My baby's not eating.. I think she's being picky

Stella

My girl is 11 months old ~50lbs and seems to be losing weight. I started noticing this about a month or so ago as all of her ribs were showing and starting to see the spine plus she just seemed to not be growing as fast as she was at younger months. Vet says she's got no parasites or anything and must just not like her food. So I bought some new food, still she doesn't eat much. She used to eat 2 cups in the a.m., and 2 cups in the evening sometimes having some lunch in between. Then it seems she started eating less and less now she sometimes doesn't eat for a whole day. I just know she's holding out for more but I don't want to start giving in because I'm afraid she'll always think she can get what she wants. However, she's got to start eating normal or she's going to shrivel up. Does anyone have suggestions on what to do.. mix a little can food with dry food? I did this sometimes when she was little and she would pick out the dry food and spit it on the ground. Do I start feeding her all can food? I've fed her organic food (Blue and Avoderm) since she was little and she seemed to really like it but I think since she started getting a taste of the bad stuff (bacon strips and non-organic foods) she's holding out for them and only eating once she's just so hungry she can't take it.

weimdawgs · Posted: Thu Oct 09, 2008 2:23 pm Post subject:

There are some really good flavored supplements you can try. I use Nupro. It's primary ingredient is desiccated liver Gurn

but my guys love it. I would mix some canned food in with her dry. You can also try soaking her dry food with a little warm water or adding some yogart. Someone recently suggested mixing the Nupro with yogart and the dogs love it.

If she is getting that thin, just get her to eat.......

freespiritmom · Posted: Thu Oct 09, 2008 2:54 pm Post subject:

Stella · Posted: Thu Oct 09, 2008 3:13 pm Post subject:

Ok thank you very much for your suggestions. I am concerned for her so I'm desperate to get her eating more.

Freespirit.. your dog's pic looks JUST LIKE my baby.. these dogs are the best.

Stella · Posted: Thu Oct 09, 2008 3:20 pm Post subject:

one more thing.. is it normal for these dogs to have GAS Shocked

?

Underdonk · Posted: Thu Oct 09, 2008 3:32 pm Post subject:

weimdawgs · Posted: Thu Oct 09, 2008 3:55 pm Post subject:

She shouldn't have a lot of gas. It might mean she is having trouble digesting something in her food. There is something called seacure that may help with the gas.

Stella · Posted: Thu Oct 09, 2008 4:24 pm Post subject:

lol... man, Stella will CLEAR a room. She's got gas like something fierce! I figured it had something to do with the food.. maybe why she's not eating it??? She's always had it but sometimes its not there and sometimes she is deadly. I'm going to go to a completely different food and start mixing some wet food in with the dry, start over basically.

Thanks for your feedback both of you!!

scrbear11 · Posted: Thu Oct 09, 2008 6:40 pm Post subject:

What about adding a little yogurt to her food? My dogs LOVE yogurt. Zehen was starting to have gas problems, enough that he was getting uncomfortable. I started him on plain, nonfat yogurt in the evening and no gas, hardy solid poo, and a happy boy.

Also- what about a diet change? Maybe it's time to switch food to something else just to give her a taste of something new? You can stay on the organic/grain free route... just vary the ingredients (if she's eating chicken now, switch her to a fish formula.)

Picky eaters are always the hardest! My old Westie who just died and my sister's Boston Terrier are picky eaters. We just leave a bowl of food out all the time. Willy would eat what he wanted. Usually by the end of the day it was gone. He seemed to like fish based formulas the best.