Rook's refusing to eat her TOTW

[Heather]

A couple of weeks ago, my 7 month old mini goldendoodle refused to eat her TOTW High Prairie puppy for about a day. She was her normal, playful self and still ate treats when offered, and went back to eating her food the next day, so I chalked it up to being a fluke. Yesterday and so far this morning, thouh, she's refusing it again. I make sure to wash her bowl every night, and she also gets food out of a Buster Cube sometimes and she won't take TOTW from that now either. In May she had blood work and x-rays done for some vomiting, but they didn't find anything wrong. We give her Pepcid now to keep her stomach calm, but she doesn't seem nauseated because she will gladly take treats. Does she just not care for TOTW anymore? Or could this be a sign of an underlying problem?

[J and Riley (and Luna)]

Luna started refusing her TotW conveniently when there was a recall so we just took it back.  She eats Acana now - it's about $5 more a bag than the TotW but she LOVES it and has had amazing poops ever since we switched.  A lot of dogs seem to like Fromm - a puppy (pug) across the street from us is on Fromm puppy and he is growing like a weed!

She may just be trying her luck getting you to feed her something more "interesting".  You don't want to switch her every time she gets "bored" - that will make a picky eater.  What I have done in the past is put a tiny bit of water mixed in with the kibble (I mean TINY amount - about a tbsp in a full bowl of kibble).  It brings out some of the flavor/smell of the kibble without changing anything nutrition-wise or making the kibbles soft.

[Heather]

Thanks for the tip! I tried it, but she didn't seem to like it with the water... though we were at the park this afternoon, though, and I had some in a plastic baggie in my purse that I accidentally dropped and spilled in the sand, and she gobbled the stuff up, sand and all! Back home, though, we're back to refusing again. I picked up some Orijen, but I want to give it a few days before I give into her picky puppy ways. Thanks again!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I don't think it's at all unusual for a dog to have days here and there when she isn't interested in eating her kibble. One day means nothing. If she refuses it several meals in a row, or several times within a week or two, or you see any excessive drooling, lip-licking, lip smacking, or vomiting, that's a different story. But for now, I'd just leave it alone and watch her. Don't try to tempt her into eating, just in case there is something brewing. And I wouldn't change foods yet, although that might be something to consider in the near future. But since she has a history of tummy troubles, I wouldn't make any changes until you're sure there isn't a problem currently.

[F, Calla & Luca]

That was about what I was going to say : )

[Heather]

Thanks, Karen! Your input is always appreciated!

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

Was going to say this - see how she is today and tomorrow.  How is she by the way???

[Heather]

Yesterday night I got her to eat about 1/2 a cup of her food, but this morning she was back to not eating. I mixed a couple pieces of Orijen puppy kibble in with her food this morning, and she ate the Orijen and left the TOTW alone. Any ideas on how to transition her to new food without causing tummy upset if she's mostly refusing her current food? Thanks!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I'd go ahead and just switch. There's no way to get her to eat the old food if you mix it with the new, she's just going to pick it out.

You don't need puppy kibble, though. At her age, you can go with the Adult formula.

If you do switch, it will be interesting to see how long it takes for her to start refusing the Orijen. :)

[Heather]

Thanks, Karen! I had no idea that I could switch her to adult already.

I'll keep you updated with how quickly she gets sick of the Orijen. :)

[Heather]

Karen, for the first couple of days on Orijen Rook's stools were fine, but yesterday and this morning they have just been diarrhea. Do I switch to a bland diet to settle her stomach, or do I just keep going with the Orijen? Thanks!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Hmmmm. Did she have anything else that was new in the way of treats, etc.?

Had she ever had bouts of diarrhea before when she was on the TOTW?

I am wondering if we are dealing with a sensitive stomach or IBS type of thing here, especially considering that she had the GI problems in May, and then the period of inappetance recently. It may be that she needs an LID food.

Try going to the bland diet and see what happens. The alternative would be to stay with the Orijen but add a spoonful or two of plain pure canned pumpkin and some plain unflavored fat-free yogurt to her meals. Make sure she's getting enough water to prevent dehydration.

If the diarrhea continues, I'd take a stool specimen in for a culture.

  

 

[Heather]

She had one of those Himalayan dog chews over the course of about 5 days, which was new for her. She had a bully stick the night before the diarrhea started, but she's had plenty of those before.

I'm a little confused about the pumpkin - a vet once told us to give her a spoonful after a couple of days with bowel movements (following a bland diet, I guess the rice had her constipated.) So pumpkin can also be used to stop diarrhea?

She never had diarrhea while on TOTW, but she has had a couple of bouts before when she was on other food. I'd definitely be willing to try an LID food, I'll check the food post for recs. Thanks!