Adopted a husky mix, she eats for a few days, then stops eating for a few. Should I do anything different?

[vetpharmtech]

(I've also posted this on /r/Rescuedogs to try and get as much info as I can)

I apologize ahead of time is there's anything wrong in this post, formatting, length, etc. I'm doing this from my iPad and just wanted to get some answers as well as give some background info.

So I adopted a beautiful husky mix (I've been told a lot she looks like a husky/Samoyed) about 3 weeks ago. She's awesome, super sweet & loving, but she was a stray and they couldn't find her owner whatsoever. The only problems I'm having are re-naming her, which she's starting to get used to, and the fact that she stops eating her food for a few days.

It stresses me out, which I really don't want her to feel. My last two dogs, a schnauzer and dachshund, I feel like I didn't raise well enough. I was only 9-10 when my mom and I bought them. They both passed last year. I miss them dearly, but I also missed having a dog.

So I adopted Ocea:

https://imgur.com/fVdntaj

The shelter says she's about 2, she's trained to an extent, and house broken, she's great. I first tried feeding her a mix of the shelters food and her new food, Alpo, which she didn't eat. I ended up giving the Alpo to my SO's parents so I could get a type of food that's healthy for Ocea, her coat and everything. I decided I'd go the Blue Buffalo route, even though it's kind of expensive. She didn't eat for about 2 days, but then ate it all on the 3rd, and kept eating daily. But then she stopped eating again.

I would notice that anytime I opened a can she'd come running and wait for me to put it in her bowl. So I thought maybe she ate canned food, went out and bought some of the Blue Buffalo Wilderness, just like her dry food. Mixed that together cause maybe it'd help. She ate for a few days again, now she's stopped, or barely eats. My SO has taken her out and she threw up bile, and has diarrhea.

Dry food: http://t.petco.com/product/122785/B...Meat-Adult-Dog-Food.aspx?CoreCat=OnSiteSearch

Canned: http://t.petco.com/product/125166/B...ult-Canned-Dog-Food.aspx?CoreCat=OnSiteSearch

Basically I just wanted to know if this is normal? I guess..? I have anxiety, and she's become my ESA(and she's a great one), but her not eating makes me scared. Mainly because if she needs to go see a vet in the coming month(s), I don't have the funds right now. I usually have a good amount of savings, but not currently, I will in June. My mom and my SO's parents have said, "she'll eat it when she's hungry." Which I get, obviously, but I don't want to wait if she will keep getting sick, which I'll watch out for the next few days as well.

Should I keep feeding her both dry and canned? Only dry, or only canned(which is quite expensive $3/can 2 cans/day)? Or should I switch food brands?

 

[pistolpete9]

@vetpharmtech I'm with /@x_miar_x on this one except for one point; take her to the vet first and have her checked out and do a fecal. After that all comes back normal, I'd follow the above users advice. Don't worry too much about feeding the same time every day as you don't want to get her into a routine that she will panic about if it's not 100% followed, especially if she is your ESA and following a specific timeline may not always be possible. (Source: Current Doberman is my service dog and flexibility is a must)

I have had Doberman bitch in the past that had FBS and after clearing her health with the vet, we just didn't put up with it. She learned fairly swiftly that being picky and not eating meant that she just didn't get that meal. She was eating EVO at the time, I forget the protein. We also supplemented with fresh veg and some proteins on top of it here and there, since we had it available, and I believe the rotation of different foods also kept her attention.

Relax, and don't let her be the boss of you, even if she is absolutely gorgeous!

 

[vetpharmtech]

@pistolpete9 Thank you for the advice!

I'm thinking about switching her food out with the Fromm Family brand, I'll definitely be looking into food and vets to see what's the best option.

It's definitely hard to not let her boss me around with that face!

 

[pistolpete9]

@vetpharmtech LOVE Fromm. It's what I feed now. I recommend you have a look at petflow.com to see about the delivery; unless you have a much cheaper store around than I do (Which is highly likely) They are the cheapest and also ship free out of NJ.

Aside from all food being made in their own plants with no other brands and never having a recall, you can also switch around the proteins within the brand without having to do the normal 2 week food switch. Currently my boy is eating the Four Star Nutritional: Salmon a la Veg and loves it but we've also tried the 4 Star chicken, whitefish, duck, and pork varieties. He didn't do super well on the pork, but the others were great. Good Luck!

 

[vetpharmtech]

@pistolpete9 Thank you!

Someone referred it to me from my post on /r/rescuedogs and I've already checked their site, it's at my local Hollywood Feed and Pet Supplies Plus. I'll check those two out tomorrow to see what the cheaper option is, hopefully she'll like it!

 

[turnip52]

@vetpharmtech My dog has liver issues and when her liver values are off she will not eat and throw up bile. I'd definitely have that checked out by the vet to see what's going on. It could be a digestive issue, food allergy, liver issue, or it could be something like anxiety. Your vet will be able to give you a more clear picture of what's going on.

 

[imagebeastmarkbeast]

@vetpharmtech I suspect the she is suffering from a common genetic condition in Huskys known as FBS (fussy bitch syndrome). It's very common and usually nothing to worry about

Some tips:-

• Weigh her regularly. If she's maintaining a healthy weight you probably have nothing to worry about
• Try feeding her less each meal. The recommended serving size of dog food is for "normal" dogs. Huskys are very fuel efficient and generally don't need as much food as a normal dog
• Feed her at the same time/s every day. Make her fit to your schedule not the other way around
• Don't leave her food lying around. As soon as she is finished eating take her food away. She needs to learn to eat at meal time not whenever she wants
• No exercise for at least 45 minutes before or after meals
• Try putting a couple of high value treats (or something loke gravy) in with her food
• Check her poos. If the are runny, etc you may need new food or you may need to go to the vet
• are you up to date on worming?

