A friend's boxer, 5 years old, unspayed female, quit eating a few weeks ago. All vet tests are normal. I have cooked for her but after two weeks, she has quit eating that. Vets are stumped and no dog has ever refused to eat my cooking. Does anyone have any ideas what could be going on?
olinda wrote: A friend's boxer, 5 years old, unspayed female, quit eating a few weeks ago. All vet tests are normal. I have cooked for her but after two weeks, she has quit eating that. Vets are stumped and no dog has ever refused to eat my cooking. Does anyone have any ideas what could be going on?
Is this bitch in heat by any chance? Hormonal changes can affect appetite. Was she a hearty eater prior to her anorexia? OR has she always been picky? How is her actual weight? Heavy, just right, skinny? Any change in her energy levels? Has there been any vomiting or diarrhea? Any gurgly stomach or nasty farts? How is the owner attempting to make her eat? Some more info might help us come up with some ideas... Hope to hear from you soon.
Good appetite before, very active still. I don't know how they feed her. She is on the slim side but looks good. No, she is not in heat. Just one day she stopped eating. They took her to their vet who did labs and xrays. At first they thought gastric torsion and did surgery but her stomach was fine. They tacked it up anyway. She is on prednisone to give her an appetite but it is not working. She ate my food for two weeks and then got picky again and yesterday refused everything.
Let me say I am terrified a vet would do unnecessary surgery on a Boxer. Your friend needs to change vets and never go back there again. That is unacceptable and downright frightening!
You need to find out from your friend how she fed her Boxer. That will help give us a direction to look at.
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*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* Christina Ghimenti PawPrint Boxers
Just dry dog food in a bowl. My food is 1/3 chicken, 1/3 grains, 1/3 vegetables. She is fed twice a day. Nothing special. Oh, and no farts, no gas, no diarrhea, no vomiting
olinda wrote: Good appetite before, very active still. I don't know how they feed her. She is on the slim side but looks good. No, she is not in heat. Just one day she stopped eating. They took her to their vet who did labs and xrays. At first they thought gastric torsion and did surgery but her stomach was fine. They tacked it up anyway. She is on prednisone to give her an appetite but it is not working. She ate my food for two weeks and then got picky again and yesterday refused everything.
Hi Martha...I realize this is not your Boxer, but a friend's, BUT... I am wondering how in the world the vet "thought" torsion (GDV). Torsion is very simply diagnosed by a rock hard ,distended stomach (bloating), extreme pain, and a simple x-ray. There is no guess work once you see the x-ray, the torsion is that obvious. I must assume that the vet did not do an x-ray, but rushed this girl into surgery anyway for a GDV that did not exist. I would run away, quickly, from such a vet. Also, I would be very hesitant of a vet that prescribed pred to an otherwise healthy Boxer who is simply not eating. Pred should be used, IMO, only as a last resort, dog must eat, or get very sick, option... not as an easy fix to a problem that may or may not be health related.
From your last words, I am thinking this is just a picky eater, who is holding out for better and better stuff. I will venture a guess that she has always been free fed, which is the worst thing possible for a picky eater. Picky eaters need to be put on a very strict feeding schedule. Set amounts at set intervals, with the food only being available for 10 minutes whether she eats it or not, then put away until the next regularly scheduled meal time. A healthy dog will NOT starve itself. A picky eater will put up a good fight, hoping to get an ever raising level of gourmet additions or meals, from an owner afraid her dog will starve itself, so will do anything to get it to eat.
I would suggest, since all the tests were normal (though not sure I trust this vet at all), your friend pick a high quality kibble, feed an appropriate amount split into 2 meals per day, set the food out for no more than 10 minutes, then pull it up until the next scheduled meal (also do not increase the amount at a feeding if a feeding was missed- feed a measured amount only). Once the dog is eating regularly ( it may take several days) then you can occasionally add in a treat or something other than the normal kibble. Never should this dog be allowed to free feed, or to have "goodies" regularly at meal time. Picky eaters are "made" not born.
Pass along this info to your friend, and see what they think. Waiting to hear...
Hello Guys i think that Eating disorders are conditions defined by abnormal eating plan that may involve either inadequate or excessive diet to the barrier of an individual's mental and health.While medicine can be impressive for many suffering from specific types of eating disorders,the repercussions of eating conditions can be severe, including death.Thanks a lot!!
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