Zulu Not Eating

[RikyR]

Zulu woke up Saturday morning and did not eat his breakfast. He did drink, but spit up most of it a few minutes after drinking. He does not appear in any stress, is very active, running, and playing. He would not eat anything, not ever his most favorite, a vanilla wafer. A few hours later, I tried the vanilla wafer again, and he ate it. Later in the afternoon, I saw that he ate all his breakfast that was in his bowl. We gave him a little baked chicken and fish through out the rest of the day and he did eat it. At supper, he ate the fish but nothing else. This morning, he ate nothing, but is in his usual good spirits. I decided to take him for a short walk, but he was enjoying it so much, we continued on to our normal 1+ mile morning walk. Along the way, he ate the small soft training treats I give him for good behaviour. After the walk, he chased his ball around the yard, and did some high jumps. Still wont't eat his breakfast, but will eat the soft treats. He pooped once on Saturday, and again this morning, both normal. Peeing normally. Only one thing different. Friday night we gave him a bully stick. It is an occasional treat, and never had any issues. But I am wondering if it may have been bad. It is a holiday weekend, and the animal hospital is only 10 minutes away, so right now we are watching him closely. But I am a little concerned. He is normally a chow hound...

 

[corbinam]

I admit to being a worry wart, but if my dogs--who are food obsessed--ever stop eating or even start eating slowly we immediately go to the vet.

Bentley had an obstruction and the first outward sign we saw was slow eating--not even not eating. Not trying to scare you but I was glad we took him in right away.

 

[Mom2Melli]

I think I would probably go in too. My shepherd gets grumbly tummy (had one yesterday) but after 2-3 hours he is back to normal. I have never had one (of 6 dogs) just go off food like that.

 

[trini]

If Zulu was typically a fussy eater who sometimes goes off his food, I would say wait it out a day or two ...but for a chow hound to suddenly be refusing normal meals that is something I would treat as possibly serious and have it checked out right away.

Trini

 

[ClantyreSheltie]

Two things. First, it sounds like there is food down all the time. This creates a dog who has no urgency to eat. They will get to it when they get to it. It makes it hard for you to know when they are eating.

Second, some dogs self-regulate. We had one that weighed 22.4 pounds. At 22.6 pounds he stopped eating for several days, at 22.2 pounds he was surfing the countertop. Our vet said to stop messing with him, he knows what's best.

So nothing you describe sounds weird. Might be worth some bloodwork to rule out kidney/liver/pancreas issues, but beyond that you might think about some behavior changes. Put the food down, take it up 15 minutes later. Teach him that he needs to eat when the food is there, not at his leisure.

 

[RikyR]

Two things. First, it sounds like there is food down all the time. This creates a dog who has no urgency to eat. They will get to it when they get to it. It makes it hard for you to know when they are eating.

Second, some dogs self-regulate. We had one that weighed 22.4 pounds. At 22.6 pounds he stopped eating for several days, at 22.2 pounds he was surfing the countertop. Our vet said to stop messing with him, he knows what's best.

So nothing you describe sounds weird. Might be worth some bloodwork to rule out kidney/liver/pancreas issues, but beyond that you might think about some behavior changes. Put the food down, take it up 15 minutes later. Teach him that he needs to eat when the food is there, not at his leisure.

Food is not out all the time. He always cleans his bowl right away. After he is finished, he double/triple checks that he did not leave a crumb. We left the bowl out yesterday because he was checking it out, showing some interest in eating. Since tomorrow is a holiday and he is still refusing any food, we are going to bring him to the hospital today. Worried too much to wait any longer.

 

[Ann]

I hope Zulu is OK. I think you're making a smart decision to take him in (why do these things always happen on holiday weekends??). I agree with everyone who's said dogs who are eager eaters don't go off their food for no reason. One meal, maybe. But repeatedly, no.

Please update us when you can. Sending good thoughts and pats for Zulu!

 

[tesslynn]

I hope Zulu is OK. I think you're making a smart decision to take him in (why do these things always happen on holiday weekends??). I agree with everyone who's said dogs who are eager eaters don't go off their food for no reason. One meal, maybe. But repeatedly, no.

Please update us when you can. Sending good thoughts and pats for Zulu!

I have wondered that as well-stuff occurring when help isn't readily available...I think it is on par with smoke detectors ALWAYS beeping in the dead of night. I have never had a smoke detector battery go during the daytime, they always have to start chirping when everyone is asleep.

I would be highly upset if my chow hounds didn't eat...as it isn't normal behavior and that usually signals something being amiss...I hope it isn't anything serious!!!

 

[RikyR]

Thanks to all for your comments and advice. We did a complete workup and everything came back normal. X-rays showed no obstructions, and all the blood work was normal. The vet thinks that he has a bad case of indigestion, possibly from the bully stick. Told us to give him a half a tablet of Pesid to settle his stomach. Got him home, he had a long drink, a poop, and a pee, but still is not interested in food. I just had to put a leash on him, as he is at the window barking his head off at the neighbor cutting his grass. Now we can all sleep tonight knowing that nothing life threatening is going on. We will see how he feels in the morning. The animal hospital has a 24 hour policy if he would need to go back, no emergency fees would apply. Thank goodness we have pet insurance!
On a sad note, while we were in the waiting room, a lady sat beside us to admire Zulu. She told us that her blue merle sheltie had been attacked by a pit bull. The dog is in serious but stable condition. This lady was incredibly calm given the situation. She was called to the back before I could get any details. I cannot stop thinking about her. No matter how bad you think things are for you, someone else is dealing with something worse.

 

[corbinam]

So happy to hear that Zulu should be feeling better soon. Your experience with the other sheltie owner in the waiting room sure puts things in perspective.