Chihuahua puppy won't eat

[luvmypuppy]

My 8 month old chihuahua puppy won't eat. My daughter had her from age 7 weeks to 5 months and then gave her to me. She was already accustomed to me and my home as my daughter brought her here several times per week. My daughter claimed that she ate fine when she had her but I have my doubts.
I have tried Iams, pedigree, and eukanuba....she doesn't eat dry food at all. She will go 24+ hours with no food. This has gone on since i've had her ....3 months. I offer food to her several times per day and when she sniffs it and walks away I take the food away. She gets no treats or snacks at all. She will beg and look real interested in people food but she gets none. Sometimes she will give in at the end of the day and eat a few bites. Sometimes she will eat when my daughter is here with her puppy and I feed them both....although I have to watch because she will fight with the other pup over her dish of food.
I know that this is a big deal for a little dog like a chihuahua. What can I do?

 

[Athe]

Where she is a small dog perhaps you could feed her a home prepared diet. Do some reading up on menu plans etc. What I do with my dogs is take veggies, organic yogurt, hemp seed oil, garlic, whole egg raw including shell and toss it into the blender and make a smooth blend. Then I take raw Hamburg and muscle meat and offal and make up small little freezer bags of premade meals. What the dog doesn't eat, scoop up and put back into the fridge do not free feed. If you decide to feed cooked meats with blended veggies just make sure you add digestive enzymes to the mixture. You can also get steamed bone meal from Solid Gold dog food, or the egg shell will give calcium as well. Do not free feed a pup that may have guarding issues, and be sure to implement the NIFIL policy.
Some good brands of KibbleI would suggest would be Innova, California Naturals, Canidae, Wellness etc. For my dogs I always mix in canned food of the same brand with water mixed into the kibble. To keep teeth clean give raw meaty bones. It's less stress on the kidneys feeding canned or home prepared meals. Feeding just plan dry kibble is stressful on the kidneys if the dog is not drinking enough water.

 

[Doberluv]

Sounds like Athe gave you sound advice. With a Chihuahua, you can't mess around with this because of the great risk of hypoglycemia. My dog almost died because of it. Make her food tasty, cater to her a little. Skip the garbage, grocery store dog food. Like Athe said, use the premium foods or find out about home cooking or research raw. You can add a little something on top of the kibble to make it tastier. My girl Chi eats well most of the time, but sometimes won't eat for all day, so I'll sprinkle a little bit of fresh parmessan cheese on her Canidae kibble. It smells strong and yummy and you only need a little.

 

[luvmypuppy]

I tried all the suggestions (all very good ones) and she still wasn't eating. She sleeps 90% of the time. I took her to a new vet last week and she said that she felt 2 puppies (she's approx 5 weeks....I know because my daughter brought her male pomeranian over to my house when I was out and neglected to tell me that they had mated).The vet did not confirm this with an ultrasound etc. She took blood and a stool sample and said that they were all normal. Also she didn't seemed concerned that she wasn't eating. The vet gave me some sort of concentrated calorie canned food....which of course she wouldn't eat. They tried to feed her treats and different types of food in the office but she wouldn't touch any of it.
She isn't going to have the puppies but the vet can't spay/abort her until mid July. I am going to see if another vet can do it sooner. I am concerned about my pup....is all this normal when they are pregnant?
Also the vet said that I could give her 1/2 of a regular Pepsid pill. Have any of you heard of this? She has been vomiting this yellow foamy stuff. I did tell the vet about it.
The vet didn't lighten my concern (only my wallet) because she treated me like all this was nothing and as if I were being silly for worrying. I won't be going back to that vet....

 

[Ash47]

That poor baby. I can't believe carelessness allowed her to get pregnant like that. I am not saying it was careless on your part, but those two dogs should not have been allowed to mate. When did your daughter finally tell you they mated??

 

[juliefurry]

try canned food. I know when our husky wouldn't eat the kibble that we gave her we gave her canned and she loved it. Also we started our husky out on ground beef, rice, and cottage cheese. Cottage cheese is good for dogs, or so my vet had told me. Good for you for making the right decision about the puppies. I know it's hard to make that kind of decision for I think it's best for the momma.

 

[luvmypuppy]

My daughter told me a week after it happened. I was livid. I didn't get the dog to mate her and if I did it wouldn't have been at 8 months old. I tried ground beef, rice, and carrots (she used to eat carrots) she nibbled on it twice and won't touch it again. I've been eating it!! It's not bad<s>

 

[juliefurry]

I would have screamed my head off at her! Dogs shouldn't be bred until after 2 years old and they've been cleared of all health problems. What was she thinking??? All my grandparent's dogs that I have known grew up on human food though. They wouldn't even look at dog food, canned or kibble. Maybe try a better grade of food (Innova or Eagle Pack). It's strange that she won't even eat the ground beef and stuff though. Hmm...maybe plan yogurt or something of that nature that would have a little better taste to it.

