Bentley is smelling food and walks away

[Sabrina and Bentley]

Hi DK,

 

I wrote about a month ago that Bentley was throwing up and we brought him to the vet and he checked out ok.  It was around the time we bought a new bag of dog food, so we didn't know if it was a bad bag.  We decided to switch him to Blue Buffalo Large Breed Puppy almost two weeks ago and are slowly transitioning from his other dog food.  Problem is, I'm not sure if he likes it.  He used to always gobble up his breakfast and now he shows no interest.  He sticks his nose in the bowl to smell it and then walks away.  it seems for the past week or so, I've had to pull up his breakfast.  So he's only getting his dinner and I don't give him extra because I don't want him eating once a day (although he may be transitioning to this).  He does eat up his dinner but I'm not sure if it's because he's really hungry or if because he really enjoys it.  He usually gets 3.5-4 cups a day depending on his activity level, so the fact that he's only eating 2 cups a day concerns me.  He also seems to not be drinking as much water either.  He hasn't touched his water this morning and that's not like him.

I will admit that he came with us to a neighbor's party Saturday and made out very well. Pigs in the blanket, meatballs, fruit, chips.  We give him scraps a couple of times a week.  So I'm not sure if he has an upset belly from all of that or if he's holding out for human food.  Since then, we have not given him anything and I made sure my fiance understood that he gets nothing else until he's eating normal again.

He also seems to be lazier during the day, whereas he used to play with his toys by himself or run around the house.  Now he just sleeps alot.  Poop is good, energy level is up when we play with him, etc.  I did some reading online and it seems he could have some funky stuff going on with his belly.  He did get to some stuffing from one of his toys last week and I've was finding it in his poop, but that seems to have cleared over the past couple of days.

 

Anyway, just looking for thoughts, opinions.  I typically am a worry wart because he his my first puppy, so I tend to overanalyze everything...hence my super long posts. :-)

 

Thanks for your help!!

Sabrina

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

I would be worried about the pigs in the blanket, meatballs, etc...that could make any dog very sick.  Watch Bentley closely for signs of pancreatitis (lethargy, throwing up, runny poos, etc...).  These rich human foods are too fatty for dogs.

 

On a different note, my chihuahua always turned his nose up at Blue Buffalo.  He just hated it for some reason!

[Sabrina and Bentley]

Yea, mom and dad had a little, er, alot to drink, so that's how he ended up with so much junk food.  Lesson learned...no more adult parties for Bentley. :-)

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I agree with Allyson. I would be concerned about pancreatitis. The fact that he's "lazier" could be a sign that something isn't right. I'd watch him carefully. I hope it's nothing.

 

[Sue, Murphy and Bella ()*o*()]

Seems if his poops are good and he's not vomiting, it could just be a change in appetite. Maybe you can get more advice in the Food Group? 

[Sabrina and Bentley]

I'll have to join them and post there.  Thanks for the suggestion!

[Bonnie and Kona]

I looked at your page and it appears that Bentley is around 8 or 9 months. If that is the case, his appetite and activity level may be slowing down. Owen ate twice as much as our full-grown dog until about that age. He eats the same amount as Kona and I think that began around 8 months or so. Kona  and Owen eat 2 1/2 to 3 cups a day. He may just be growing up. I hope it is nothing more than that.

[Lisa, Daisy & Dexter]

How BIG is Bentley - that seems like an awful lot of food. Daisy is 65#s and eats 2 cups + 2 tablespoons of a topper (canned dog food) a day (Acana and Wellness) 1/2 in the morning and 1/2 in the evening.

Maybe Bentley is just getting enough with the one meal and you could 1/2 it into two times a day.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

You're feeding a much more calorie dense food, so you feed less to get the required calories. And puppies who are still growing require more calories than adult dogs.

[Sabrina and Bentley]

Hi Lisa,

 

Bentley is 7 months and 47 pounds.  I was going off the food bag, but when I looked at calorie calculations, it has him at 3 cups a day, so it could be that i am overfeeding him.  I'll try to lower his intake and see if that helps.  Thanks!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Sabrina, the feeding guidelines for BB Lg Breed puppy are by the weight expected at maturity, not the current weight. Dogs who are expected to be 50-70 lbs as adults should be fed 3-4 cups per day between the ages of 5-7 months, and 3.5-4.25 cups per day between 7-12 months.

http://bluebuffalo.com/dog-food/lp-puppy-large-breed-chicken

[Sue, Murphy and Bella ()*o*()]

My daughters doodle only grazes in the morning and eats most of his food at night, maybe he's just falling into his own eating habits.

[Jennifer,Chloe & Myla]

We were over feeding Chloe and we did not know it when she was a puppy-she would NOT touch her breakfast and we felt so bad! When the vet told us the bags of  food usually tend to give you the idea that they need more than they do-just a guideline they say. So maybe cutting back just a bit would help? I really hope that he is not sick with something else-keep us informed, best of luck!