What can i feed my mutty?

[Amieesmum]

Hey guys. I have a 5yr old rescue Border Collie x something, When i got her she was terribly thin, and wouldn't eat anything, i gave or, or anything she would eat would upset her tummy. After many checks at the vet and lots of trial and error, we finally found a dog food, she liked, and introduced it gradually to her diet. All was great for about 8 months, she put on weight and condition, unfortunatly since i've got back from holiday & she had a two week stint in the kennels, she's refusing to eat again. I've been back over a month and a half now, and again the vet is at a loss to see what's going on, and suggested she's either still distressed from going into the kennels, or bored of what i'm feeding her, So we've taken to cooking her fresh meat and a few veggies every day and hand feeding her, just to try keep a little weight on her, which needless to say is rediculas!

Has any one got any ideas of any food we could try with her, that's not going to be so rich it will upset her tummy, but will be exciting enough to eat?

I'm at a loss to know what to do with her, poor little thing is getting so thin again. She's bright and her normal self, and the vet is sure it's not a medical problem. Any advice would be much appreciated, i feel terrible for having put her in kennels in the first place, i probably should have realized it wasn't a good place for her to go.

[Marne]

Burns is good (if you can get it), also James welbeloved, they do a fish one which is really gentle on the stomach, my dog has a very sensitive tum and these are the only 2 brands she can really tollerate.

Stay away from brands suck as bakers as they are too rich and full of rubbish.

[wildfig]

when my dogs won't eat, or have been off colour, I steam some (frozen, cheap) white fish and mash it into rice, then gradually introduce the kibble back into that. Chappie is pretty much the same thing (fish and rice mushed up in a can), and although it isn't ideal, it's very bland and my vet recommends it as an easily digestible food for after upset stomachs/operations. Also dogs seem to go nuts for it - is probably the doggie equivalent of the soft-boiled-egg-mashed-with-butter-and-bread comfort food.

[KeepErLit]

Is she happy to eat what you are hand feeding her? If so, then I suspect she's playing you. I would speculate that she has learned that if she doesn't eat what's in her bowl, then something tastier will be offered to tempt her to eat.

If your happy that there's nothing medically affecting her appetite then I would go back to the food that you were feeding her before she went to kennels as she ate it and it agreed with her. Put her meal down and if it's not eaten within 20 minutes, remove the bowl and offer NOTHING else until next scheduled time....no sneaky treats or tit-bits of what you're having between times. NOTHING. Repeat until she gets the idea that the contents of the bowl are all that's available.

I have been there with a dog that was prone to periodic hunger striking. She could go months without eating from the food that was given to her but would take anything offered to her by hand. DP indulged and spoiled her. It was only when I enforced the hardline tactics that she realised that if she didn't eat what was given at the time, she didn't eat. She's still not an enthusiastic eater but never turns her nose up at a meal and will always eat something.

It's hard not to pander to them but stick with it and she'll soon get the idea. Dogs are smart and a healthy dog will not intentionally starve itself.

[Scuttlebutter]

Actually, cooking fresh meat and a few veggies is often what we do for ours - we've moved away completely from kibble and now do a sort of homecooked plus raw diet. I'd agree that hand feeding isn't necessary but can't see anything wrong in experimenting with a few different homemade things. Would second things like some poached salmon, maybe some sardines or mackerel, how about some lightly cooked chicken and some boiled brown rice? We'll often incorporate things like this for our dogs if say we are cooking brown rice for us, it's no bother to do a bit more for them and they enjoy the variety. Dogs are scavengers and there's a lot to be said for making their diet interesting and varied. If she has a very sensitive tum or an allergy to something like kibble this might be putting her off. How is she with bones and things? Have you tried her with something like a few raw chicken wings - any interest?

Also, have you checked her teeth? If she has toothache/decay that might be stopping her eating with enthusiasm? Also, is her bowl/feeding station at the right height?

[Amieesmum]

Have Tried the you'll get nothing but this routine for a whole week, she lost so much weight i had to give in. Maybe she's just a stubborn moo, Chappie was what she was having before, and used to wolf it down like you wouldn't believe, She wont eat any dry kibble except some minging cardboard asda brand, seeing as she'd only have a few bits at that it wasn't too much bother!

From what i can gather, before i got her she lived off a diet of pasta and what every she could scrounge, was so strange when i put down dog food for her & she didn't know what to do with it! Then of course when we finally discovered what she liked, she had the whole issue of it's feeding time, come close at your perril!

Teeth are all fine, infact they are remarkable healthy, and she has a feeding stand thing, set to the right height.

I think maybe it's going to be i'm going to have to make her dinner myself every day, and see if i can convince her to eat it from her bowl. She quite often has brown rice, and chicken, and all sorts of fishy things, also the butcher gives me some cheap cut's of meat if i pop in and ask which she seems to love, haven't tried anything with bones in it though.

It's just so disheartening that i'd got her too such a beautiful weight and condition, she was like a different dog, and now she's going down hill again. After everything she's been though i feel i owe her what ever i can to keep her happy and healthy.

[KeepErLit]

If you are happy to cook meals for her then stick with that. I couldn't be arsed personally....my dogs get raw meat, bones and fish dished up pretty much as nature intend but if it's not an issue for you then go that route.

Have you tried changing her bowl (if it's metal, for example, change for plastic or ceramic)?Or even changing the location of the bowl? She may inadvertantly have picked up a negative association with the bowl/location which might be putting her off eating from it - clutching at straws a bit but I lived with Collies for 18 years and know they can idiosyncratic little creatures.

[KeepErLit]

Sorry...just to add...don't feed her anything with bones in if you plan to cook it. Cooked bones splinter and can cause injury in the gut. Raw bones are softer and much less likely to cause a problem.

[chocolateyclur]

Burns is a great dry food for a dog with stomach upsets - and it's low protein.

[Scuttlebutter]

Awww, she sounds lovely. We've got a fussy eater with a sensitive tum so understand completely. Don't know if you've tried this or this, which is organic, free range as well.