smt Posted November 18, 2019 Share Posted November 18, 2019 We brought a new foster home 2 days ago. She had been fasted the day before so as to not get sick on the haul. She ate a good dinner the night we got her, but has barely picked at her food all day yesterday and this morning. We are feeding her the foster food, which is salmon based Natures Select. We had some chicken based NS left over from our last foster who had some dietary issues, so we tried that this morning. Nada. What should our approach be? We have wet the kibble with both water and chicken stock. We have added plain greek yogurt and canned pumpkin to try to coax her to eat What should our approach be going forward? Our foster rep says it takes some dogs a little while to get used to kibble bc it is not what they were fed at the kennel. Do we leave dry kibble down for a period of time in the morning, then pull it and try again at dinner? Do we wet it? I assume she will eat before starving, but it is so tough to see her not eating . . . I should also say that she was given a dose of Panacur and Advantage Multi on the day she arrived. Poop has been a mix of tootsie roll (2 times) and runny (2 times). We had a tootsie roll this morning from the tiny little bit she ate yesterday. She is 58 pounds, 2 years old, and seems quite confident, affectionate and playful, otherwise. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MerseyGrey Posted November 18, 2019 Share Posted November 18, 2019 It is hard when they don’t eat. I couldn’t imagine skipping one meal, let alone two or three and it’s worse because they’ve seemingly got no weight to spare. But if you’re feeding her the same food that she was happily eating in foster then it’s probably just the strangeness of her new situation. I think your plan to put food down for a limited time at her next meal, then take it away and try it later (dry if kibble) is a good plan. Presumably she’s taking treats when you offer them so she’s not starving. I think you’ve said in other posts that you’ve had greyhounds before - is this your first one that has refused food? I had to google tootsie roll as they are not available here in the uk. Very good description. Here it’s a cadbury’s mini roll if you’re lucky, a Mr Whippy if it’s a bit softer. It’s always compared to food though! Good luck - will you be posting any pictures of her in the introduction forum? Quote Buddy Molly 🌈 5/11/10-10/10/23 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HeyRunDog Posted November 19, 2019 Share Posted November 19, 2019 Have her teeth been checked? If she has a problem with her teeth she might find eating kibble painful. Quote Grace (Ardera Coleen) b. 18 June 2014 - Gotcha Day 10 June 2018 - Going grey gracefullyGuinness (Antigua Rum) b. 3 September 2017 - Gotcha Day 18 March 2022 - A gentleman most of the time Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cleptogrey Posted November 19, 2019 Share Posted November 19, 2019 often new dogs are off their food until they feel comfortable. what i do out of serve canned food or at least get their appetite going with a small amount of canned food by itself. then try just a tablespoon of canned mixed in with the kibble. i put it down, wait 10 min and pick it up. yup, but somehow they do start eating. the gh seem to eat no matter what as compared to whippets who will drop a good 3-4lbs while they acclimate. once they are eating then i skip the canned food, i can't stand the garbage, maybe add some grated italian cheese to the dry. again it's 10 min of food down and then remove until the next feeding time. she is only 2 years old so i doubt there is something going on with her mouth. exercise is the answer to getting them to eat as well! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smt Posted November 19, 2019 Author Share Posted November 19, 2019 Hi all. Well I jumped the gun by about 12 hours too soon when I posted the original query. She started eating last night (at 48 hours in home), and also ate breakfast this morning. We fed her the chicken based kibble with a little chicken stock, and she so far, so good. I suppose I was overly concerned. Yes, we have had GH's before. My partner had to remind me that when we adopted our Rosie 10 years ago (wow, I can't believe it was that long ago), she did not eat for 3 days. She was our very first GH ever, and I was beside myself with worry. But, she started eating, and while she was never had a huge appetite, she also ate enough to keep it all runnin'. Our last few fosters have been pretty good eaters. Hopefully now that this one seems to have found her appetite, she will hold on to it. She is still not sure about treats. It's almost like she doesn't know how to take them from our hand. We have tried handing them to her with our fingers and palms, and she will eventually take them, but it seems like a foreign concept to her. It is VERY EARLY DAYS, so I trust that all of this will get figured out. I am just glad Greytalk is here, for all of us nervous nellies when it comes to the pups. Re; posting an intro ~ do people do that for fosters? If we end up adopting her, most certainly I will give her a proper introduction. