Refusing to eat

[dawns2shelties]

medication to increase appetite

My Chandler has been having these eating issues for a couple of months. We have done every test imaginable. The medication we were given to increase his appetite is Remeron or the generic is called Mirtazapine. The medication is frequently used for this but has not been successful for Chandler. I have tried every high quality dog food on the market including raw. Cooking every meat from the grocery store and I am out of ideas any suggestions would be appreciated.

 

[OntarioSheltie]

My Chandler has been having these eating issues for a couple of months. We have done every test imaginable. The medication we were given to increase his appetite is Remeron or the generic is called Mirtazapine. The medication is frequently used for this but has not been successful for Chandler. I have tried every high quality dog food on the market including raw. Cooking every meat from the grocery store and I am out of ideas any suggestions would be appreciated.

I don't have any suggestions for you, as Chandler's problem isn't the same as Sadie's. Sadie hasn't lost her appetite, she just doesn't want to eat Wellness, her regular dog food.

Remeron, that's interesting. I know that's an anti-depressant. Its interesting how anti-depressants have so many uses other than for treating depression.

I hope you find a solution to your problem!

 

[Ann]

Hopefully it won't come to this, and Sadie will be back to eating Wellness happily, but I did want to recommend California Natural to a dog with a sensitive stomach. It's what we're feeding both of our dogs because of stomach issues. They have limited ingredients, so it works well for us.

I second Ashley's suggestion about California Natural. It's the food I had Pixie on for nearly two years when she had stomach issues and colitis and it was the only thing she could successfully eat. Of course, they're owned by Innova, who was also recently bought out! But I haven't heard of any problems with the food, so you should be safe with them.

I'd recommend calling Wellness rather than waiting for an email answer. In my experience, emails frequently go unanswered. If you get a live body on the phone and they don't want to give you an answer (which is what happened with the Natural Balance problem) then you know what the story is.

 

[ClantyreSheltie]

My Chandler has been having these eating issues for a couple of months. We have done every test imaginable. The medication we were given to increase his appetite is Remeron or the generic is called Mirtazapine. The medication is frequently used for this but has not been successful for Chandler. I have tried every high quality dog food on the market including raw. Cooking every meat from the grocery store and I am out of ideas any suggestions would be appreciated.

Did you feed actual raw? or pre-made raw like patties?

 

[OntarioSheltie]

I second Ashley's suggestion about California Natural. It's the food I had Pixie on for nearly two years when she had stomach issues and colitis and it was the only thing she could successfully eat. Of course, they're owned by Innova, who was also recently bought out! But I haven't heard of any problems with the food, so you should be safe with them.

I'd recommend calling Wellness rather than waiting for an email answer. In my experience, emails frequently go unanswered. If you get a live body on the phone and they don't want to give you an answer (which is what happened with the Natural Balance problem) then you know what the story is.

I actually just spoke to someone at Wellness, after a rep on their facebook page recommended it.

She said that there have been no changes, that it sounds like Sadie just doesn't like Wellness anymore. She's sending me a couple of samples of Wellness Core to try. Its a bit too expensive though so I doubt I'll be doing more than trying the sample.

I'll definitely take california natural into consideration when I start looking for another food. We're going on vacation in a week so I won't be trying the switch till we get back, if I've even chosen something by then.

 

[take4roll10]

I'm glad that there hasn't been a formula change. Another good food, which I considered and can easily be bought at petco or petsmart is Blue Buffalo.

 

[dawns2shelties]

Did you feed actual raw? or pre-made raw like patties?

I tried raw beef and he refused. I did read on here someone started their dog on chicken thighs so I thought I might try that. I'm a little apprehensive though since I am not real familiar with raw. I did read all meats must be frozen first to kill any bacteria is that correct? I did also try freeze dried raw and frozen raw by natures variety and they both turned their noses up. My friend is getting Origins raw into her store so I will also try that.
Any suggestions?

 

[OntarioSheltie]

I bought some California Natural today and mixed it with Sadie's Wellness. She proceeded to pick out all of the Wellness and leave it in a pile on the floor. She then ate the C.N food instead. At the end I guess she decided that the Wellness tasted like the C.N. and ate it too.

Looks like I'm going to have to make the switch.

 

[Justicemom]

Melissa, I know you had your vet look at her teeth. But with the initial yelp and the continued not wanting to eat desprite being hungery and otherwise being alert and healthy. I am just wondering if there could be an injured tooth that is being overlooked. I have seen dogs with just cracks in the teeth very hard to see when awake cause similar syptoms. You can take this for what you will. It is just a gut feeling. I would investigate the teeth further if your vet has dental xrays that would be great and a really good exam under sedation. If they don't find anything at least you have thoughly ruled that out. I don't remember if you have done bloodwork but considering the length of time this has gone on, it is something to look into.

 

[Megansmom]

I bought some California Natural today and mixed it with Sadie's Wellness. She proceeded to pick out all of the Wellness and leave it in a pile on the floor. She then ate the C.N food instead. At the end I guess she decided that the Wellness tasted like the C.N. and ate it too.

Looks like I'm going to have to make the switch.

I don't know about you, but to me this sounds like great news, SHE ATE! Dr. Shelli brings as always brings up an excellent poin that perhaps has been overlooked about the teeth, ya never know...