Barkley won't eat

[Alli and Barkley]

he skipped dinner the other night, ate his breakfast fine, then skipped lunch and dinner- what's going on with him?

 

He seems healthy/normal.  Sleeping, running, playing, and his stools have looked normal. 

 

This morning he still wouldn't eat so I stirred in a small spoonful of yogurt, and finally he ate his bowl of food.  

 

He was on diamond and switching to TOTW Wetlands- and the switch over seemed to be fine.  We worked up to half and half and no change in his stool.  Just a few days ago he would devour his food now he seems completely disinterested unless we are playing games with him (throw a piece of kibble across the floor and he will chase after it and eat it)

 

We stopped other treats and have only been giving him his kibble as his rewards which he will then eat.  

 

confused!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

It's normal for dogs to go through periods when they seem disinterested in their food, and other times when they seem ravenous all the time.

Alli, TOTW contains more calories per cup than the Diamond, so make sure you aren't feeding too much. If you are still fedding the same amount of food you were giving when he was on Diamond alone, he's getting too many calories, and may be skipping meals because of that. If he's gotten most of his day's calories from one meal, he isn't going to be interested in the next one.

It's really not a good idea to entice a dog to eat when he's telling you he isn't hungry. trust his instincts. A healthy dog won't starve himself, and if he's ill, getting him to eat when he doesn't want to can make matters worse.

I think at this point I'd switch to the TOTW completely and follow the feeding guidelines to make sure you aren't feeding too much. Keep us posted.

 

[Alli and Barkley]

Karen- can you help me determine a good starting point of how much we should be giving Barkley a day?

 

TOTW: 375kcals/cup

10-20 lbs at 6-12 weeks recommend 2.75-3.5 cups daily

 

Diamond: 438kcals/cup

10-20 lbs at 6-11 weeks recommend 1.75-3 cups daily

 

Do you recommend 2 feedings or 3 daily?

 

Thanks!

 

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Wow, I'm shocked that the Diamond food actually has more kcals/cup than TOTW. (Which, BTW, is low in calories for a grain-free food. Orijen has 460 kcals/cup.)

Puppies under 13 weeks are normally fed three times per day.

It's hard for me to tell you an amount without knowing barkley's weight. You use the higher amount for dogs in the higher wieght range- in other words, looking at the TOTW feeding guideline,  a 10 lb. dog would get the lower amount of 2.75 cups per day, divided between three meals, and a 20 lb. dog would get the higher amount of 3.75 cups per day. A 15 lb. dog would be in the middle and would need approximately 3.25 cups per day based on this particular guide.

If Barkley's appetite has decreased, I'd try feeding a little less than the recommended amount; you can always increase it if he seems hungry.

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

I would only do 2 feeds a day and feed on the lower end of that scale. How much is he eating now?  About 1 cup in the morning? 

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I haven't had a puppy in over 20 years, so disregard my advice on three feedings and go with Allyson's! I thought the under four months they were still on three feedings.

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

I personally think it is what works best for the dog. Peri did not like the 3 feedings (surprisingly lol) and my vet said at 3 months, it was up to me/Peri to make the decision to go to 2/day.

 

Personal opinion: try 1 1/4 or so cup in the morning and same in the afternoon. If she gobbles the 1 cup in the morning, give her a bit more at that time.

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

One more thing...we feed Peri LESS than what the Fromm bag tells us.  I know you are not feeding fromm, but just letting you know that every dog is different.  Peri's weight is ideal and even though she could eat more, I want her to stay healthy (and vet says she's perfect).

[Alli and Barkley]

I really appreciate all of your help!

 

Karen- he was 15lbs last check

 

I will update you all soon

 

Thank you

[Alli and Barkley]

UPDATE:

Gave Barkley his lunch- used only TOTW without mixing in his old food, and poured in a tiny bit of water- stirred, set it down and?  He ate it all up! Hopefully his stool will be normal (first time not mixing old with new food)

 

Thank you all so much!