Advice please?

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guiness8

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I have a 4 year old spaniel who religiously has two meals a day and always eats straight away. A few days ago she turned her nose at her breakfast and I didn't think anything of it other than having a princess moment!
It has now been four days and we have bought some alternative food which she's not too bothered about also. I have managed to get her to eat about half a meal per day but shes very reluctant and just turns her nose and walks off. In all other ways she is her usual self having her mad and soft moments like always.

She will always eat her denta stix but not her bonio!!

Sorry for long post but any ideas what could have put her off her food all of a sudden. She has never turned her nose at any meal before. If she doesn't get any better tomorrow I'll take her to the vets but was wondering if anyone had any ideas?
 
I would just pop her to the vet to be on the safe side, is she due in season any time soon?
I would also drop the Dentastix and Bonio, I know they are very heavily and snazzily advertised and 'recommended by vets', I know I will probably be disagreed with (and no need for anyone to send me a PM :p :p :p) but I don't think either of them have any nutritional value whatsoever and they are full of fillers etc.

What is the food she is on right now?
Did you try very yummy stuff like tuna, scrambled eggs, cooked chicken?
 
Agree the treats aren't great. Carrots do just as much good for their teeth and aren't nearly as high in calories.

How is she in herself? Bowel movements, behaviour, drinking, etc?
 
Aswell as the foods cc suggested have you tried adding some tepid boiled water to her food to make a gravy. The heat also makes the food smell stronger so might encourage her a bit more.
 
I know about the denta stix but our prob we gave them to her as a treat when she was younger and she looks forward to them now at bedtime. She has a muesli mix which she has wolfed down since we changed her to it a few months ago after finding out how bad bakers was!! I relented and bought a small box to see if it was any better but no change really. I've given her rice and pasta which she has eaten mixed in her food and I always water her food down but will try some warm water for her breakfast.
Bowel movements have been no different seen her going in field while I'm sorting horses and she was in season at Christmas. Just given her a good brush and she seemed fine if a little sad but that's not unusual at this time of night!

Argh why can't she just tell me what it is????
 
Give her a carrot or a raw chicken wing or something instead of a Dentastix.

You could look at changing her food to something like Skinners Duck and Rice or Salmon and Rice, we used to feed a muesli type mix years ago and after a bit of research I found it would have been much more suitable for a horse :o :o :o

Also, make sure you are not standing over her watching her eat or stressing out around feeding times willing her to eat or trying to tempt her or worrying - dogs feel this type of thing as pressure and it will make them less likely to eat.
 
I agree with a vet visit to check her out, have you tried her with sardines, dogs usually go mad for these.

I dont feed those denta stix either but I do give mine a tiny gravy biscuit last thing at night.
 
Yes I know about the denta stix but she gets so excited about them we do let her have one each evening she sulks without. I've tried standing with her and just leaving the bowl next to her bed all day. We never really give her any tit bits but if we do she will eat that and it's just strange she is her usual self in every other way except eating.

I'll make some warm food shortly and leave it with her overnight see if she's tempted.
If no improvement tomorrow I'll take her to the vets.

I did worm her but that was a day after she had stopped eating like usual. Thought I would try that first just in case! Funnily she did eat that dinner but I did mix in some cous cous which may have helped
 
I'd let her sulk or give her something else, if your kid sulked when it did not get sweets.... :p
Sorry for banging on but if you're happy with the ingredients then keep feeding them, it's really none of my business :p

Don't stand over/beside her or keep checking and re-checking her bowl, that's the kind of pressure I am talking about, a dog will not think 'mum wants to make me eat up my dinner' the dog will just associate stress with mealtimes/food.
 
Is she drinking any more than usual? The fact that she was in season at Christmas would have me slightly concerned about pyometra, although this usually starts a couple of months after season. I would definitely get her to the vets for a check up if she were mine.
Re the bedtime treats, mine have a Shapes biscuit (well Pickle has half) which they wait for but on occasions they have had different things, perhaps you could swap her to a smaller bedtime treat.
 
Thanks for the replies. Took her to vets this morning she had a full check over. She had full glands which were emptied (urgh) an anti b jab and bloods taken. Bloods have come back clear and vet said try her again tonight/morning and if no improvement take her for x rays. Good news she has eaten tonite ☺ not as much as normal but in the right direction. I made gravy and mixed into her food and she had about three quarters of it. I am thinking she will take a day or so to get her appetite back.

Just out of interest being very naive here but what would cause her glands to block? Just thinking if there is something I can do or change to avoid this?
 
Feed more fibre/roughage, for dogs that would be bone, fur, feather.

Glad she is sounding more chipper.
I am feeding Natural Instinct chicken mix at the moment, it is just raw chicken in an ice-cream tub for convenience, I use it as a Kong stuffing, they also do a working mix which has the bone ground in and some veg/seaweed.
Or Prize Choice does frozen blocks of tripe, chicken, fish, rabbit etc, you can get it in Pets@Home.
While I do not personally feed raw food and dry food together, these are sold as being toppers for dry food, for fussy eaters, and I am sure it could be heated up if you so desired, might encourage her to eat up a bit more.
 
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