Puppy just decided that she doesn't want to eat

Wrightkylej

Hi All,

I've got a puppy that just turned 3 months and she had some health issues as a little puppy. Her mom had a uterine infection a few days after the pups were born and they didnt get proper mothers milk because of this. Then when I got her, she had some rough parasites when she was 8 weeks. I got that cleared up after a week or so and she is super happy and healthy in her new home with me now. She's very active and loves to run and play and see all of my clients dogs (who I know are fully up to date on vaccinations). Because of being sick so young she had some stunted growth, but she has always acted like she's never eaten before. I imagine from finally feeling well enough to eat, coupled with feeling well enough to play. But then one day she just stopped halfway through her lunch. I offered it and she didnt want it. Then she didnt want her dinner, or breakfast the next morning. She nibbled at lunch the next day but didnt seem interested. Now its a crap shoot if she will eat or not. Think its just that she's over the starving phase from being sick? Could it just be that she isn't hungry these days? Still spreading her meals across the times a day with half a cup of TOTW and some plain cooked veggies and chicken or beef added in. Shes 3 months old and 18 pounds with no signs of parasites or worms

BulliesofNC

That's definitely not normal for a puppy that would usually look forward to every meal they were provided. To be honest with you, I can't see how a uterine infection would prevent the mamma from nursing her puppies. It's evident the puppies from this litter did not receive the colostrum from their mother which is vital especially for a strong immune system. Many Vets consider the first 24 hours after birth where the puppies receive the colostrum their first natural vaccination. Chances are the mamma of this litter was either young or very stressed and would not take care of her puppies which forced bottle feeding. Just out of curiosity was this a small litter? How many siblings did you see when you received your puppy?
Depending on the knowledge and experience of your breeder they may not have started the deworming at 2 weeks of age and the puppies could have been packed with worms by the time they allowed their Vet at 6 weeks old to deworm them. Properly, there should be no sign of worms in any puppy at 6 weeks of age. If your Vet found them in your puppy at 8 weeks of age chances are she may have never been dewormed. Her health could have very well stunted her growth and due to her health and worms she may have other health concerns within her system and organs.
If she isn't eating something is bothering her and she may be in pain or discomfort. I would recommend that you have her checked again by your Vet. Try mixing in some canned wet food with her kibble. If she refuses that you'll know she has an issue that needs to be addressed. What does her stool look like? How many times a day are you trying to feed her? I prefer to keep to twice a day.

Please keep us posted on her status.

Wrightkylej

I thought it was odd as well. She'll take some chicken as training reward but doesnt really want to eat her meals or even out of my hand. The infection prompted the breeder to get the dam a hysterectomy since it was her third litter. I think they went 4 days without nursing, according to the breeder. The parasites was a nasty case of coccidia which I imagine she got from eating things in the breeders yard area. I have the paperwork from her 6 week visit at the vet for deworming and boosters.
The litter was 7 total puppies and because of the issue with the mother, a lot of people passed on the litter. The breeder still has 4 of the pups and even with her being sick, I wanted to make sure to have her in a good home where she would be taken care of and loved. She has had her stool sent to a lab since the coccidia and appears to be clean. She is having regular stool and the diarrhea has passed. I'll pick up some canned food to try and add instead of using hot water and making a gravy with the added meats. I have been keeping her on an attempted 3 time a day feeding until she is 16 weeks old, when I was going to move to twice a day.

philsergeant

Besides the illness possibilities, that are very real, I also wouldn't overlook emotional contributors. Bullies can express a whole range of emotional expressions... From refusing to "talk" to you or sit with you if you scold them or whack their sibling, to extreme expressions of stress by cowering or hiding away, to aggression and, ofcourse, not eating, even not pooping, to communicate that they are slightly or extremely unhappy. The stress could come directly from illness or injury itself, or loneliness, or lack or exercise or attention. Even another pet or hobby getting more attention. They are very smart dogs and you need to rack your brain sometimes to find out if there is something disturbing them... Provide reassurance or correction if you find it.

