Spock Not Showing Interest In His Food

[greydad92]

Hello All,

 

Mr. Spock's daddy here....and for all you Trekys out there my name is not Sarek. For the record, Spock is a seven year old male that I adopted two years ago. I've been feeding him Purina Sensitive Skin & Stomach since his adoption.

 

When I took Spock to my Mom’s house for Christmas (4 & 1/2 hours away) he stopped eating the night of Christmas Eve. He had been to my mother's house once before and ate normally. Christmas morning again he wasn’t eating. I tried putting a little cream of chicken soup mixed in with his food, but he wouldn’t touch it. Christmas was pretty crazy at Mom’s, a lot of people and a very different environment for Spock. Saturday we drove up to NY to visit the rest of the family. Spock was still not eating, just dog biscuits and that’s about it.

I found that when I put his food in his bowl he would eat one handful at a time and he would finish it all (about 1 & 1/2 cups). When we got home I took Spock to his vet. She checked him out, temperature, teeth, felt around, etc. She said he looked normal. She suggested buying a small new bag of the same food, that perhaps it might be the bag, where it came from, ingredient change, etc. I bought a new bag and he seemed to eat it, slowly, reluctantly, but he ate it. Then after while we went back to not eating unless I put the food in his bowl one handful at a time. We went back to the vets office. Her theory was let’s rule out any medical issues before we start messing with his food, good point. She did blood work, took x-rays and a urine sample. The blood work and x-ray of his stomach looked normal. She said she had some concern about the x-ray of his heart. She said it looked big for a greyhound and it didn’t look like the right shape. She said she was going to share the x-rays with her colleagues on a discussion group to see if maybe his heart is just on the big side for a normal greyhound heart. That was Tuesday of this week and I still haven’t heard anything. I called yesterday and they said she was off for the next couple days. In the mean time Spock is still not eating normally. I have to sweet talk and coax him to eat about a cup to 1 & 1/2 cups of his food which takes about ten minutes. If I don’t he won’t eat it. He normally eats two cups. He’s very timid around his bowl, looks at me, paces and then eats a little. I thought it might be the kitchen linoleum floor because he is reluctant to come into the kitchen, so I tried putting his raised bowl on my dining room rug, but that made no difference. For the record I brush Spock's teeth daily with no yelping. The vet said his teeth looked ok except for a little redness on his rear molars on one side of his mouth.

 

Spock is otherwise normal. He's bright eyed, loves to play and cuddle. He's drinking plenty of water, though slightly reluctant with that as well. He's pooping and peeing ok. Help

[PrairieProf]

Has Spock's bloodwork included a test for pancreatitis? The one time my first food-hound greyhound went off food she was brewing a case. For the record she was negative on the quick cPL test but a more expensive test that has to be sent out, a TLI, showed she had a problem, and that just diagnosed my second greyhound who was also negative on CPL.

[rsieg]

It is possible he is playing you. I had a problem in that Logan would come over and eat Max' food, and Max wasn't willing to challenge back. So I took Max' food into the bedroom and closed the door, and he ate fine. Now I have to do that - every - time. In my case I do think Logan would nose in again if I stopped, so I have kept doing it, but I'm quite certain part of it is that Max likes the personal attention.

 

It could be Mr. Spock simply likes you hand feeding him, with sweet talk and coaxing. How long has he actually gone without eating? If it is only a day or so that really isn't too long. If he is not underweight, and medical problems have been ruled out, I might try going two or three days without hand-feeding, just putting his bowl down as usual, and see if when he gets hungry he eats. (Of course, if you don't mind hand-feeding him he probably does enjoy it and you could keep on doing it :-)

[gryhndsr4us]

You say he is timid around his food and water bowls. Does he have tags that hang down? If so try taking his collar off, the clanking of the tags could be scaring him.

[greydad92]

Has Spock's bloodwork included a test for pancreatitis? The one time my first food-hound greyhound went off food she was brewing a case. For the record she was negative on the quick cPL test but a more expensive test that has to be sent out, a TLI, showed she had a problem, and that just diagnosed my second greyhound who was also negative on CPL.

Not sure, I'll have to check. Thanks for the reply

[RedHead]

One of my past dogs actually had eating anxiety. It was obvious her old owners would hover over her and try to get her to eat because she would just get timid and cower and shake next to a food dish...the more food you added or talked the worse she got. Obviously your pup isn't this extreme, but you may want to try just scattering food around the floor (no bowl at all) and leaving him to see what he does. They can sometimes develop a fear and associate something (like the dog bowl) with the anxiety.

 

Teague recently stopped eating as well, and I finally figured out that he was afraid of the noise his metal bowl made when it rattled (ever so slightly) on the raised feeder stand. I put the bowl down on the floor and he gobbled everything up. He has been using that feeder for over a year with the noise, not sure how or why the phobia came. Someone else mentioned about dog tags as well...sometimes they rattle against the bowl and startle them.

