Our dog won't eat

[cannuke]

Since we started bringing baby stuff into the house, Jake (our 2 year old Shiba Inu) has stopped eating as much as he did. He's never been one of those dogs that eats anything he can get his mouth on, he's always been very easily distracted while eating and prefers to eat alone.

He recently "blew his coat", which happens every spring, and we noticed while brushing him that he seems awfully skinny. He's about 23 pounds now, which isn't out of range for his breed, it's just that we suspect that he's lost weight (we actually don't weigh him very often :blush ). His activity level is good, his coat looks OK for this time of year and his demeanor is overall pretty good. It's just that he's not eating as much.

Any ideas on getting him to eat? We've started mixing some wet food with his kibble, but he's not terribly interested in that, either.

[ShangriLewis]

It could be the baby stuff. Being a Border Collie mommy, I can totally relate to the sensitive dog.

But, I might take him to the vet or even try changing his food.

We have to watch Monty(our BC) because he can get skinny really easily. If I notice he hasn't been eating as much I do something special for him. He loves rice and if I put it on top of his food he will eat a whole bowl with no problem.

If you have a Petsmart nearby you might want to see if they have a Banfield office. We have been really happy with ours and they have insurance with free check ups throughout the year. He could have worms or teeth problems.

Heather

[cannuke]

Thanks for the advice. We have an appointment with his vet for tomorrow morning. The rice idea sounds like a good one. He does seem to like people food better than his dog food! :rolleyes

[ShangriLewis]

So, how are things going? I'm worried silly about your doggie baby.

Heather

[cannuke]

Oh, he's so spoiled! :rolleyes We've set him up for this, I'm sure.

Anyway, we took him to the vet last Saturday and the vet said that he actually hasn't lost any weight since his last annual visit last summer. His coat does look pretty sad right now, because of the bi-annual shed that he's going through - he winds up looking like a molting bird, but he's supposed to. The vet suggested that we continue to give him some wet food with the dry and that we add some sunflower oil to the dry to help make his coat nice and shiny when it does come back. We also de-wormed him, just in case he might have had worms.

With some one-on-one "encouragement" (read, DH sits on the floor with him!) he eats more. I think that he's doing better, he's just high needs! I'm not sure how I'll keep this up when baby comes, though.

Thanks for thinking of us! :heart