so kind with your feedback!

[ramonaghan]

I tend to look at the tuck and the hip bones for Sweep rather than ribs. Hounds carry their weight differently, just like humans do. Sweep has never been ribby, even straight off the track (see below--maybe a week after her last race), and she's only fed 2 - 2.5 cups of food a day; she weighs 61 lbs now and raced at 58. I've seen a few dogs with her sire (Kiowa Sweet Trey) built the same way. I agree that body condition is a better gauge than racing weight, you just have to learn what's normal for your specific dog.

 

 

Edited May 7, 2015 by ramonaghan

[Guest MurphysMom]

I tend to look at the tuck and the hip bones for Sweep rather than ribs. Hounds carry their weight differently, just like humans do. Sweep has never been ribby, even straight off the track (see below--maybe a week after her last race), and she's only fed 2 - 2.5 cups of food a day; she weighs 61 lbs now and raced at 58. I've seen a few dogs with her sire (Kiowa Sweet Trey) built the same way. I agree that body condition is a better gauge than racing weight, you just have to learn what's normal for your specific dog.

 

 

Oh my gosh he is gorgeous!

[ramonaghan]

Oh my gosh he is gorgeous!

 

Thank you.

[NeedlenoseJake]

Thank you all so much. I feel a lot better! I was super surprised when they told me how much to feed her, since I had read that 2-4 cups a day was average, but she is our first grey (in fact, our first dog not including ones we had growing up) so I didn't know for sure. I really, really appreciate the feedback!

"Porkchop grey" bahaha! Definitely going to avoid that!

Thank you! I think I read somewhere that we should only be able to see the back 3 ribs, but not the hip bones or backbone... is that accurate?

 

Agree with the above statement that all hounds are different. Jake is very tall and we've always been able to see his spine clearly. That's just he way he is because he's not underweight.

 

[rascalsmom]

Phoebe is built a lot like Jake (above) and indeed even LOOKS like him! [bTW, he is GORGEOUS!!] She eats four cups of food a day (ProPlan), and gets very few treats. She would LOVE to have 5-7 cups per day, as she is a hog. We've had her for a bit over a year and a half, and her hipbones and spine are still in evidence. In the right light (because it's harder to see on brindles) you can see her last few ribs, too. She's in great shape.

 

 

That being said, my first greyhound, a small female (58 pounds at her heaviest) was a very picky eater and never ate four cups a day. And she wasn't quite as slender as Phoebe.

[TheFullHouse]

Be very careful with adding different things to her food. You can see she's already started picking out the good stuff. You can actually create a picky eater by changing things up to much. A healthy dog will not starve themselves, they will eat when they need to. She's really new and unsettled right now. Routine is your best buddy right now. Once she figures out the mealtime routine she'll eat better. Right now just put her food down for 15 minutes. If she doesn't eat it all, pick it up and put it in the fridge and put it back down at dinner. Doing this for a few days teaches her she has to eat when it's offered or she will be hungry.

 

I've had 16 hounds and used this technique with each one and never had issues with any of them unless they were sick. If you have a sick dog, then you feed them what you can get them to eat until they are well again.

[JJNg]

Lots of good responses already. Definitely agree with holding back on the add-ins. Especially since you've only had her a few days, some dogs need a little time to adjust before they start eating consistently, and mixing in extras will just teach her to be picky. And some just aren't very motivated by their regular food and just eat as much as they need.

 

Do you know what her background is? I saw in another thread that Murphy is GS Millie. Looks like her last race was 3 years ago, and she was a brood who had at least 1 litter. (As an aside, I fostered one of her pups, GS Barry!) Since its been so long since she raced, her racing weight is less relevant. The more important thing is how does she look? Can you post some standing photos of her? When they are no longer racing, they tend to lose muscle mass and can be healthy under their race weight. My boy Wiki has been 6-7 lbs under his racing weight for most of his retirement and looks good.

 

I also agree that 5-7 cups is a huge amount of food, especially for a small female. Murphy finished her racing career at 56 lbs. For a smaller girl who needs to gain a little weight, I usually start at 4-5 cups daily. But that's usually a newly retired racer whose metabolism is still in 'race mode', just spayed, and adjusting to the transition from track to home. All of those factors increase caloric needs. I did have an intact male I fostered who was fresh off the track, recovering from a broken leg, battling diarrhea, and a few pounds under his race weight who I had to feed 7-8 cups for the first few weeks to get his weight up. Every dog is different.

[Guest MurphysMom]

Lots of good responses already. Definitely agree with holding back on the add-ins. Especially since you've only had her a few days, some dogs need a little time to adjust before they start eating consistently, and mixing in extras will just teach her to be picky. And some just aren't very motivated by their regular food and just eat as much as they need.

 

Do you know what her background is? I saw in another thread that Murphy is GS Millie. Looks like her last race was 3 years ago, and she was a brood who had at least 1 litter. (As an aside, I fostered one of her pups, GS Barry!) Since its been so long since she raced, her racing weight is less relevant. The more important thing is how does she look? Can you post some standing photos of her? When they are no longer racing, they tend to lose muscle mass and can be healthy under their race weight. My boy Wiki has been 6-7 lbs under his racing weight for most of his retirement and looks good.