Edited January 15, 2016 by RedHead

[JenniferS]

Have you tried adding something else to his food? Parmesan cheese usually works around here if I have a finicky eater. Or a little cottage cheese or crumbled hard boiled egg? Just a little something to entice him to his bowl. Also, do you add water to his kibble? I have found when some dogs stop eating dry kibble, adding a little warm water helps. Good luck and keep us posted! Mr Spock

[greydad92]

Hi All,

Thank you all so much for your helpful comments. Mr. Spock is spending a couple nights at a friends house with two greyhound friends of his. He enjoys going to that house and spending time with his greyhound buddies. He's been over there many many times. It will be interesting to see how he does there. I thought it was a good idea to to get him to spend quality time with a couple greyhound friends. i.e. pack. FYI, I'm a single guy, no wife, no kids......just me and ol' Spocky-boy.

 

Spock is my best friend and it is hard to see him go through this......he's on my mind often when I'm not home. Around him I'm just acting as if there is nothing wrong....besides at feeding time. After seeing some of your suggestions, perhaps when I feed him next I should just not pay any attention to him and just let him be. If he doesn't eat he doesn't eat. I'm thinking being with him at feeding time and encouraging him perhaps is not contributing to the solution. He's such a good boy.....and a Therapy dog as well. He brings so much happiness into other's lives. Thanks again so much for all your suggestions. Keep 'em coming. If you hear anything new or know of another blog on this topic please share.

 

PS: I was going to get a couple throw rungs today for my kitchen, as he is hesitant to walk on the linoleum.......where his food is.

[Remolacha]

As long as he checks out medically, you'll just have to try and figure out what is going on in his head Getting the rugs (make sure they have rubber backing) is a good idea. You might also try changing where he eats or the bowl he eats from. Both of those things have worked for me with dogs that suddenly started not eating. I suspect it may have started with all the activity and change in routine over the holidays. I hope you figure it out!

[greydad92]

Have you tried adding something else to his food? Parmesan cheese usually works around here if I have a finicky eater. Or a little cottage cheese or crumbled hard boiled egg? Just a little something to entice him to his bowl. Also, do you add water to his kibble? I have found when some dogs stop eating dry kibble, adding a little warm water helps. Good luck and keep us posted! Mr Spock

 

Thanks Jen I picked up some Parmesan cheese yesterday, will give that a try.

[Neighsayer]

Vanilla ensure on top worked here.

[Guest normaandburrell]

I would definitely try the rugs. I used to feed my first grey in the bathroom until one day the floor was just a little damp and he slipped on it. He refused to go in the bathroom after that, and I had to move his bowls.

[rsieg]

Not to hijack the thread (and I do hope Spock is eating better), but I have to say this is really not making the breed look very good. We have:

 

My collar tags bumped the bowl -- I can't eat.

My bowl rattled slightly -- I can't eat.

I'm not being petted enough -- I can't eat.

Someone is standing nearby -- I can't eat.

The floor is damp -- I can't eat.

 

Is it any wonder our dogs look anorexic :-)

[3greytjoys]

Many excellent suggestions: non-slip rugs, preventing tags from hitting his bowl, etc.

Any vet reply re: Spock's heart, or result of visit with his Greyhound buddies?

(Greyhounds' hearts are naturally larger than other breeds but seems your vet knows that.)

 

Other considerations:

Greyhounds thrive on a consistent schedule in their familiar environment. It's not uncommon for travel coupled with many new humans to increase a dog's cautionary levels. Many dogs need to feel confident and comfortable in their environment to eat well. Increased feelings of uncertainty (changes) can affect a dog's behavior for a while, even after returning home.

 

- Provide a potty outing immediately before meals. (Many dogs nervously refuse to eat if they need to eliminate first.)

 

- Do you wet Spock's kibble? If not, try adding water (as others mentioned).

If still no change in meal interest; next time let kibble soak until kibble is soft. If appetite improves with softened kibble, Spock might have more gum/tooth pain than the vet realized. (BTW, please don't leave wet kibble at room temperature longer than 45 minutes to 1 hour; bacteria multiplies rapidly if left unrefrigerated too long.)

 

- If Spock refuses breakfast, try not to worry too much (unless he's on medication that requires food). Simply offer his regular meal at dinner time (or lunch time). If he's not able to finish his full daily portion, try offering another meal closer to bedtime.

 

Dogs feed off of humans' emotions. If humans become stressed re: feeding meals, dogs are more likely to emotionally shut down, and associate meals with stress. After a dog finishes eating, it's fine to happily praise the dog for his/her good job of eating.

 

One of our hounds is an omega in the pack. She won't eat until all other hounds have finished eating, and have retreated to their beds to relax. Many times she skips breakfast (lack of early A.M. hunger, or she becomes too anxious to eat if she fears her human/s might be leaving the house). She'll often eat better at dinner, other times she won't eat anything until just before bedtime (increased hunger and/or when she knows humans won't leave). She eats best when humans sit down to relax in view on the opposite side of room (away from her bowl), or while humans are otherwise occupied cooking/cleaning the kitchen. She always refuses meals until after she's eliminated.

 

Good luck with Spock. Please let us know how he progresses.

[FiveRoooooers]

Spock has been your family for two years. Is the non-eating behavior that he did at Christmas new behavior? Or has he shown it on other occasions before?

[suebero]

I too hope Spock is eating better. You have lots of suggestions to try, if not!

 

I had to laugh at rsieg's comments, and please add

 

My bowl is underneath the window and the curtains are blowing above my head - I can't eat

It is windy outside- I can't eat

My "sister" greyhound is gone - I can't eat

You forgot the pumpkin - I can't eat