BulliesofNC

Coccidia is bad for a small puppy and will often hinder growth and development. Luckily the breeder didn't lose any puppies because of it since the puppies were still very young. But if your not noticing any more foul smelling diarrhea the meds probably solved that problem. You'll most likely notice that she will be a little smaller in size than both her parents due to the illness she went through during a vital stage. However, the most important thing is just keeping her healthy and happy from here on out. I recommend that you start her on a good supplement that will boost her immune system. I think you will find this to be very beneficial.
A common problem for all breeds is often caused when breeders rehome their puppies too early. I've heard about people receiving puppies as early as 6 weeks old. The concern is that many breeders won't force the weening process at 4 weeks of age and get them on solid foods during the appropriate time frames. With this said some of these puppies might have only been on solid foods for a very short period of time and still quite weak. Additionally taking a puppy away from its siblings at a premature age can be Very stressful and this type of stress could in fact impact their appetite to the point of serious concern.
I'm not saying you received your puppy too early. i think you mentioned getting her at 8 weeks old which is fine provided she was whelped at the appropriate time and was healthy. Additionally you've had her now for a few weeks so I'm confident she's not suffering from being away from her siblings at this point. There has to be a reason why she does not have a hearty appetite at her age when this is a time frame that puppies are growing very fast and have tons of energy.
I wish I had a good answer for you but I'm in fear there may be some other health issues that may not be identified at this time. In the event that her appetite does not improve in the next couple days you could always have some blood tests done to ensure she has no issues that may need to be addressed.
I know you're giving her TOTW but what type of food was the breeder giving her? Have you tried a different brand of food? Are you mixing anything into her food to entice the flavor and her appetite?


 

Wrightkylej

Thanks for the input from both of you! Philsergeant, I wouldn't put it past her as being moody. She seems to enjoy watching me try to figure out what she wants when it comes to pretty much everything else. Luckily, I have a job that lets me have her with me all day and she is all the time running around playing and pulling and having a great time. Which makes me think she'd be even hungrier. She's never had food from the dinner table or any human snacks, and anything that I do give her that I would eat too, like chicken, I keep separate and mix it with her food or for training treats.
I wish I could say that you are being a negative nancy, bulliesofnc, but I kind of have my same suspicions. I was given the option to pass my deposit to the next litter, but I didnt like the idea of the poor girl being kept there and possibly sold at a discount to someone just trying to look tough with a bully. She likes to sleep....a lot. I know she sleeps a lot from being a puppy, but lately she'll take a 2-3 hour nap at 4 in the afternoon and then still go to bed around 8:30 and sleep all night. But as far as playtime goes, she seems super healthy. And even though her weight is small in terms of poundage, she isnt emaciated or gaunt. So I'm not quite sure what the problem may be. Luckily, she goes to the vet again on 9/11 and we can get her checked out again.

fullofbull

Just putting this out there fyi.  Hannah was very small when we got her at 7 1/2 weeks.  She was only 5 1/2 pounds!  Came from a big litter (9) but no worms or health issues.  At 3 mos. she was the exact same weight as your puppy (I kept records).  She would also take a 3-4 hour nap every afternoon and still put herself to bed between 8 - 8:30.  Like babies, puppies grow while they're sleeping.  

Shes a super picky eater!!  The first 2 weeks we got her she was starving and couldn't eat enough.  I fed her 4 times daily.  By the time she was 12 weeks she only wanted to eat twice daily.  Now at 11 mos she is 50lbs and would really prefer to eat only once daily.  But I insist she eats breaky, even if its just a small amount to have something in her stomach.  I don't like her going all day on an empty tummy, then scarfing down supper.  Thats not good for them.  But she is totally healthy, thats just the way she likes to eat!  Your puppy might just be the same way.  But it never hurts to get it checked out by a vet!  Good luck with her, she is adorable!

philsergeant

@Wrightkylej ..... You could try some canned food (GF) to moisten the TOTW, some warm chicken broth or gravy... Nothing beats a soft boiled warm egg smeared over their food to capture their interest.... Could also be a teething thing... how is she with chews?

Wrightkylej

Thanks for the input, all! I've always added boiling water to the kibble and added some chicken or beef to her food since day one. I let it cool, then stir it all together. The water absorbs and leaves a nice gravy. I've tried adding broth, which works a little. But she ends up picking at it. She ate it all when I added an egg to it yesterday, but she had only eaten about half a cup in the previous 24 hours. I just added a 1/4 can of wet food to it and really smeared it together in hopes that she would eat the kibble too and not just lick at the wet food and that worked. So I guess I'll try that for the time being. I thought at first that it was teething, but the food was so soft that I figured she just didnt want anything in her mouth. But she chews on her antler and toy nonstop, especially if I hold it for her to let her get back at those molars. Like I said, she's eager to please and looks outwardly healthy. I'll keep working on adding a little wet food in there, that gravy must be tastier than my homemade chicken broth and veggie gravy. What a food snob....

philsergeant

I hear ya! Sometimes my wife says they eat better than we do.

fullofbull

Right on!!!  I feed ours better than ourselves.....as in healthier...........whats up with that!!!!!!!!! :P

apanich

@Wrightkylej

If there is medically nothing wrong with the dog, a day without food and hunger might do the trick. Just don't skip on water.