 

[Renee750il]

Have you tried chicken? Sometimes they'll eat that when they've turned their noses up at everything else . . .

Good luck with the new vet. I'm afraid I'd've read that one the riot act! Waiting until mid- July . . . when she's already about five weeks? The pups would be almost full term by then!

 

[Saje]

You know, I agree with what everyone has suggested and I'd just like to add that sometimes animals will happily eat canned pumpkin (no spices). They seem to be self medicating. I know when I open a can the dogs and cats will eat some of it and sometimes they won't touch it. I think they know if it'll help them. Maybe if her tummy is off you could try that?

And also, someone was saying on another thread that if your dog has a full stomach or bowels it can feel like puppies???... I dont' know much about breeding but it is a thought.

 

[+Dogs4[my]life+]

when she goes to new home, it's normal for a pup to be like that.
if she doesnt eat for too long, it's realy bad.
my friend's dog never ate dogfood, so she gives her dog "human" food, such as noodles, rice, and such.she just doesnt give her food that dog snt supposed to eat.

OR. I have a simpler way for ya.
" C A N F O O D "
Dogs love em!! if you're gong to start with giving ur pup canfood, i recommend pedigree..
if my Bichon eats other brand, like ol'roy or sometime I buy cheap ones..and if he eats those, he always throw up. Pedigree is the best!
i dont know if ur pup will throw up, but pedigree is delicious! [dogs say]

 

[chilover]

I have a Chihuahua and when she lost her appetite in the past I fed her canned baby food. She loved it. It's also very high in callories so a little goes a long way. Try differend flavors like chicken or turkey. With no sugar, of course.

 

[juliefurry]

Eagle Pack and Innova would be better choices of canned food to use. It's better ingredients. My dogs eat pedigree canned food sometimes though, but for the most part I feed them chicken soup for the pet lover's soul (puppy and dog formula) canned food. Your pup might like that.

 

[luvmypuppy]

She was spayed on 6/28. She was carrying 4 puppies. She is definitely feeling much better now....playing, not sleeping as much but she still weird about food. I've cooked for her (ground turkey, rice, carrots) tried all different kinds of canned and dry food from Pet stores. My daughter's dog is sure eating good!! She's been getting all the stuff my chi turns her nose up at.
On a good day she'll eat a few spoons of something. On a bad day...not even that. How much food should an 8 month old 6.5 lb Chi eat?? I've never had a chi...only toy poodles and a schnauzer and they were all good eaters. Maybe I am expecting her to eat too much??

 

[Pugsly]

Seems like any liquid associated food would work well?

 

[chilover]

I have 2 Chihuahua 5 lb and 7 lb. They both love to eat and if I don't watch it they will be bigger than my house. But my friend's Chi is a really picky eater. Sometimes she doesn't eat all day. It's just different with every dog, I guess.
For my dogs, a 12.5 oz can of food lasts me about 5-6 feedings. That is per one dog, and I feed them 2X a day. If they seem to gain waight I reduce the size of their meals a little or cut down on liver treats. Have you tried giving her dried liver treats? Dogs love it! Maybe it will jumpstart her appetite.
When Xena was sick and lost her appetite the only food she ate was baby food (turkey).
Maybe she just need some time to get back to normal after being pregnant and all.... It's good she is playing and sleeps less.

 

[aurorab]

Have you tried boiled chicken and rice. I have 2 chis. My new chi was way under weight, just a bit more than just bones. I stated w/ boiled chicken and rice and a little bit of cheese. I would get her to eat the cheese and then add a bit of chicken. Also it had to be warmed (not the cheese but everything else) At first she wouldn't even chew so it had to be small. Then I got her to eat the chicken and rice by itself. Then I mixed the chicken w/ the wet dog food. slowly I fazed out the chicken and now we are onto dog food. Last night i had to put a little cheese in the bowl to get her started but it's starting to work. Also she will eat a little dry at times. We'll have to work on that. Oh and she wouldn't eat out of a bowl. She was a stray, I guess she didn't know that it was ok. I started by hand feeding her and then getting her to eat more and more out of the bowl. The last 2 nights she did it all by herself. Not bad for 3 wks. She was weighed about 2 wks ago 4lbs, she went to the vet at the begining of the week she was 4.8 lbs. Yeah. It hasn't been easy, but I'm trying to be patient. Most important is to keep her hydrated and maybe even some nutracal so her blood sugar doesn't get too low. W/ a bit more sugar she might be up to eating a bit more.
try a few types of food or treats and if you find somthing try to use it to work in the dog food.
Good Luck!!!

 

[poeluvr]

aww.why did ur daughter give her chi to you, chis and poms are very expensive. why would she buy a chi then give it up?