We have a 10 month old black lab. In the past two weeks he's gone right off his food and also has sometimes started whining/moaning in his kennel which is very unlike him. He hasn't lost any weight and still has plenty of energy and if you didn't know he wasn't eating you wouldn't know anything was wrong, he's still shiny. The vet has done numerous tests and can't find a thing wrong. Would really appreciate any advice! We've tried dog roll, two types of biscuits, real meat etc. Seem to have the most luck with real meat but even then he's barely eating.
Hi Jerrie, Welcome to the Forum,sounds like you are having a worrying time. What were you feeding your dog when he went off his food?Did the whining and moaning start at the same time? We have Dexter,who is nearly 3, he's our first of dog so I don't have a huge bank of experience to draw on.What stands out to me is that he hasn't lost any weight?my dog is only small,he's only ever been 24.5 kegs at his heaviest.If he eats anything other than his usual dry dog food meals or his tried and trusted treats he gets an upset tummy.When this happens I put him on small portions of rice and boiled chicken until he firms up .....I can see the weight fall come off him,he drops it really quickly.Is there any chance your dog is finding food somewhere else?do you have any other animals that he could be snaffling stuff from?Does he get much in the way of 'extras' from you during the day? Best wishes Angela x
That's very worrying. What did the vet suggest you do? I assume he had a look at his mouth to make sure he doesn't have a broken tooth or something that's causing him pain to eat? Is he drinking OK? Dehydration is probably your biggest issue. Have you tried adding some honey water or chicken/beef stock to his regular food? Have you tried soft food, which may be easier if it is something sore in his mouth? You can either try a tin of dog food or soak his biscuits until soft.
Thanks for the reply! We took him to the vet last week who couldn't find anything wrong then when he still wasn't eating this week we took him back and he weighed the same (30kg). He has still been pooing as well so it's so strange! We walk him in the morning before work and feed him then the neighbour walks him at lunchtime and gives him a little food then we walk him again after work and feed him again but all of the food has been left over. He couldn't get at any other food as he's in his kennel the rest of the time. The vet told us to take the food away if he hasn't eaten it in 10minutes so we've started that but it's not changing anything so far! We've always fed him a mix of roll, dry food and real meat so nothing different before he stopped eating. He probably went off his food for a week or so before the whining started but he's only whining occasionally. We tried rice last weekend and he did eat some although not all so maybe I'll try that again.
Thank you for the replies! Yes it's very worrying, just pleased he's still so happy and energetic when he's out! Yes he stayed Overnight at the vet so they could monitor his water and that was normal too like every thing else! We took him last week and he weighed the same as this week - 30kg. We did try rice last weekend and he ate some though not all so I might make him some now. And will try Canned food too. The vet said to take the food away if he hasn't eaten it after 10 minutes but that's not making much of a difference so far! He's usually out in the morning and gets fed, the neighbour walks him at lunch and gives him a wee bit of food and then we walk him again at night and feed him again but he's just been leaving all of the food in his bowl. He couldn't get any more food as he is in his kennel the rest of the time. I've just thought that we just changed his food bowl recently from plastic (which he was chewing to pieces!) to a steel one so I might try back to plastic too just in case, willing to try everything at this point! Thanks so much for the responses!
Do you think there could be a bitch in season in your area that your boy is getting a whiff of? My sister once had a dog who used to stop eating if he could smell a bitch.
It's very good news that the vet can't find anything wrong, and great that the first thing you did was a vet check. It isn't possible for a dog not to eat for 2 weeks (I think that's about the timescale that you are referring to?) and not lose weight. If he is not losing weight then he is getting enough calories to cover the energy he is using. Either he is eating part of his food and that's enough for his needs, or he is getting food from elsewhere.
He can't be getting food elsewhere is the only thing as he's in his kennel all day! But yes it's reassuring that he hasn't lost weight. And I don't know if it could be a bitch on heat as it's feels like it's been too long now? Just tried him on some rice and mince and he did eat some (maybe half of what we have him) from a plastic container, so will stick with that for a day or two and see how we go. Thanks again so much for the replies!
You say he is healthy and the vet says nothing is wrong, and he is not getting food from elsewhere - then the amount he is eating of what you give him is enough to maintain his weight. Maybe he just needs less food than you think. I forgot to say welcome! From me and my boy Charlie.
Welcome to the forum What is the neighbour feeding him? Is there any chance that the neighbour is feeding something extra that you don't know about?
Thanks! Yeah it's just a total change in him is all, he used to scoff anything and everything! But maybe he's finished Growing and doesn't need as much! As long as he stays happy and healthy is the main thing anyway!
I wouldn't think so - the neighbour is brilliant, he feeds him the roll and biscuits from our garage and sometimes brings over proper meat for us to feed him (he would let us know if he had fed him proper meat during the day), he's as worried about him as we are but, like us, hasn't noticed any change in his energy levels or the way he looks!
You mentioned that he had chewed up his plastic bowl, I am wondering if there is a piece stuck and causing discomfort, have you mentioned that to the vet? It could be serious if left.
The vet doesn't think he's in any discomfort at all Stacia but I will mention it for sure. In some good news this morning he ate a heap of biscuits, mostly when I held them in my hand he would eat them, then tonight he ate canned food like he would have in the past so I'll buy a bunch more of that tomorrow and we'll get some mutton from the butcher too. Hopefully the start of him getting better, I was very happy! Thanks again for responses
With his dry food, try adding a bit of warm water, as a couple of months ago our dog wouldn't touch his food, then i saw on this site someone said add warm water and he presto he eats it all up, with no problems at all now.