 

I also agree that 5-7 cups is a huge amount of food, especially for a small female. Murphy finished her racing career at 56 lbs. For a smaller girl who needs to gain a little weight, I usually start at 4-5 cups daily. But that's usually a newly retired racer whose metabolism is still in 'race mode', just spayed, and adjusting to the transition from track to home. All of those factors increase caloric needs. I did have an intact male I fostered who was fresh off the track, recovering from a broken leg, battling diarrhea, and a few pounds under his race weight who I had to feed 7-8 cups for the first few weeks to get his weight up. Every dog is different.

Hi! See, I knew as soon as I posted this, Murphy would start eating just fine It's the Umbrella Rule: bring an umbrella, it won't rain. Don't bring one, and it will rain! Post on Greytalk about my dog not eating, and she will eat.. haha.

 

She has not been getting any add-ins since the first two times and now she's eating consistently, twice a day. I've been giving her about 1.5 cups each time, with water, to help slow her down.

 

 

And yes! My Murphy is GS Millie. How amazing you fostered one of her pups! How do I see her breeding history? I've found her racing history, thanks to that other thread, but I'm curious about her puppies. I know she was only spayed about 2-3 weeks ago. Let me see if I can post some pictures of her. She wouldn't stand very still this morning for me, but I have a few! Thank you for all your input! All these amazing responses have been unbelievably helpful.

 

Hmmm... every time I try to post the pictures from Photobucket I get error messages....

[JJNg]

Glad to hear Murphy is eating well now! How are you trying to post your Photobucket photos? Are you clicking on the Image icon and pasting in the direct link?

 

Greyhound-Data.com is a great source of information on racing greyhounds. You can find her pedigree, race data, offspring, and littermates. Here's Murphy's page. If it asks you to sign up for an account, it's a free registration.

http://greyhound-data.com/d?i=1691192

 

When you open her page on Greyhound-Data, there's a link near the top to see her offspring. From there, you can click on each pup's name to get to their page. A couple of them have nice photos taken by a friend of mine who helps at the adoption kennel at the Orange Park track in Jacksonville, FL. If you scroll down on Murphy's page, you can see a list of Murphy's littermates, as well as other pups her mom had from other litters.

 

Most of Barry's littermates are still racing. I got Barry as a foster back in December because he was extremely shy. The trainer worked with him for months, and even tried Bach flower remedies, before giving up and sending him to adoption. None of his littermates are shy, and they're all doing well at the track.

 

Here's her handsome son Barry:

 

 

[Guest MurphysMom]

Glad to hear Murphy is eating well now! How are you trying to post your Photobucket photos? Are you clicking on the Image icon and pasting in the direct link?

 

Greyhound-Data.com is a great source of information on racing greyhounds. You can find her pedigree, race data, offspring, and littermates. Here's Murphy's page. If it asks you to sign up for an account, it's a free registration.

http://greyhound-data.com/d?i=1691192

 

When you open her page on Greyhound-Data, there's a link near the top to see her offspring. From there, you can click on each pup's name to get to their page. A couple of them have nice photos taken by a friend of mine who helps at the adoption kennel at the Orange Park track in Jacksonville, FL. If you scroll down on Murphy's page, you can see a list of Murphy's littermates, as well as other pups her mom had from other litters.

 

Most of Barry's littermates are still racing. I got Barry as a foster back in December because he was extremely shy. The trainer worked with him for months, and even tried Bach flower remedies, before giving up and sending him to adoption. None of his littermates are shy, and they're all doing well at the track.

 

Here's her handsome son Barry:

 

 

Oh wow, she made some pretty babies! Now... how to convince the husband to adopt all of them.... I see they were born nine days before my wedding day! Not that my husband would go for this, but could one request to adopt the offspring of a particular dog? Hypothetically, of course... *cough*

 

Barry is GORGEOUS. Brindle is my all-time favorite color.

 

I thought I was pasting a direct link for the pictures... hmmm. Is there a better way than Photobucket to post pics?

[JJNg]

Not that my husband would go for this, but could one request to adopt the offspring of a particular dog? Hypothetically, of course... *cough*

 

It is sometimes possible to do this through a process called pre-adoption. You can contact the dog's racing owner/kennel and/or the trainer and make arrangements for when the dog is ready to retire. However, there's a lot to consider when attempting to go this route. It is best done with the assistance of an adoption group so that you'll have a support network if things don't work out. Sometimes there is a miscommunication at the track, and the dog gets sent to another adoption group, especially if you don't keep in close contact with the owner.

 

You'd need to be flexible on timing. The dog may be injured and be ready to retire the day after you talk to the owner. Or you may need to wait years if the dog is kept for stud or brood duties. There's also the concern whether the dog will be a good match for your household. If you have cats, or small dogs, or children, you won't know if the dog will be tolerant of them. So pre-adoption is best suited for those who are very flexible, have a lot of dog experience, and can handle whatever comes their way. There's a thread on here for people who have pre-adopted and are waiting for their pups to retire:

http://forum.greytalk.com/index.php/topic/300353-watching-and-waiting-on-a-racin-doggie/

 

I thought I was pasting a direct link for the pictures... hmmm. Is there a better way than Photobucket to post pics?

 

You can use any photo hosting service. I mostly use Photobucket, but I've used the direct link to photos I've posted on Facebook too (like the ones of Barry above). Are you using the Image button at the top of the reply box?

[GeorgeofNE]

They didn't tell you what kind of food it is? I'd give 'em a call and ask, because if you just go buy some random food and switch when you run out of the food in the plastic bag, you'll likely have a dog with the runs on your hands.

 

Obviously you already know that 5-7 cups is way, way, way too much food.

 

Both my small male greyhounds have done quite well on 1 cup 2x a day. Plus some treats.