My dog is acting strange and wont eat, what should I do?

Question

She's a yellow lab and isn't acting lethargic, she is acting healthy other than she decided to go on a hunger strike. I found out she'll only eat if I toss the food at her one kernel at a time so she catches it in mid-air. I can't spend that much time feeding her every day, and she's barely eaten in the last 5-6 days due to this. She's energetic and normal otherwise. She's been eating the same food for a few years and never minded it before (Iams). Any suggestions?

Answer 1

Iams used to be a great food until Procter & Gamble bought them out. So not only do they test on animals but in the interest of saving a buck they have added terrible fillers into their food. And Iams has corn fillers and byproducts which not only cause allergies but depletes the immunesystem making your dog more suseptable to illness. Your dog is telling you she does not like or want the food you are feeding her so here is what I recommend:

(Just remember another thing to look into is also the type of food you are trying to feed. YES if you leave the food out for the dog and starve him he will eventually eat the food, but that isn't the best solution since he isn't eating it for a reason.)

When it comes to nutrition there are many ways to feed your dog. And the "cheapest" food is not necessarily the best solution. First I will describe the different ways of feeding based on digestibility rate.

There are several different ways of feeding your dog.
1. Raw diet- (BARF) There are many different was of feeding a raw diet but it currently has the highest digestibility rate. It is the best way to feed because it has the highest nutrient absorbtion content.

Natural diet.... what is it?
By Christie Keith
http://www.caberfeidh.com/naturaldiet.ht...

2. Homemade cooked diet- Just like the Raw diet you know what you are feeding your dog so you don't have to worry about the ifs and butts.

* These are two of the best ways of feeding your dog ,you know what they are eating, you can monitor what foods are causing allergies, you can easily control obesety and illness.

3. Dry dog food- This is the easiest way to feed a dog, no real prep time involved.

a. "High" quality kibble- these foods although sometimes a little more costly you don't have to feed as much because the digestibility rate is much higher than that of more "inexpensive" foods. They are made with real meat, vegetables that have a nutritional value and provide a good base of health. The don't contain ingredients such as corn fillers and byproducts. If you do not want to make the time or have the time to make your own food this is what I recommend it's still a quick alternative, and more cost effective. You feed less than other kibbles so you buy less food, you get smaller poops because the dog is actually absorbing more of the nutrients, you will have a lot less health problems because the dog is getting a more nutrients to support their immune system, less vet visits.

4. "Low" quality kibble- not always less expensive. Here is where you should take some notes. This includes Iams(more expensive), Science Diet(prescription foods) and Pedigree(Less expensive). The digestibility rate of these foods are much less, which means your dog will poop more because they aren't able to absorb the necessary nutrients because most of this food is filled with Corn fillers and Byproducts. Now your #1 ingredient should be meat, but these companies get away with it by calling Corn and byproducts 3-4-5-6-7 different things in the ingredients list so it APPEARS that corn isn't the first ingredient. Corn is NON digestible(ever eat corn and seen the end results???? Doesn't digest), has no nutritional value but it is CHEAP so it is a great filler for these companies which is why their food is generally a little cheaper or a lot cheaper. And Byproducts are used in many different things like makeup, soaps ect... They usually consist of road kill, unwanted diseased meats, euthanized dogs and cats, ect... Not good for human or pet consumption, but they seem to meet the minimum requirements to sell as dog food.

I would suggest if you don't want to end up with hefty vet bills, a healthy alternative other than making the food yourself would be to get a food like: Wellness(by Old Mother Hubbard- where I live PetQuarters gives you a free bag every 10 bags you buy); Candidae(a lot of feed stores carry this and Wellness); Both reasonably priced; Some Nutro foods are good, Wysong(pet stores and healthfood stores carry them)... There is a whole list of foods that you can try.

Bottom line is you definitely want to read the ingredients! Make sure there is NO corn in it, or BY products, these ingredients alone are a big cause of illness and allergies in our beloved pets. Besides if you won't eat it why would you expect your pup to eat it????

A book I would recommend everybody with a pet to get is
Dr. Pitcairn's New Complete Guide to Natural Health for Dogs and Cats by Richard H. Pitcairn

The Whole(istic) Truth About Pet Food
by Christie Keith, excellent article everybody should read
http://www.caberfeidh.com/truth.htm........

What's Really in Pet Food
API (Animal Protection Institute)
http://www.api4animals.org/facts.php?p=3...

It is a fantastic book, great reference book and cheap too. Every dog owner should have this book. But he talks about how dog food affects the health of your dog. Go to the link below for a list of links on dog food.

If you dog has a bigger problem such as thyroid, liver or any other problem I would highly recommend researching the raw diet, talk to people who are using it, join groups on yahoo that have people who can help you through it.

So remember, make sure the food you choose has no corn or byproducts in it and you will come out ahead and your dog will thank you for it! Good luck with your search I hope this helps!

Answer 2

Your Yellow Lab is acting energetic and otherwise healthy?Plus its been over a week?
OK... Vet check is a easy way to eliminate any illness. My bet though is when that proves normal, its time to recondition your girl. She has got your number doesn't she!
To be fair, Labs are energetic dogs,needing exorcise for her brain as well as her body. She sounds like shes trying to tell you how very bored she is,and how much she needs a better routine for working out.
I'm thinking a 15 -30 minute heel-walk would save you time and money. Vets and Dog Trainers make a fortune this time of year on just this problem.. have leash will travel! Good Luck with your Lab!

Answer 3

Could be any number of things. It seems like an easy answer, but take her to a vet as soon as possible. The fact she eats if you toss it to her only means one thing to her: you're playing with her. She could have a serious health issue, and she does not know how to express symptoms to you the way a child would.

A vet will be able to diagnose her properly. Good luck.

Answer 4

First off, how old is she? If she's younger, just get her to the vet and get it checked out. If she's older, and she's not acting sick, you should go to the vet just to make sure that she doesn't have an illness. Some dogs will continue on acting healthy for days and then suddenly start acting sick. Take her to the vet tomorrow morning, and have her checked out.

Answer 5

This happend to my shih tzu. Normal healthy behavior but his eating habits were horrible!! He went on a hunger strike and wanted to be hand fed. I took my dog into my vet and got him checked out. They suggested different types of wet and dry dog food to use and also commented sometimes dogs get very spoiled (being hand fed is pretty spoiled!!) and get used to that type of treatment and "Throw a Fit/Make it a new habit"..

Take the poochie in :) Just to be sure. Shes family after all!

Answer 6

I would take her to the vet and get a thorough exam, including bloodwork, If everything checks out OK then maybe she just isn't hungry or someone is giving her between meal treats. Is she drinking OK? or not much or excessively? Is she urinating normal for her and what about her stools are they normal, hard?

Answer 7

take her to her vet asap. I also recently learned that Iams is not good for dogs for some reason, hills science diet is a lot better for them. Ask your vet about changing brands but ease her off the one and onto the other, it will keep her from having the runs.

Answer 8

You should probably take her in to the vet for a quick checkup. It's probably nothing serious if her only symptom is not eating but it's best to be safe. The vet can give her an injection that should boost her appetite and get her to eat assuming there's nothing wrong with her.

Answer 9

Take her for a check-up. She is eating the food you throw to her to please you. She thinks you are playing a game with her. Dogs have a great tolerance for pain and cannot express themselves.

There is something wrong if she is not eating.

Answer 10

You should just take her to the vet just to make sure it isn't anything serious. Or she could just be tired of the food, who knows. Anyways good luck on her and hope she gets well soon :)