Not sure if this is the right forum to post, I am worried about my 2.5 year old. He has been showing less and less interest in his food. Some background:
When we brought him home at 8 weeks old, the vet deemed him a little thin. He never finished his kibble. However, we made sure not to create a picky eater. We didn't add anything to the kibble, and we took it away after 15 minutes if he didn't finish it. We never allowed him to graze. Around 4 months old, he finally started gobbling down his meals with apparent enthusiasm.
Around 1 year old, he started refusing his breakfasts. I didn't think much of it and just took away the food if he didn't finish it. I figured he had an upset stomach or wasn't getting enough exercise. After a week or so he seemed to enjoy eating breakfast again.
After age 1, he alternated on and off between eating breakfast and not eating. He would literally just not approach me when I set his bowl down. He would just ignore it. I also noticed that if he just "woke up" then he would be less interested in eating. I would just skip breakfast and instead take him for a stimulating walk to get his energy up, and then I would just feed him lunch, usually around 2 pm. This seemed to work for awhile. Now I don't even bother feeding him before 11 am.
However, for the last couple of months, he has started refusing dinners too. Also, he has started doing some strange behaviors with his food bowl. Before he would simply ignore it. Now, he will walk up to it and stare at it, then paw or dig at it. Recently, he has even WHINED at the food bowl and then turned and stared at me. He's almost totally silent and rarely makes noises outside of playtime, so for him to whine is very shocking. I would pick up the food bowl and shove it toward him, and he would recoil and back away. Other times he would hide when I put down the food. I've attached videos below of his behavior.
I thought maybe something was wrong with the bowls or feeder, but I wash them after every meal. I also fed him in his rubber travel bowls and he did the same thing. He's been on the same Taste of the Wild kibble since he was 8 weeks old. We've used the same two flavors since switching to adult version at 5 months old. I buy the small bags every 2-3 weeks so nothing's ever sitting too long. I always add warm water to the kibble. Sometimes I give him plain kibble, other times I add boiled meat/rice, or some veggies such as carrots or broccoli. Whether or not I add stuff seems to make no difference to whether he wants to eat it.
I don't overfeed him either. He's the right weight at 69 lbs, and not losing or gaining weight. He's been this weight since 10 months old and it hasn't changed. He gets 2 cups a day, 1 cup per meal, but in reality not really. On days he refuses to eat, he'll probably eat 1/4 cup of kibble total. He could do this for several days in a row. He does get treats every day on his walks, maybe 1/4 cup, because I am always working on loose-leash walking in the city.
Since this last summer, we've had to be on antibiotics 3x, for a hotspot, a UTI, and just last week some bad diarrhea. It was SUCH a struggle with the 2x a day antibiotics, which had to be taken with food otherwise he threw up. Sometimes I was literally pushing kibble down his throat, as he struggled to spit it out. Last week, we temporarily switched to a veterinary Purina kibble to get through the diarrhea, which he seemed to really enjoy at first. By the end of the week though, he was refusing the new kibble as well. The one thing he seemed to like was the canned Purina wet food, which he ate regardless of time of day (however, adding it on top of the Purina kibble didn't encourage him to eat it).
I asked the vet about his behavior and she said that since his weight is normal, he's fine, and I could try switching to a different kibble. We've been to the vet a couple times for the hot spot and the UTI and diarrhea, and every time he checks out normal. He's got no obstructions or anything.
Other than the diarrhea episode, his stool is usually normal, and his energy is normal. I wonder if on days that I don't exercise him is when he eats less, but sometimes I'll take him for 2 hours walks and he still doesn't want to eat...so I don't understand. Especially with his recent behavior where he would actually whine at the bowl and back away like I'm trying to poison him.
Also I would be kind of happy if he demonstrated any sort of enthusiasm for his food. I don't think I'm spoiling him by wanting him to enjoy his meals, the way I enjoy mine.
When we brought him home at 8 weeks old, the vet deemed him a little thin. He never finished his kibble. However, we made sure not to create a picky eater. We didn't add anything to the kibble, and we took it away after 15 minutes if he didn't finish it. We never allowed him to graze. Around 4 months old, he finally started gobbling down his meals with apparent enthusiasm.
Around 1 year old, he started refusing his breakfasts. I didn't think much of it and just took away the food if he didn't finish it. I figured he had an upset stomach or wasn't getting enough exercise. After a week or so he seemed to enjoy eating breakfast again.
After age 1, he alternated on and off between eating breakfast and not eating. He would literally just not approach me when I set his bowl down. He would just ignore it. I also noticed that if he just "woke up" then he would be less interested in eating. I would just skip breakfast and instead take him for a stimulating walk to get his energy up, and then I would just feed him lunch, usually around 2 pm. This seemed to work for awhile. Now I don't even bother feeding him before 11 am.
However, for the last couple of months, he has started refusing dinners too. Also, he has started doing some strange behaviors with his food bowl. Before he would simply ignore it. Now, he will walk up to it and stare at it, then paw or dig at it. Recently, he has even WHINED at the food bowl and then turned and stared at me. He's almost totally silent and rarely makes noises outside of playtime, so for him to whine is very shocking. I would pick up the food bowl and shove it toward him, and he would recoil and back away. Other times he would hide when I put down the food. I've attached videos below of his behavior.
I thought maybe something was wrong with the bowls or feeder, but I wash them after every meal. I also fed him in his rubber travel bowls and he did the same thing. He's been on the same Taste of the Wild kibble since he was 8 weeks old. We've used the same two flavors since switching to adult version at 5 months old. I buy the small bags every 2-3 weeks so nothing's ever sitting too long. I always add warm water to the kibble. Sometimes I give him plain kibble, other times I add boiled meat/rice, or some veggies such as carrots or broccoli. Whether or not I add stuff seems to make no difference to whether he wants to eat it.
I don't overfeed him either. He's the right weight at 69 lbs, and not losing or gaining weight. He's been this weight since 10 months old and it hasn't changed. He gets 2 cups a day, 1 cup per meal, but in reality not really. On days he refuses to eat, he'll probably eat 1/4 cup of kibble total. He could do this for several days in a row. He does get treats every day on his walks, maybe 1/4 cup, because I am always working on loose-leash walking in the city.
Since this last summer, we've had to be on antibiotics 3x, for a hotspot, a UTI, and just last week some bad diarrhea. It was SUCH a struggle with the 2x a day antibiotics, which had to be taken with food otherwise he threw up. Sometimes I was literally pushing kibble down his throat, as he struggled to spit it out. Last week, we temporarily switched to a veterinary Purina kibble to get through the diarrhea, which he seemed to really enjoy at first. By the end of the week though, he was refusing the new kibble as well. The one thing he seemed to like was the canned Purina wet food, which he ate regardless of time of day (however, adding it on top of the Purina kibble didn't encourage him to eat it).
I asked the vet about his behavior and she said that since his weight is normal, he's fine, and I could try switching to a different kibble. We've been to the vet a couple times for the hot spot and the UTI and diarrhea, and every time he checks out normal. He's got no obstructions or anything.
Other than the diarrhea episode, his stool is usually normal, and his energy is normal. I wonder if on days that I don't exercise him is when he eats less, but sometimes I'll take him for 2 hours walks and he still doesn't want to eat...so I don't understand. Especially with his recent behavior where he would actually whine at the bowl and back away like I'm trying to poison him.
Also I would be kind of happy if he demonstrated any sort of enthusiasm for his food. I don't think I'm spoiling him by wanting him to enjoy his meals, the way I enjoy mine.