calvinandmommy Posted January 5, 2012 Report Share Posted January 5, 2012 For a few weeks now Calvin has not been eating all of his food. I was feeding him a cup for breakfast, lunch, and dinner but then he started not finishing his dinner so I slowly cut out his lunch. The other day he took a few bits of kibble from his breakfast and then left the rest and then this morning he did the same thing. He also will take kibble out of his bowl and drop it around the living room and go back to those pieces later. I'm really confused. He isn't acting sick or anything like that he plays just as much as normal and he is going to the bathroom like normal. I also feed him bits of cheese and other foods and if I make eggs I give him a little bit too.....have I spoiled him into not wanting his food but human food now?!?! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elyse Posted January 5, 2012 Report Share Posted January 5, 2012 For a few weeks now Calvin has not been eating all of his food. I was feeding him a cup for breakfast, lunch, and dinner but then he started not finishing his dinner so I slowly cut out his lunch. The other day he took a few bits of kibble from his breakfast and then left the rest and then this morning he did the same thing. He also will take kibble out of his bowl and drop it around the living room and go back to those pieces later. I'm really confused. He isn't acting sick or anything like that he plays just as much as normal and he is going to the bathroom like normal. I also feed him bits of cheese and other foods and if I make eggs I give him a little bit too.....have I spoiled him into not wanting his food but human food now?!?! He just turned a year old, right? I think sutsibe can tell you more about this, but I think they usually end their growth spurt at around that time...and that's when they stop eating. IMO, 3 cups a day is way too much as huskies have very efficient metabolisms. (Food was/is hard to come by in the arctic!) Suka weighs 76 pounds and he's doing wonderful on 1 1/4 - 1 1/2 cups per day. He also might be being picky...he might be holding out for the better-tasting stuff! What brand of kibble are you feeding him, by the way? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
calvinandmommy Posted January 5, 2012 Author Report Share Posted January 5, 2012 We feed him Taste of the Wild Sierra Mountain right now. When he started pulling his food out of the bowl we put him on another flavor for a little bit and he did the same thing. We are about to move so my mom thinks that may be a reason he isn't eating also but I'm not sure about that. I do feel like we are feeding him too much some days but I have it in my head that the dog is going to go hungry if I cut his food down lol even though I know that's not true. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elyse Posted January 5, 2012 Report Share Posted January 5, 2012 We feed him Taste of the Wild Sierra Mountain right now. When he started pulling his food out of the bowl we put him on another flavor for a little bit and he did the same thing. We are about to move so my mom thinks that may be a reason he isn't eating also but I'm not sure about that. I do feel like we are feeding him too much some days but I have it in my head that the dog is going to go hungry if I cut his food down lol even though I know that's not true. I don't think the dog knows you're going to move. They will probably make you THINK they are hungry because they want more food. An instinctual thing. But if you monitor their weight and it stays constant while you're exercising him the same amount...then you're feeding him enough! Just out of curiosity, how much does he weigh now? And could you post some pictures of your boy (top and side views, preferably direct on) so that I/we can see if your boy's getting fat? You wouldn't want them to develop joint problems early in life or diabetes cause he's chubby! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
calvinandmommy Posted January 5, 2012 Author Report Share Posted January 5, 2012 I just measured him lol and he is about 24 inches tall and he is about 50lbs. He is a short boy lol. I do spoil him quiet often and so does my husband lol as I am typing this my husband just gave Calvin a tiny bit of turkey. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elyse Posted January 5, 2012 Report Share Posted January 5, 2012 I just measured him lol and he is about 24 inches tall and he is about 50lbs. He is a short boy lol. I do spoil him quiet often and so does my husband lol as I am typing this my husband just gave Calvin a tiny bit of turkey. I would think that size is heavy...in comparison Suka stands at 26 inches and weighs in at about 76 pounds. He's a lot longer than the breed standard as well... I still think pictures would help to judge. But, in any case, both of you should STOP feeding him any and all treats (human and dog ones) until he starts to eat his kibble again. It sounds like he's holding out for the 'good stuff'...they are very smart and they quickly learn that human food (especially turkey!) tastes much better than their kibble! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brady Posted January 5, 2012 Report Share Posted January 5, 2012 I was just about to post a thread asking the same question. Sherlock will be 8 months old next week, and over the past few weeks his eating has slowed down a lot. Part of the problem I figured out was that there was too much food going into his bowl, so he was cut down a cup a day, and now he's on 3 cups of Orijen Large Breed a day. We feed it to him all at once in the morning, but it's rare that he'll even touch any of it until the end of the day and there's always leftovers. He's not exhibiting any signs of illness, so I think he's just slowed down. I haven't measured how tall he is, but he's weighing in at 56 lbs, so he's in a good range. I find that when he gets more exercise he goes searching in his bowl for more food, so it could be that he's receiving enough for his current exercise level. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elyse Posted January 5, 2012 Report Share Posted January 5, 2012 I was just about to post a thread asking the same question. Sherlock will be 8 months old next week, and over the past few weeks his eating has slowed down a lot. Part of the problem I figured out was that there was too much food going into his bowl, so he was cut down a cup a day, and now he's on 3 cups of Orijen Large Breed a day. We feed it to him all at once in the morning, but it's rare that he'll even touch any of it until the end of the day and there's always leftovers. He's not exhibiting any signs of illness, so I think he's just slowed down. I haven't measured how tall he is, but he's weighing in at 56 lbs, so he's in a good range. I find that when he gets more exercise he goes searching in his bowl for more food, so it could be that he's receiving enough for his current exercise level. With that amount of food, I'd divide it up into smaller portions. At least make it into 2 meals a day...this will cut back on the 'freefeeding'. This way, he'll start to get the idea that the food isn't there all the time and that he has to eat 'X' amount of food when it is set down. So...yeah. Divide up the 3 cups into 2 portions (1.5 cups each, for example). The portions should be far apart from each other (like morning and supper-time). Set it down and watch him eat it. Lift it up after 15 minutes even if he hasn't eaten it all. For the 2nd portion, feed him the 1.5 cups again. Do not add his 'leftovers' from the first portion...then lift it up after 15 minutes. I think it would be helpful if you were to post some side/top shots of your boy too...just to make sure...but also to satisfy my daily husky-picture-fix! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brady Posted January 5, 2012 Report Share Posted January 5, 2012 With that amount of food, I'd divide it up into smaller portions. At least make it into 2 meals a day...this will cut back on the 'freefeeding'. This way, he'll start to get the idea that the food isn't there all the time and that he has to eat 'X' amount of food when it is set down. So...yeah. Divide up the 3 cups into 2 portions (1.5 cups each, for example). The portions should be far apart from each other (like morning and supper-time). Set it down and watch him eat it. Lift it up after 15 minutes even if he hasn't eaten it all. For the 2nd portion, feed him the 1.5 cups again. Do not add his 'leftovers' from the first portion...then lift it up after 15 minutes. I think it would be helpful if you were to post some side/top shots of your boy too...just to make sure...but also to satisfy my daily husky-picture-fix! Thanks SolitaryHowl. I'll have to try the separating the food again and see if it helps. So, if he doesn't eat the food in 15 mins, he doesn't get it at all? I'll take the pictures tonight and post them when I get home. I appreciate all the help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elyse Posted January 5, 2012 Report Share Posted January 5, 2012 Thanks SolitaryHowl. I'll have to try the separating the food again and see if it helps. So, if he doesn't eat the food in 15 mins, he doesn't get it at all? I'll take the pictures tonight and post them when I get home. I appreciate all the help. Yep - if he doesn't eat any of it after 15 minutes, just take it away. Of course, you can put it back in the bag... It might take him a few tries (it did with Suka), but they won't starve themselves. Also, if he does miss a meal (or most of the meal)...try to give him as little treats as possible (preferably none at all). This way, he won't learn that he can ignore his kibble if he holds out for the better tasting treats! You're welcome! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HuskyMom09 Posted January 5, 2012 Report Share Posted January 5, 2012 I had the same thing happen with my first. At first he was a kibble sorter. Then he became a nibbler. Then snobby eater. I got some very similar advise that SolitaryHowl has given here and problem solved! We feed Wellness Core 2c a day with a touch of salmon oil for coat. Everyone eats enthusiastically now. I hope your feeding issues are solved as effectively Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sutsibe Posted January 5, 2012 Report Share Posted January 5, 2012 Elyse is right, it's likely that both Calvin and Sherlock are getting to be nearly full-grown, and just don't need as much food as when they were growing rapidly. Taste of the Wild is a fairly calorie-dense food; I'd think he'd likely need between 2-3 cups of it daily - based on what my guys would need. At 24 inches at the shoulder, 50 lbs isn't too heavy, likely. Zeke is probably a little shorter than that, but is fairly heavily boned, and weighs 54 lbs at not quite 18 months old. He's actually a little on the thin side, but is one that if I feed him more than a certain amount of food, he gets diarrhea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravenwolf Posted January 6, 2012 Report Share Posted January 6, 2012 My boys were doing that too, so I switched them to a single feeding of 2 cups. Now they eat everything almost all the time, though Wyatt sometimes leaves his food unfinished. Not sure why, but some dogs just prefer it that way. Brady I also agree with SolitaryHowl 's advice. No free-feeding, and reduce the amount you're offering to about 2 cups split into 2 meals of 1 cup each. You can increase or decrease the amount of food by a 1/4 cup at a time depending on his weight gain/loss needs. You might notice hunger behaviours because he's used to hen-pecking his food as he feels like it, but he'll get used to it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michelle Melsom Posted January 6, 2012 Report Share Posted January 6, 2012 Feeding cheese to your dog is actually really bad, you should not feed it anything high in fat as it can cause them to get pancreatitis. Symptoms of that include not eating all of their food . Sometimes they get bored eating the same flavor all the time Marius gets the flavor switched up all the time I find Sibes wont eat alot of food when they dont want to...around 6 months old they seem to want to eat only once a day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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