Wrightkylej

Quick update. The canned food mixed in did the trick early yesterday. She ate a little last night and left most of it, same at breakfast this morning. She still takes training rewards and is eager to learn her commands, so she's at least getting some nutrients that way. I use a mix of chicken and her kibble as rewards. Maybe its because its a special reward that she will take it, or maybe because its just one piece at a time as I praise her. But she'll eat about 1/8 of a can of food and some kibble based on her last 2 meals, and I'll just keep up with that and giving her the training rewards. Maybe reward her with a slightly bigger piece of chicken each time, just to get more nutrients in her.

@apanich usually when she doesnt eat or eats a few pieces then comes to lie in my lap, I just set the food back on the counter and try again in an hour or two. At first, I thought she was just seeing what would happen if she left it. And I figured if I put it on the counter for a couple hours, she wouldn't be as likely to do it as a funny experiment. After this many days, though, that might not be the problem.

@fullofbull   Luckily, I'm pretty picky about what I eat and put in my body. So, for the most part, we share our meals anyway. I usually cook her chicken or beef with mine and I use the broth from my veggies to add to her food. Which is great for multiple reasons. One being that if she ever did get clever and try and steal the food from my plate, she'd be disappointed to find that I'm eating pretty much the same thing as her. hahaha

Quinnofhearts

If she's taking treats and eats the kibble with things like eggs or wet food on top of it, have you considered changing the kibble? TotW isn't a bad food, but I put my dog on it when she was a pup and eventually switched her off because I wasn't getting the results I wanted. She had bad gas (worse than just normal bullie gas), a thin dull coat, and she wasn't growing at the rate I wanted her to. Keep in mind these are just my experiences and it could be totally different for your dog... But just a thought.

BulliesofNC

^ I agree. No two Bullies are the same and what one does good on may not be the same for another.

philsergeant

Yeah. I never had much joy with TOTW... But it seems to have good name recognition or acceptance. ... I can't see the attractiveness

Wrightkylej

I'm not entirely sure if its the kibble. She sits next to the closet where its stored as I scoop it and waits for 1-2 pieces dry before I prepare it. When she does eat, she's pretty gungho about it. Which is why I thought there was something wrong. I think it was the name recognition of TOTW that drew me to it. Combined with knowing some people that use it for their dogs. It was only intended for her as a puppy as she slowly transitions to eating real food and not kibble. From what I've heard and read (not to mention name recognition) TOTW would be a good fit for this.

Good news though! She ate all of her dinner last night, breakfast today, and most of the dry kibble with beef broth on it at lunch today! Here's hoping to keep that up. She had diarrhea yesterday, somewhat spontaneously, and a couple soft stools after. But that's passed and she's eating. So maybe something was going on in there that has hopefully worked itself loose. She started crying while trying to go to the bathroom (halfway through a normal stool) then the diarrhea came about 20 seconds later. But today has been normal stools, so lets hope its all over.

philsergeant

Yes, diet & intake changes will effect the stool, but the big and
main thing is that she is eating... just try and find out what she
enjoys and hone in on & stabilize on that.... You'll get it... get
her some PureVita and work that in and the TOTW out.

the4thmonkey

My puppy had soft stools at about the same age as yours. She also had Coccidia and things were a bit better after treatment. Her stools would be firm in the mornings and get loose as the day went on. I was reluctant to change her kibble because she seemed to like it and her stool was not always loose. But I finally did try another brand and the change was immediate. Her stools are firm and nearly like clockwork. I'm sure having normal stools feels better for her, and I sure don't miss hosing loose puppy poo into the grass. She is 6 months old now and only weighs 30# which seems small compared to what others report here. Her vet says she is doing just fine and I'm happy with healthy. She's very active and good natured, so she doesn't have to be big!

philsergeant

@the4thmonkey .... We haven't seen any photos of Birdie in a while, but 30lbs isn't bad for the ramp model that the beauty is!!! Isabella was 39lbs at 6 months and now she is pushing 75... (She needs to lose 5lbs, which she will do when the weather cools off and we can get some stiff running in).  I find adding a
3/4 flat tablespoon of Origanum to their meal helps keep the stool stiff... (and easier to pick up).

Wrightkylej

Good news. Ever since the day that I mentioned with the crying during her bowel movement, she's been eating a lot better. And gained 2.5 pounds since the eating incident first started. I'm not sure who is more relieved, me or her. I appreciate everyone's input. She goes for her check up at the vet on Friday and I'll try to get some good pictures once I get the "all good" from the doc

philsergeant

Great stuff! Good to hear... Don't forget the photos you promised now!!!!

