Dog surviving on fresh air

[poiuytrewq]

I’ve pretty much taken over the feeding of my daughters dog, simply because I feed our 3 together at set times and now he lives here it’s easier to keep them all the same.
He just doesn’t eat. On the odd occasion he has tucked in and eaten a bowl of food but usually seems too interested in what’s going on or watching the others eat theirs.
He’s not skinny but there’s not a lot to him.
I thought of adding or trying some tinned food? I believe Butchers is actually pretty good. Or would you just carry on with the theory he won’t starve and will eat when he’s hungry?
Currently I’m not sure he’s really eaten the past 3/4 days other than bits here and there.
At daughters old house she left food down all the time. That’s not possible here with our hoover dogs!

 

[AmyMay]

Try Forthglade, which my dogs absolutely love (especially the fussy one).

 

[Birker2020]

I feel your pain as we have an 8 year old beagle bitch and she is never really hungry.

SHe is very odd as if she sees us watching her eat she will stop immediately and walk off, so we have to vacate the kitchen when she eats. When we are dishing up her food she is adamant that she has to get out of the kitchen and gets quite distressed if the door is shut and scratches at it. Once she's out she sits patiently at the bottom of the stairs waiting for her food. When you call her she's never that interested although she will have a sniff and maybe a nibble. Frustrates the hell out of both of us.

We have to give her Purina Hypoallergencic biscuit things but she won't eat them unless she has cut up ham, chicken, beef or turkey mixed in and then she spits most of them out. I try and counteract this by literally getting my hands into the bowl and physically mixing the biscuits with the ham trying to squeeze the flavour out of the meat and into the biscuits. Then they are mostly gone. If my partner feeds her he can't be bothered to do this and she leaves nearly all the biscuits.

Dogs love chopped up meat so you could always try that with your dog. We got our dogs mouth checked as I was concerned she had difficulty chewing things, she's never really been interested in bones and buries them immediately in the garden and won't eat crunchy food, or if she does she eats very very slowly. Out of probably 50 treats over the years we've offered her, there are probably on two or three she will bother with.

She won't play with hard toys, or given the choice she has to have soft things to mouth or pick up. The vets couldn't find anything wrong with her but you could maybe take your dog to the vets in case its a tooth or mouth problem as this could have an impact on it eating.

 

[CorvusCorax]

Shut him away/leave him alone to eat. Two of mine (related) won't eat out of a bowl until I leave the room and there may also be stress/excitement caused by comings and goings/other dogs.
Lots of dogs get stressed if they are watched/hovered over when eating/there is other stuff going on.
Also bear in mind the heat, lots of dogs will be off their food.
Might also be struggling with very crunchy food depending on age/how his mouth is, have you tried wetting it?

 

[Clodagh]

He has had a lot of stress and changes in his young life and may just be feeling a bit overwhelmed. We always feed ours out of line of sight of each other anyway, do you do that? I would pop him somewhere quiet with his bowl and let him get on. Try to avoid FFS vibes!

 

[Lipglosspukka]

I have one who is not a great eater. Very rare for her to finish a bowl. Rarely eats in the morning.

She goes in the conservatory with her bowl, away from the other dogs. I leave her out there for a good fifteen minutes or so.

I would say she probably eats about half of the recommended amount of food that the bag dictates. She isn't underweight though, so I don't worry.

If you are concerned then you could give her some wet food or raw eggs. You could also try a dog gravy, but the reality is, the dog will eat when it's hungry enough.

 

[Pearlsasinger]

I feed ours usually all in the same room but if I were feeding this pup, I would feed him by himself, somewhere quiet, where he can't be distracted by anything, especially by the other dogs.
I don't know what your feed him normally but ours eat Butcher's happily and healthily.

 

[Moobli]

You say he’s too busy watching the others eating, so feed him away from everyone else, leave it down for 15 minutes and if he hasn’t eaten just remove it. I do add a tin of Butchers tripe or lightly boiled mince to my dogs kibble evening meals (mine have a raw breakfast) so worth trying that too.