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EllenEveBaz Posted November 19, 2019 Share Posted November 19, 2019 Quote posting an intro ~ do people do that for fosters? I always want to hear about new dogs, no matter their status. Quote Ellen, with brindle Milo and the blonde ballerina, Gelsey remembering Eve, Baz, Scout, Romie, Nutmeg, and Jeter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smt Posted November 19, 2019 Author Share Posted November 19, 2019 1 hour ago, EllenEveBaz said: I always want to hear about new dogs, no matter their status. Well then by all means, stand by . . . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smt Posted November 19, 2019 Author Share Posted November 19, 2019 28 minutes ago, smt said: Well then by all means, stand by . . . ok, wow. I am going to need a lot more available time and mental bandwidth to figure out how to post pictures from my Mac. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smt Posted November 19, 2019 Author Share Posted November 19, 2019 27 minutes ago, smt said: ok, wow. I am going to need a lot more available time and mental bandwidth to figure out how to post pictures from my Mac. That didn't take quite as long as I had imagined. Downloading pics from FB is far easier than resizing and uploading them here. Anyway, head on over to Introductions to meet Ms. Bette. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MerseyGrey Posted November 19, 2019 Share Posted November 19, 2019 3 hours ago, smt said: My partner had to remind me that when we adopted our Rosie 10 years ago (wow, I can't believe it was that long ago), she did not eat for 3 days. She was our very first GH ever, and I was beside myself with worry. Re; posting an intro ~ do people do that for fosters? If we end up adopting her, most certainly I will give her a proper introduction. I was the same, just a big bag of worry for about the first year. Our adoption centre absolutely put the fear of god (or dog) into us and I’m absolutely certain that we wouldn’t have had so much worry bringing home a newborn child for the first time. It’s been 18 months now and I am much more laid back with him. Re: posting - I just wanted to see a photo. No one will cyber shout at you for sharing photos of your pup! Quote Buddy Molly 🌈 5/11/10-10/10/23 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smt Posted November 19, 2019 Author Share Posted November 19, 2019 23 minutes ago, MerseyGrey said: I was the same, just a big bag of worry for about the first year. Our adoption centre absolutely put the fear of god (or dog) into us and I’m absolutely certain that we wouldn’t have had so much worry bringing home a newborn child for the first time. It’s been 18 months now and I am much more laid back with him. It's odd. With our first one, I suppose we were operating under an "ignorance is bliss" motto. There were a few things that spiked our concern, like the initial food aversion, and making sure we had the martingale JUST RIGHT, and her first little boo boo that sent us straight to the vet . . .$80 dollars later and a band-aid, and she was just fine. But this year (after losing her), we have had several pups in our home via foster (and a failed adoption), and I feel far more nervous now, mainly bc of a couple of challenging experiences with SA. I am now far more aware of a temperament that is clingy or lacking in confidence. I can tell that I am way more of a "big ole bag of worry" than the first go around, which is kinda messed up. But I am glad to hear that at this point in the process, you are feeling more relaxed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smt Posted November 21, 2019 Author Share Posted November 21, 2019 Update on our foster girl. Once we got to the 48 hour mark, she started eating, and has not turned back. Im sure that those with lots of experience in the GH world see this frequently, and trust that the appetite will likely come on board once they settle in a little and start feeling hungry. I was also worried she might not be treat motivated, and that worry is probably unfounded, too. She seems more interested in treats now. And she is learning to take them out of our hand, which is progress. It's really a pleasure to see them making strides towards being a pet . . . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MerseyGrey Posted November 21, 2019 Share Posted November 21, 2019 🤞 Quote Buddy Molly 🌈 5/11/10-10/10/23 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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