Author Topic: Lincoln update and food question  (Read 6545 times)

Offline Vapidfire

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Lincoln update and food question
« on: February 15, 2009, 07:20:18 am »
Hello Everyone,

  Well Lincoln is doing very well in general. He's stopped howling at night now unless he actually has to go to the bathroom. We've had three nights now with no accidents in his crate (yay) and he's started to grasp he needs to go outside to go to the bathroom. This morning he had an accident on the tile which was my fault because I got busy after he drank a bunch of water and forgot to let him out. Anyway I made a sharp "uh-uh!" noise and he ran to the door to be let out. He's also doing well with the "sit command" he's learned to sit coming in or going out to the backyard by watching his big sisters.

Now on to the food question. We're having a terribly hard time getting him to eat! he doesn't seem interested in food at all. He's loosing weight because of it! we took him in to our vet to get him checked out and he checks out fine, no parasites in his system or anything.

He just won't eat! I am lucky if I can get half a cup of dog food into him a day. We've tried adding wet food to it, yoghurt, and cottage cheese.

We switched to Wellness right before he got here and the other two *love* it. I thought maybe it was just the kibble but he's not interested in the brand that he was raised on either.

Today I'm cooking up some brown rice and chicken. Going to shred the chicken and feed him rice/chicken until the weight comes back and start adding dog food to the mix.

Has that worked for anyone? any other ideas?
Cat
Serenity: Fila Brasileiro Female
Kaylee: Fila Brasileiro Female
Lincoln: Newfoundland Male
Keegan: Fila Brasileiro Male
Cathen: Fila Brasileiro Male
Bug & Ger: Devon Rex Cats
Remus: Roommates Mutt
Rescues of all sorts

Offline navarre1316

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Re: Lincoln update and food question
« Reply #1 on: February 15, 2009, 08:18:44 am »
How long has he not been eating??? 

My GSD will do that some time, my first one wouldn't eat to the point that he would throw up bile.  My vet said that some dogs are just picky eaters, and some still eat like a wild dog/wolf; they won't eat for days then they gorge themselves if you let them.  My first GSD did that, I started to just leave the food out for him and he would eat when he was ready.  I know  for some it's hard to do that; I wouldn't be able to do it now that's for sure, but can you leave his food out?  Does the vet seem to be worried about the weight loss?  Oh, some dogs get funny about eating when the weather changes too.
God placed me on this earth to accomplish certain tasks...I'm so far behind I'll never die!!

Navarre: GSD 9/13/99-5/14/06 patiently waiting
Issabeaux: GSD 1/27/07
Daphne: Boxer
Stone: Siamese mix

Offline Vapidfire

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Re: Lincoln update and food question
« Reply #2 on: February 15, 2009, 08:24:58 am »
Hallo,

  I cannot leave his food out for him for several reasons. Namely our two other dogs are use to eating on a schedule, and being crated when they get fed.

I started leaving Linc out of his crate when he's being fed because he was more interested in getting out of his crate than his food.

The vet really wants us to get calories into him and recommended a calorie paste but that doesn't solve the problem of him not eating.

We've started to leave food in his crate with him over night so he can graze and I'm trying to crate the other two every couple of hours in the hopes he'll grab a couple mouthfuls of food.

It's really frustrating to have two that eat so well on a schedule then having one "grazer"  I think part of it might be that his breeder raw fed. She knew we weren't going to though so she started adding kibble to his diet a couple weeks before we got him.

I do give him a chicken wing or drumstick, uncooked every other day and he'll eat that without an issue.

I don't want to raw feed though, the occasional treat is fine but beyond that...
Cat
Serenity: Fila Brasileiro Female
Kaylee: Fila Brasileiro Female
Lincoln: Newfoundland Male
Keegan: Fila Brasileiro Male
Cathen: Fila Brasileiro Male
Bug & Ger: Devon Rex Cats
Remus: Roommates Mutt
Rescues of all sorts

Offline navarre1316

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Re: Lincoln update and food question
« Reply #3 on: February 15, 2009, 08:34:22 am »
Sounds like he might just need some extra time to get used to kibble.  You may be on the right track mixing in some chicken and rice.  Good luck!!
God placed me on this earth to accomplish certain tasks...I'm so far behind I'll never die!!

Navarre: GSD 9/13/99-5/14/06 patiently waiting
Issabeaux: GSD 1/27/07
Daphne: Boxer
Stone: Siamese mix

Offline maxsmom

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Re: Lincoln update and food question
« Reply #4 on: February 15, 2009, 02:14:14 pm »
Is there a specific reason you don't want to feed raw?  I'm just curious since I do and would never go back to kibble.
Kathy
Max  2 Irish Wolfhound
Jake  2 Great Pyrenees
Cody   3 Tibetan Mastiff
ChiChi 1.5 Caucasian Ovcharka
John and Nicki Maine Coon cats

Offline Vapidfire

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Re: Lincoln update and food question
« Reply #5 on: February 15, 2009, 02:31:43 pm »
I've done a lot of reading on the raw diet and I don't like it. I don't fault people who love it but it isn't for me.

Also the rice/sweet potato/chicken mixture worked! I mixed half a cup with half a cup of kibble and he gobbled it down.

He ate another cup a couple hours later. Going to stuff him with it then gradually up the amount of kibble and take away some of the rice mixture.

Hopefully I can get him eating on a schedule instead of wanting to graze. Either way though at least he is eating!

Cat
Serenity: Fila Brasileiro Female
Kaylee: Fila Brasileiro Female
Lincoln: Newfoundland Male
Keegan: Fila Brasileiro Male
Cathen: Fila Brasileiro Male
Bug & Ger: Devon Rex Cats
Remus: Roommates Mutt
Rescues of all sorts

Offline Vapidfire

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Re: Lincoln update and food question
« Reply #6 on: February 15, 2009, 02:34:41 pm »
Oh! Forgot

Patty, yes Kaylee is utterly adorable. She'd need to be otherwise I would have strangled her by now.

She is the biggest pain in the arse, she is a butt head, stubborn, willful, dominating jerk.

That being said she's the best dog I've ever owned and I'm so in love with her that there are days I just cannot stand it and end up spending an hour baby talking to her.
Cat
Serenity: Fila Brasileiro Female
Kaylee: Fila Brasileiro Female
Lincoln: Newfoundland Male
Keegan: Fila Brasileiro Male
Cathen: Fila Brasileiro Male
Bug & Ger: Devon Rex Cats
Remus: Roommates Mutt
Rescues of all sorts