 

[Cinnamontoast]

I’m currently feeding Zak separately. We have to make a game of it, like the OH creeping up pretending to steal his food, we’ve always played this game with toys, so not stressy. He is a huge scavenger, so dropping a handful of kibble on the green outside the house is working well, as is throwing treats on the lawn. Posting treats into his mouth sometimes works.

If he won’t eat enough, I’m popping lumps of smooth pâté in his mouth, tricky to spit out and highly calorific (he was brought up to allow us to put our hands in his mouth, be careful if you don’t know if the dog will accept this)

You can google daily calorie requirements, a 21kg dog needs approximately 700 calories according to several charts I’ve seen.

I appreciate I have difficult/different circumstances, but this is working for us and some of the ideas might work for you.

 

[poiuytrewq]

He always was fed alone, I used to (sorry daughter) accuse her of not feeding him but he wouldn’t eat then either much. He started eating when fed alongside Cecil but it only lasted a week or so.
Ive told my daughter later in the morning to try putting him separately and giving breakfast again but he’s still not really up for it. I can sit and hand feed! Just not sure I want that to become a thing.
He has had a lot of upheaval yes, hopefully he’s starting to feel more settled now. He lives here permanently and I’ve said he’s not to stay overnight other places anymore so I generally just have him with me and the others. He sleeps alone now so I could put some nicer food in with him at night perhaps.
He’s a sweet little thing, he’s weirdly won my OH over aswell which is odd for one so tiny!
Thanks

 

[poiuytrewq]

He’s lying here with me now and I can feel his ribs but he’s not tucked in or anything and his hips etc feel ok. Maybe I’m comparing him to solid sturdy Cecil who I feel may be mini staff in reality

 

[AmyMay]

When we first had Jack he was tricky to feed. His previous owners left food down for him all day, so he’d just graze. But that’s not an option here.

I would offer him his food alongside Daisy, and if it wasn’t eaten it was picked up. We were both very stubborn about it, eat when offered or go hungry. So he went hungry- until he twigged!

 

[brighteyes]

Best, lean, minced-beef in teaspoon sized portions. Freeze it and defrost as required. If the dog is otherwise healthy, don't worry.

 

[Griffin]

I am sure you have but have you tried putting some of his food into a Kong with a few treats to make feeding a game? I used to use a bit of wet food, a bit of dried food, a few treats and a bit of dog safe peanut butter (then freeze it if you want).

 

[ownedbyaconnie]

Mabel isn’t a great eater. She’s more of a grazer so I leave her food out all day which is fine in winter (although Teddy will take a sneaky bite) but in summer it’s a nightmare with flies.

She tends to eat the most when we’re locking up for the night. It’s almost like she realises then that she’s not going to miss out on anything better so may as well eat.

But she seems a good weight, no skin issues etc so I try not to worry about it too much!

 

[poiuytrewq]

He is healthy yes. Healthy bright and active so no worries there.
kongs and toys are difficult because I’d have to shut him away from the others and he’d just get stressy about that. Again that might be an overnight option though.

 

[poiuytrewq]

When we first had Jack he was tricky to feed. His previous owners left food down for him all day, so he’d just graze. But that’s not an option here.

I would offer him his food alongside Daisy, and if it wasn’t eaten it was picked up. We were both very stubborn about it, eat when offered or go hungry. So he went hungry- until he twigged!

That was what I’d thought. Give them long enough to eat, I sit with them since the puppies came along to make sure everyone gets their food but so far he’s calling my bluff!

 

[poiuytrewq]

Best, lean, minced-beef in teaspoon sized portions. Freeze it and defrost as required. If the dog is otherwise healthy, don't worry.

Cooked or raw?

 

[SusieT]

What food are you currently feeding?

 

[CorvusCorax]

That was what I’d thought. Give them long enough to eat, I sit with them since the puppies came along to make sure everyone gets their food but so far he’s calling my bluff!