Quinnofhearts

Oh bless her heart, when we go through bad "loose poops" phases, Quinn doesn't even want to go. Poor thing, I can see the fear in her eyes! Course I'm kind of scared of what is about to fly out of there as well...

Quinn started on TotW when she was little, and unfortunately she contracted giardia when she was a puppy thanks to the idiots at her daycare. Months of treatment...at one point in the midst of giardia treatment and her just having trouble with her coat and gas etc etc I just whipped her right off TotW, put her on ground turkey and egg noodles for a day to chill her system, and then slowly integrated her new brand of kibble + the ground turkey and noodles. Not the best way to do it probably, but she firmed up and we haven't had a lot of poopy problems since.

So glad to hear she's doing better though!! I hope the doc has a positive review for her. And yes!!! Pictures either way!!

Wrightkylej

Hello Everyone,

I apologize for the delay, as I've been without internet for nearly a week and saving data for work related things. Her eating seems to be picking up. But not without a lot more trial and error. At the last update I thought things had been clearing up. But then the eating stopped the next day. She was turning down raw meat, cooked meat, veggies, etc. She went to the vet, and although a little smaller than her brothers and sisters, she looked healthy and he saw nothing wrong. But the vet had concerns as well when I was telling him about her not eating for any apparent reason. Then she wouldn't even take treats at the vet. She usually loves it there and the staff is very kind to her and she is excited to see them. And she was this time as well, but refused to even smell the treats once she turned them down. After another day or two, I've tried yet another canned food (the 4th brand) in hopes that it would work. Plus adding in a little chicken and veggies with the canned food and kibble. The portions are large, but I'm not concerned since she seems to be eating now. I'd rather waste a little food than have her not eat. I've also elevated her food even higher and I kind of feel like that might have been a major solution. I can't prove it, but even though her food was elevated a little before, I wonder if she didnt want to eat with her head facing down. She is eating about 1/3-1/2 of what I give her and sometimes will go back after 10-15 mins for a little more. I'm just treating her as if nothing is wrong and she is staying playful and loving. So this is my current solution. Pics updated as promised in the other thread "introducing Freyja"

philsergeant

This is baffling.... Are you keeping a regular weight record? We used to weigh every day until they were 3 months, then once a week and put it on a chart. Are her stools regular (time and consistency?), he has definitely checked her for worms?

Wrightkylej

I agree. Not sure whats up. I'm keeping her weight, weighing weekly right now. But I'm not charting it so much as congratulating her for getting bigger. )

She's had her fecal sample tested for worms and I investigate all of her stools for mucus or any other weird signs. Shes on a worm medication as well. But today she ate her breakfast and a little chicken for a lunch (maybe 1 oz) and she looked at me hungrily. I put straight kibble in her bowl and she ate it over 2 sessions about 10 mins apart. Her dinner is in an hour and I'm going to put a little egg and beef in there for her with dry kibble.

Wrightkylej

UPDATE:

Not sure what changed, but after that day that she did some whining and crying when using the bathroom, her appetite just seemed to return. She's eating every day now and scarfing it down just like she did as a little puppy. She takes her food every way I give it to her with eagerness, even if its just dry kibble. I leave a little kibble in her bowl in case she gets a little hungry during the day after playing and she'll snack on it in between her meals.

BulliesofNC

Leaving a bowl of food out for her to come and go to is not a good idea. Not only does it prevent you from knowing what her daily intake is but eventually she will become bored of the food and actually eat less. If you are feeding her scheduled meals she will look forward to it and eat everything simply because she will know it will be a while before she gets to eat again.

Just food for thought.

philsergeant

@Wrightkylej .... You obviously closely inspected her stool the day of "whining and crying", did you find the culprit in there?


Good to know she's got her appetite back!!!

Wrightkylej

I have only recently started leaving a little food for her during the day. Up until this point she was eating 3 times a day (until she hit 16 weeks) then twice a day plus the dry in the day. I dont fill the bowl, I only put half a cup of kibble in there and sometimes she'll snack on a little bit of it (only a few pieces) when she goes to get water. Maybe I should stop this practice? I thought it would be a good idea since she is growing. She gets her meat and goodies in her morning and evening meals. I'm sure that is more than enough nutrition.

@philsergeant   I inspected. I didn't see anything obvious like worms or plastic, etc. But I know she had difficulty pushing out the stool and then followed with a sizable amount of diarrhea. I didn't have the stool tested, but my suspicion is that she had some sort of obstruction, whether natural or foreign, and just didn't want to cram more in there. She went to the bathroom every day when she was eating, but not nearly the volume she is now, so maybe things weren't passing through properly.

philsergeant

Yeah! Some sort of blockage.... Main thing is it's GONE! And you didn't even need to call Roto Rooter!