[colleen13]

zoey is driving me NUTS!!!!!!! :evil:

we recently switched foods (what she was eating was giving her major gas issues) and the 1st few days she ADORED the new stuff. it was great. no gas... licked the bowl clean. all of a sudden, she's back to being extremely picky. she sniffs the food dish and then walks away. if i hand feed her she usually eats it (so spoiled!!) or she'll spit it out and walk away. today she hardly ate breakfast and hardly ate dinner but she'll still beg for treats and our food (which, of course, she gets none of).

for those of you who have picky eaters, what do you do? is it okay if she hardly eats some days? the recommended amount of food for a 5lb dog is 1/2-3/4 of a cup everyday. right now we've been trying to get her to eat 1/2c and she hardly wants that..... i don't know what to do. i am wondering if she's actually sick and that's why she acts this way.

 

[KB]

I dont think she is sick :sad3: ......I think it is more battle of the wills. Kemo has gone days like I said in the poopie post and he is ok. When they are hungry enough they will eat :hmph: . I too went thru tons of food/money to find the perfect "acceptable" meal for the KING :king:
I started asking companies for free samples cause I was so sick of wasting $$

It may take more time to find her food. BUT if she is having blood again then maybe something worth asking the vet about. Changing food will produce looser stools etc so dont let that always be the determing factor. The fact that she wants your food and treats tells me she feels fine and is just testing you. I dont blame her though, our food is much much better :confused1:

 

[Dee]

I agree. If you have rules out illness or something specific causing a problem, don't worry about it. It seems cruel but when she's hungry enough and figures out she can't control you, she'll eat what you give her. It's a test of wills that may seem small now but what's next?

 

[Auggies Mom]

Are you feeding Zoey all dry or a combination of wet/dry.

 

[colleen13]

we feed all dry. she finally finished eating dinner at like 8:30. i want to stop free feeding her but i'm really afraid of hypoglycemia. and if she doesn't eat dinner all night her belly gurgles and then in the morning she won't eat and sometimes throws up bile. it's like she's too hungry to eat.

it's a dilemma. either stop free feeding her and deal with her throwing up and her belly gurgling in the morning and all through the night or keep free feeding and let her control me.... :roll:

 

[Dee]

we feed all dry. she finally finished eating dinner at like 8:30. i want to stop free feeding her but i'm really afraid of hypoglycemia. and if she doesn't eat dinner all night her belly gurgles and then in the morning she won't eat and sometimes throws up bile. it's like she's too hungry to eat.

it's a dilemma. either stop free feeding her and deal with her throwing up and her belly gurgling in the morning and all through the night or keep free feeding and let her control me.... :roll:

What about puttihng food down and if she hasn't eaten in 15-20 min. take it up. Wait a couple hours then try again. If she hasn't eaten on her own before bed, handfeed her enough to stave off the tummy gurgles and hypo but not enough to fill her up. She should be hungry enough to eat a moose the next morning. You don't want to withhold food until it makes her sick but you don't want to give in either.

 

[colleen13]

What about puttihng food down and if she hasn't eaten in 15-20 min. take it up. Wait a couple hours then try again. If she hasn't eaten on her own before bed, handfeed her enough to stave off the tummy gurgles and hypo but not enough to fill her up. She should be hungry enough to eat a moose the next morning. You don't want to withhold food until it makes her sick but you don't want to give in either.

i totally agree with everything you say. it's just frustrating because sometimes she wont even eat if i hand-feed her... it's like she's telling us, "i'll eat when i want to.... so ha!" and me, being the nervous mommy will leave her food down until she eats just so she doesn't get sick :roll: but i'll definitely try anything. thanks!

 

[JeepGirlTX]

Is that what causes the vomiting? Hypoglycemia? Daisy will sometimes go a day without eating (for no reason; she likes her food). I thought she vomited because she didn't feel good and that's why she didn't eat the day before. But you're saying it's the other way around? She's vomiting because she didn't eat?

This is very perplexing....

 

[colleen13]

hypoglycemia has nothing to do w/ vomiting-- it's when their blood sugar gets too low and they basically collapse because they are so weak. symptoms can include confusion, disorientation, and staggering. they eventually can be unconsious if they aren't given karo syrup (corn syrup), honey, or nutristat/cal. it's very scary- it happened to my mini schnauzer years ago and we had to give her karo syrup and rush her to the vet.

zoey vomits bile in the morning when she hasn't eaten because her belly is too empty. it isnt hypoglycemia, but i'm worried that if she doesn't eat she can progress TO hypoglycemia.

 

[KB]

Kemo may puke once if his tummy is empty. I mean it happens to me to (feeling nauseous) if I go too long w/out eating. So that is a definate possibility.

Zoey now just knock it off.

 

[colleen13]

Zoey now just knock it off.

seriously!!! having a dog shouldn't be so stressful! :lol:

 

[KB]

One day you will see it will all fall into place! :wave:

 

[quikdog]

Why don't you want to free feed. Some dogs actually do better on a free feed schedule. I am sure that you have seen some people that snack all day and that is great for them. And then others want those meals at set times.
All of my chis free feed. All the girls(5) are together and they seem to get along great. They have three small bowls, so no one can claim "the" bowl and not let anyone else eat. I put about 2 cups of food in the bowls in the morning and they snack all day. Most of the time the food is gone by noon, I do not give anymore food. But sometimes they will not even finish it in a day. They are all nice & healthy, some fatter than others. I have even had dogs that do not eat until the middle of the night, strange, but that is when I heard them crunching away. Sometimes they will go all day and none of them will even touch a single morsel of the kibble, but the next day it is usually gone. They eat when they are hungry.
Just my opinion. :wink:

 

[SC]

You said Zoey throws up bile if she doesn't eat. Callie has been throwing up around 3 in the morning for the last few days. It's clear. Is that bile and is it just because she needs something on her stomach???

 

[KB]

You said Zoey throws up bile if she doesn't eat. Callie has been throwing up around 3 in the morning for the last few days. It's clear. Is that bile and is it just because she needs something on her stomach???

Yes its clear/whitish/yellowish. Kinda foamy too, gross none the less

 

[colleen13]

You said Zoey throws up bile if she doesn't eat. Callie has been throwing up around 3 in the morning for the last few days. It's clear. Is that bile and is it just because she needs something on her stomach???

absolutely. at least that's my experience.....

 

[SC]

I'm so glad to know that!!! I'll have to start giving her a little snack before bedtime.

 

[colleen13]

yep! snacks before bedtime are a must around here! or else zoey gets the gurglies

 

[jo]

My CJ here is a very picky eater and he will also vomit from having an empty stomach, so I did find a food that he will eat, and thats only if I hand feed it to him when I think he is ready to eat.He will go to the bowl and look in it but refuses to eat out of the bowl so I rather go ahead and hand feed him because I dont want him to get sick, but I only do it when I find the time to do so, which he does eat everyday. When he doesnt want it he will spit it out so I leave him alone til later.I have left the food down for quite some time but he will not eat it thats when the next morning he would vomit so I would just go ahead and hand feed him. And yes he is spoil rotten.

 

[JeepGirlTX]

hypoglycemia has nothing to do w/ vomiting

I guess I should stop trying to get her to drink juice, then I have a friend who is hypoglycemic and her doctor told her to drink juice every morning. I thought I would see if Daisy would drink it. That would be no.