I really wouldn't do this/feed them in separate rooms. If you tick one off for stealing off the other, the dog who is being stolen from, won't automatically know who is being ticked off and why, and will just feel it as stress/pressure around meal times. If I hang around my older dog or his daughter, they won't eat out of a bowl/wait until I have left/am doing other stuff. They both take food from my hand fine.

 

[skinnydipper]

Best, lean, minced-beef in teaspoon sized portions. Freeze it and defrost as required. If the dog is otherwise healthy, don't worry.

I presume she would like him to stay healthy

If he is only eating a small amount I would have thought it is even more important to provide a nutrient dense complete food that meets a puppy's nutritional requirements.

 

[brighteyes]

I presume she would like him to stay healthy

If he is only eating a small amount I would have thought it is even more important to provide a nutrient dense complete food that meets a puppy's nutritional requirements.

Small portions regularly, so as not to overface him? Good quality food. Is quality beef not nutrient dense? If he looks healthy and behaves like a dog without a problem, then don't worry about the eating. That's what I meant.

 

[skinnydipper]

Small portions regularly, so as not to overface him? Good quality food. Is quality beef not nutrient dense? If he looks healthy and behaves like a dog without a problem, then don't worry about the eating. That's what I meant.

There is a lot more to feeding raw or home cooked than slapping a bit of raw mince in a bowl.

 

[brighteyes]

There is a lot more to feeding raw or home cooked than slapping a bit of raw mince in a bowl.

Jesus wept, I KNOW? As a treat that's got value? To tempt the dog?

 

[skinnydipper]

Jesus wept, I KNOW? As a treat that's got value? To tempt the dog?

If he is only eating a small amount I would have thought it is even more important to provide a nutrient dense complete food that meets a puppy's nutritional requirements.

 

[Spotherisk]

I think this is a pup which makes it a bit harder for you, but consider where you want to be going forward with him. If you start giving him special food or a different routine to the others it’s just another habit to break in the future. Our pup has food left down but also gets fed with the other dogs just to encourage him - the bitches aren’t allowed to steal his food but the alpha male is, to keep the equilibrium.

 

[skinnydipper]

the bitches aren’t allowed to steal his food but the alpha male is, to keep the equilibrium.

I can see I am going to be unpopular on this thread

You are team leader. Please do not let another dog steal your pup's food - unless you want to create a resource guarder or a dog that is anxious at meal times/around food.

ETA. I adopted a young dog from the Dogs Trust who had been housed with a much larger dog. She was a resource guarder over food and was too worried to eat. Once she knew that I would not allow my dogs to approach each other's food bowls while they were eating she was able to relax and enjoy her food.

 

[Clodagh]

You are team leader. Please do not let another dog steal your pup's food .

I agree with you that I am entirely in charge as to who does what at any time… but I perceive myself as being in charge. I thought the more modern and enlightened trainer (which I would include you as) didn’t say team or pack leader any more and we were all equal?
Totally not being argumentative, I agree with what you said, but interested.

 

[Cinnamontoast]

I think pack leader may well be an outdated term with reference to using force, maybe? In terms of who is in charge in the house, we are as owners, regardless. We open the fridge, decide what and when to feed, when to go out, where the dog sleeps, acceptable behaviour we require. Dogs don’t get to decide these things (unless they’re not well and it all goes out of the window) We are certainly not equal.

 

[poiuytrewq]

I really wouldn't do this/feed them in separate rooms. If you tick one off for stealing off the other, the dog who is being stolen from, won't automatically know who is being ticked off and why, and will just feel it as stress/pressure around meal times. If I hang around my older dog or his daughter, they won't eat out of a bowl/wait until I have left/am doing other stuff. They both take food from my hand fine.

I don’t have too tell anyone off. I’m doing it more as a precaution as the collie is on steroids and often leaves it.
I really just sit by her to make sure no one hassles or or gets her tablet.
I can stop though and separate the non eater if that would be better. The others I can pretty much trust to reliably eat their own and then wander outside.