I have a small Maltese that is refusing to eat which is causing all sorts of issues over the past couple of days. I have tried everything that I can think of to try and create an interest for him to want to try the food. Does anyone have any suggestions that I could try besides chicken and hamburger? Dog food is out of the question!
By HarlyFan
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Have you tried warming the food a little bit in the microwave? It helps enhance the scent, which is often all that's needed to pique a dog's interest and hunger. There could also be a medical reason the dog's refusing to eat, so if the problem persists, please see a vet.
I steam fish fillets then add some brown rice,mashed baked sweet potato & drained,green bean for my dogs when they wont eat. If you have tuna or mackeral add that also.I mix it all by hand like a sive through my fingers as I have toys also.
Agree with the poster who mentioned that a visit to the vet might be in order if the non-eating is a new behavior; there could be plenty of physical reasons for this.
My chihuahua went through a period of time (about 4 months) where she would not eat any type of dog food (wet or dry). So I bought some baby food and fed that to her for awhile. The bad thing about baby food is that it does not stimulate their teeth and clean them as dry dog food does. So this is only a short term answer.
Try putting a spoonful of room temperature cottage cheese in with food. Good calcium, etc. Also when our Maltese wouldn't eat we would take away his bowl and 'eat' his food. This 'power trip' would drive him nuts and once given back his bowl he would guard and eat it. Doesn't work if it's overdone.
Maybe he needs a different kind of food. Our baby liked lamb based but not chicken. Or possibly don't encourage the dog's eating behavior. Set bowl down and sooner or later the little thing is hopefully going to eat. I would throw out old food once a day and add new each morning. Maybe it's a tummy ache. Offer plain rice for a couple of days. I'm no vet but I would put a bit of butter and a tiny bit of salt in the rice.
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