 

[vetpharmtech]

@imagebeastmarkbeast Thanks for all the tips! Also perfect diagnosis haha

I have tried to weigh her. Probably the most difficult thing I could try, she absolutely hates being picked up and will run away if she sees you trying, last she was weighed it said around 46lbs.

I feed her about 7 oz, of dry food, and put maybe 1/4 cup or less canned food and mix it in. And I do make sure to feed her around the same time, give or take 30 mins.

So far the only times she's had runny stool is when I changed her food, obviously, and just today, but it's no longer runny.

And yes, she's up to date on everything, the shelter checked her for worms, gave her all her shots and fixed her before I adopted her.

Thanks again for the tips

 

[ddoge9000]

@vetpharmtech This is just anecdotal, but my friend's husky does a similar thing. She'll be really picky about eating and eat her meal one day. The next day she won't eat anything. She'll then later throw up bile since she didn't eat.

So maybe it's not too weird of husky behavior..?

 

[vetpharmtech]

@ddoge9000 Hmm, maybe. I'm hoping its just stubbornness. I think it's hilarious though, whenever I or anyone else around eats, she'll walk up beside us and stare at the wall or floor. So sneaky

 

[jesuslover1223]

@vetpharmtech It is hard to tell from here, but my two cents is her guts are not up to par. My mutt has digestion issues so I have to feed small meals and I have started to add zinc/selenium mix. Zinc is vital for proper digestion and zinc should not be taken with out selenium or they effect the others levels. He still does not eat every day but does more often than not. He usually as a bit of a wet food for the minerals but about once a day it is just a bit of kibble. I adopted him with the issue. When I do not add minerals he will go several days with out eating and sometimes acts like he is in pain. When I do give him minerals he only misses a couple meals and acts ok.

 

[sp538]

@vetpharmtech Make sure that when you are changing food that you do it gradually over time, adding a little new food to the old stuff for a few days to get her system used to it. Huskies can have sensitive stomachs and can be picky eaters, so you may have to try a few ideas. Good luck!

 

[oddpilgrim]

@vetpharmtech 1My SO has taken her out and she threw up bile, and has diarrhea.
2Not eating daily "

3ALPO dog shelter "
4Drinking water "
5Switched to X food ..but didn`t eat so I did go for Y food more "

From 1-5 =>A.She swallowed something that cant get pass the digestive system and she cant throw it out.
B.Switching to fast dog foods can rly fuck up a dogs belly and liver.. ( try eating a big hulk of meat on the grill after a few months not eating meat ... you will have the same efect as your dog )
C.She isnt eating daily because something upsets her and a dog wont eat if her inner temp is higher then usual -> infection due to that "object" in her stomach.
D.Maybe you got her already sick ? Spitz-like breeds are hardy dogs and wont show signs of illness till its too late ( You coudnt tell if she was ok or not because you have her no more than 3 weeks as you stated)
E. Sorry for your financial problems , but by any means you must find somebody willing to have a look at her with a promise that you will return the favor ...

P.S Sorry for the bad formating I`m just getting started in reddit

 

[richardson217]

@oddpilgrim In case you didn't know, there's a formatting help box under your comment as you make it. If there's a space between the "A." and the first letter of the sentence, it may help. Same for "1" and "My" and so on. 2 spaces at the end of a line will start a new line beneath the current one.

Hope that helps a little!

 

[oddpilgrim]

@richardson217 Thank you ! I`m embarrassed )

 

[richardson217]

@oddpilgrim Don't be! No need. I only replied because you mentioned being new to reddit comments. Your words are still readable!

 

[aleeta49]

@vetpharmtech No, it's not normal. The last thing you want to hear is 'take the dog to the vet', but that's most likely all you're going to see here.

I have another potential solution. Unseasoned, boiled or baked chicken breast, and white rice (also unseasoned) for a few days (trust me, she'll really inhale it). This will help stabilize her digestive system. The second thing is to realize (incoming unpopular opinion) that you may have been sucked in by creative marketing and advertising. It's possible your dog just doesn't like it. Skipping meals for days, and then eating, then skipping more meals sounds exactly like that. A dog will not intentionally starve itself.

Now you know you're going to have to pay for this. I don't mean with a vet visit. I mean a different food. If Blue Buffalo isn't cutting it (and it seems that it isn't), you might be willing to give this stuff a try. It's not Orijen, but it is made by the same parent company, in the same plant, in Alberta Canada. Change them over slowly, and you're allowed to add in ½ a cup of unseasoned white rice to help the digestion and transition. Once the transition is over, eliminate the white rice, so that the dog is only seeing their food. The higher protein content will also help digestion, and solidify that excrement. If they stop eating this stuff, chances are, they might be bored, and at that point, you're allowed to use the rice to get them to eat. A dog absolutely loves food that stinks to high heaven. This is why training treats smell so bad to us.

When you say 'she threw up bile', what color was it? Did it look greenish yellow? I only ask because when a dog doesn't feel well, they will eat grass. Digesting grass causes heartburn, and vomiting. The vomit will look a greenish yellow (and greatly resemble bile). It will also be slightly foamy. The usual culprit is crabgrass. Watch what they get into outside, and if they try to eat more grass, well, stop 'em.