Maddy isn't interested in her morning meal anymore. Is this normal?

[Kelly Gallagher]

Let me first say that ever since we brought Maddy home at 9 weeks old she has LOVED her meals.  It got to a point that she ate so fast we had to put a big rock in her bowl to slow her down.  She dances around and around when we are getting her food out and she has always finished every last bite.  She is now 14 mos. old and has recently been showing a lack of interest in her morning meal.  Nothing else has changed..she's still as playful as ever...but she seems like she could care less about eating in the morning.  This morning she only ate about 1/2 cup of her 1 1/2 cups.  Her evening meal she is finishing with no problem.  We've even put shredded carrots on top of the morning meal to encourage her..she LOVES carrots.  Is it normal for dogs to cut out a meal on their own?  I've never owned a dog before so I have no idea.

Thanks for your help.

Kelly

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

Peri is almost 13 months - we are experiencing exact same thing and I am not worried. She ALWAYS ate her food until a few weeks ago - not as interested in breakfast. She went a few days eating 1/2 and then the rest at lunch. Then all last week she ate it every morning. Then this morning she ate half. I put the rest in a baggy and told her daycare to feed it at lunch - they already fed it to her because she was "cranky" and she ate it all. So my point is, I think this is normal for dogs once they get older. We are reducing the serving sizes slightly also - she just isn't as hungry!

[BG and Gavin]

Gavin has never been interested in eating in the morning. A few times early on he would bring up bile in the morning from his empty stomache. I would coax him to eat something (1/2 a biscuit) last thing at night and first thing in the morning before exercise to combat this issue. Once his morning walk, cool down and nap is over then, and only then, is he interested in his food dish. He is free-fed however and younger (9mons). My DH always says he will eat if he is hungry - it's what dogs do. So I would not worry.

[Robyn, Greg and Snickers]

We went through this with Snickers starting at 9 mths (he is 11mths). Are you just feedin puppy kibble? Our vet recommended mixing in some wet food (about 1/2 a TBS) to make
it more interesting. We also bought these little balls of freeze dried raw meat and sprinkle it over the food so he has something strong and meaty to taste.

Also the vet said that he may not eat as much as he got older since most of his major growth is over. There are still days he leaves leftovers at breakfast they just come out again at dinner LOL

also the vet recommended not leaving the food out so he could graze it is better to have them eat on a schedule.

[Eva (Lilo and Rocky)]

yes, quite normal, and it's good she's self-regulating! If she's happy and active and healthy, she's getting enough to eat.

[Kelly Gallagher]

Thanks everyone. Maddy has never grazed..1 meal in the morning 1 at night..finished in 5 minutes flat..hence the big rock in the bowl. She has been eating an all life stages food (TOTW) since about 4 months old. She weighs 60 lbs and eats 3 cups a day divided into 2 meals. I guess she's just like any other girl and she trying to watch her figure - lol. She is acting as normal as she always has so I guess we'll just phase out that morning meal..maybe give her some carrots in the morning and stick with her evening meal. If she protests will add it back in I guess.
Thanks again!

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

Or just scale back the morning meal - cut it in half for a while - see how she does. Seriously, Maddy sounds EXACTLY like Peri.

[shelly]

yes... tori has done this also.. it varies from week to week and day to day... depending on when we all get up and when her last 'meal' is for the night! sometimes she barks for food later at night and then she doesn't eat until mid day. we used to give her 3 smaller meals.. now she basically eats only 2-ish

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

Guinness is just about the same age, and he still loves both his morning and evening meals, and eats every morsel. He is on home cooking, so I don't know how he would be on kibble. He seems to be really hungry for each of his meals. His weight is perfect (according to the Vet), so I know he's getting the right amount of food. I think they're all different...just like we are.