My dog seems afraid to eat his food

zaksmum

Just googled it and it seems the lens of the dog's eye develops a cloudy appearance when NS is present. I know many older dogs have this and my own 12 year old dog does.

But Jack's eyes are still crystal clear so it's unlikely he has NS.

bizzybee

Have you tried raising the bowl off the ground on to a low stool or box?

splishsplash

Fosterdog wrote: »

A friends dog went through a similar phase and in the end he only way he would eat was without a bowl, she put his food straight onto his feeding mat instead and he started eating again. It is a bit messy with wet food but not too difficult to clean up so worth a try.

She never found out why he stopped eating from his bowl and like you tried all sorts of bowls and pots, he just didn't seem to like putting his head into the bowl anymore.

Nuclear sclerosis (cloudy eyes from layers in the lens compacting together, completely normal and nothing to worry about) usually starts to kick in at around 7 years and can affect sight, especially close up so could be his line of sight is affected by the bowl when he dips his head in.

Whether the vet can find it or not, there's something wrong with the dog. If he salivates and wants to eat and you have tried every combination of feeding him, then something to do with the mechanics of eating is causing him pain or soreness.

The only thing left to try is getting rid of the bowl altogether - it's got to be worth a try. If you have no joy with that, then I would go back to the vet with the attitude that there is a problem and they need to find out what it is.

Babbawah

A dog is a pack animal and every dog needs to know its place within that pack.

You, your family and any other pets are what makes that pack for your dog.

Every pack has to have an Alpha.

It's possible that your dog has somehow become fearful of eating in case it upsets the Alpha. It's possible that your dog has become very confused about its place in the hierarchy of the pack.

It's not uncommon for a dog to become a fussy eater and any possible causes should be investigated thoroughly, but we must never forget that they existed for 1000's of years without us and our 2 meals a day in our centrally heated dens.

A healthy dog will always eat if it's hungry.

Fast your dog for at least one day, offer it no food or treats but carry on as normal in every other respect. After one day make a fuss and play with it for a short while before putting food down. When you put the food down walk away and leave it.

If it doesn't eat . . . remove the food and repeat the process for another day.

If it hasn't eaten within 3 days then your dog has a medical condition.

If it does eat, then you need to re-examine your feeding regime and consider that there may be problems within the pack that your dog is a part of.

Johnny_Dangerously

Babbawah wrote: »

A dog is a pack animal and every dog needs to know its place within that pack.

You, your family and any other pets are what makes that pack for your dog.

Every pack has to have an Alpha.

It's possible that your dog has somehow become fearful of eating in case it upsets the Alpha. It's possible that your dog has become very confused about its place in the hierarchy of the pack.

It's not uncommon for a dog to become a fussy eater and any possible causes should be investigated thoroughly, but we must never forget that they existed for 1000's of years without us and our 2 meals a day in our centrally heated dens.

A healthy dog will always eat if it's hungry.

Fast your dog for at least one day, offer it no food or treats but carry on as normal in every other respect. After one day make a fuss and play with it for a short while before putting food down. When you put the food down walk away and leave it.

If it doesn't eat . . . remove the food and repeat the process for another day.

If it hasn't eaten within 3 days then your dog has a medical condition.

If it does eat, then you need to re-examine your feeding regime and consider that there may be problems within the pack that your dog is a part of.

Anticipating Alpha/pack theory backlash in 5....4.....3....:D

Babbawah

Johnny_Dangerously wrote: »

Anticipating Alpha/pack theory backlash in 5....4.....3....:D

This is MSE.

Reality has no place here.

I care nothing for the usual MSE backlash, I care that most of MSE's !!!!! comes up on Google searches and folk with genuine issues might actually believe what they read here.

artbaron

splishsplash wrote: »

Whether the vet can find it or not, there's something wrong with the dog. If he salivates and wants to eat and you have tried every combination of feeding him, then something to do with the mechanics of eating is causing him pain or soreness.

The only thing left to try is getting rid of the bowl altogether - it's got to be worth a try. If you have no joy with that, then I would go back to the vet with the attitude that there is a problem and they need to find out what it is.

Exactly. Seems to me the OP has been fobbed off. Based on the OP's description there's no way this is a behavioural issue with no medical cause.

Babbawah

artbaron wrote: »

Exactly. Seems to me the OP has been fobbed off. Based on the OP's description there's no way this is a behavioural issue with no medical cause.

Can you imagine a reality where you are a part of the problem and not a part of the solution?

pawsies

Babbawah wrote: »

A dog is a pack animal and every dog needs to know its place within that pack.

You, your family and any other pets are what makes that pack for your dog.

Every pack has to have an Alpha.

It's possible that your dog has somehow become fearful of eating in case it upsets the Alpha. It's possible that your dog has become very confused about its place in the hierarchy of the pack.

It's not uncommon for a dog to become a fussy eater and any possible causes should be investigated thoroughly, but we must never forget that they existed for 1000's of years without us and our 2 meals a day in our centrally heated dens.

A healthy dog will always eat if it's hungry.

Fast your dog for at least one day, offer it no food or treats but carry on as normal in every other respect. After one day make a fuss and play with it for a short while before putting food down. When you put the food down walk away and leave it.

If it doesn't eat . . . remove the food and repeat the process for another day.

If it hasn't eaten within 3 days then your dog has a medical condition.

If it does eat, then you need to re-examine your feeding regime and consider that there may be problems within the pack that your dog is a part of.

Utter tosh.

Alpha theory is long outdated. It's like teaching kids from a 1960's schoolbook. Times change, science moves on.

zaksmum

Thanks all. I really do appreciate your input.

Bizzybee, yes, I have tried raising the bowl up off the floor on a stand. Made no difference.

Splishsplash, Jack will eat when he's desperate. So it's not hurting him. He will go all day and sometimes into the second day - be staring at me as if to say he's starving - then seem to get the message that it's his dog food or nothing and eat it, licking the bowl clean. I have to suppress the urge to cheer when he does that!

He will eat when fed on his walks too. I take a carrier bag, spread it on the pavement and put his food on it and he'll scoff it right away. Neighbours must think I've lost it.

Babbawah, I agree with the pack animal theory. My dog is very attached to me and will follow me from room to room. It does seem that he thinks if he eats, I'll be angry with him because he looks guilty and trembles no matter how much I reassure him. I don't think he'd go for 3 days without eating because when he's absolutely starving he will eat. I just hate the situation and want him to be relaxed around his food.

Artbaron, I don't think I have been fobbed off. The issue is almost certainly behavioural. If I gave him some fresh chicken or beef he'd have my hand off!

I just need to find out how to fix whatever's worrying him because it must be so stressful for him too.