# New shelter dog not eating/pooping!



## jojosmom (Aug 27, 2012)

Hello everyone! So, my family rescued a 3 yr old rotti/doberman mix yesterday. He's the 1st pet for any of us. Yesterday we noticed that he wasn't eating the treats we were giving him but the lady at the shelter said that he had just ate. He hasn't eaten anything since we brought him home. No it hasn't even been 24hrs yet but he's just kinda laying around. last night when we brought him home he was playing and jumping. Everytime I take him out to walk he starts eating the grass and plants. Is this normal? I'm trying to find a vet around that will accept the 1st free visit card the shelter gave us. I really hope this is normal. Is it just a new place?


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## Loki Love (May 23, 2010)

Give him some time to adjust - it's a new environment and he's a bit stressed  Keep offering treats and he'll come around. Same thing with doing his business - if his tummy is empty, he won't have much to do  Is he drinking water?


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## jojosmom (Aug 27, 2012)

Thanks. Yes he is drinking water and the lady at the shelter said he likes cheese so I gave him a piece and he did eat that. Thanks for the reply. Just want to make sure I do everything right!


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## Loki Love (May 23, 2010)

Once you relax, I bet he'll start to relax too  It's a lot for both of you right now!


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## wvasko (Dec 15, 2007)

Not to worry, we sometimes get dogs in for boarding that don't eat for 2 or 3 days.


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## hanksimon (Mar 18, 2009)

Also, grazing is normal for Dobbies... they just seem to like grass...


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## huskysmiles (Aug 18, 2012)

Don't worry, you're fine - just keep offering him treats and bits of cheese until he comes around. Give him a couple of days to adjust - how old is he? Of course, depending on his age and his temperament, he might take a little longer to adjust than 24hrs. The environment is overwhelming to him and since you are also going through a change of circumstance he is also probably picking up on that. Just give him lots of love and he will be fine.


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## jojosmom (Aug 27, 2012)

Thank you all for your support! 

@ huskysmiles he is 3! 

Well, after 2 good walks yesterday he was knocked out!! He did eat some more treats but still no food. Only drinking water after walks. Getting super nervous. Can't get him to the vet till Sat! He will eat people food ( was sneeking hot dogs that fell on the floor from the baby) but no dog food. Someone sugg to give him a scrambled egg or hot dog. But Im nervous to give him table food.


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## wvasko (Dec 15, 2007)

Sometimes with dry kibble food mixing part of a can of dog food can kick them into eating


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## Deaf Dogs (May 28, 2012)

Feeding him people food wont hurt him, and if it helps him eat, then all the power to him. however you want to be careful he's not just being picky.


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## hanksimon (Mar 18, 2009)

Also, don't feed him people food from the dinner table or while you are eating, to avoid begging. But a warmed, cooked, sliced hotdog mixed well with kibble may encourage him... or may train him to pick out the hotdog pieces


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## dagwall (Mar 17, 2011)

Yep some dogs are just picky eaters and will hold out for 'better' food. My current foster was like this, he was also overweight when I brought him home. He skipped a lot of meals in the first few weeks I had him and will still skip a meal occasionally now after 9 weeks. I just put down his food and give him 10-15 minutes tops to eat then take it away, he'll eat when he's hungry. I've actually cut his food back to close to half what they say they were feeding him at the shelter and he rarely skips a meal now and eats promptly after I put his food down now. 

It's taken 9 weeks to get to this point with him. Very frustrating for me as I'm used to my own boy who has ALWAYS devoured his food as fast as he possibly could and always willing to eat more. Feeling the need to 'beg' my foster to just eat his damned food was a shock. I'm finally able to leave the kitchen after I put his food down and he'll eat without me being with him.

Basically once you've ruled out any possible health issues keeping him from eating I'd suggest tough love. Put his food down at meal time for 10-15 minutes and if he isn't actively eating at that time just pick it up and try again at the next meal time. Until he's eating his meals give very limited treats in between meals, he'll learn to eat at meal time. While doing this with my foster if he skipped a meal the only treats he got between then and the next meal were for going into his crate. If he ate his meal I might do some training with him but still not a lot of treats or he'd likely skip his next meal. 

As long as he's drinking I wouldn't worry. A healthy dog won't starve themselves and will eat their kibble when they are hungry.


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## titiaamor (Nov 17, 2011)

I just wanted to add that we top our dogs' kibble with an egg, or some scraps with a little warm water. It seems to make it more enjoyable for them. 

I often think I wouldn't want to eat what they are eating all the time- kind of like having crackers for every meal.


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## dagwall (Mar 17, 2011)

titiaamor said:


> I just wanted to add that we top our dogs' kibble with an egg, or some scraps with a little warm water. It seems to make it more enjoyable for them.
> 
> I often think I wouldn't want to eat what they are eating all the time- kind of like having crackers for every meal.


Well with my inexperience with a dog that wouldn't eat I did cave at first and bought some canned food to mix with the kibble, even added a little water and warmed it up. He still wouldn't eat a number of meals and the food was wasted because I couldn't just put it back and feed it again later. If he actually consistently ate the doctored up food I wouldn't have minded but I wasn't going to keep wasting my time and money on food he still wouldn't eat and I had to trash. Quickly went back to plain kibble that if he didn't eat could be served again at the next meal no problem.


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## titiaamor (Nov 17, 2011)

Yeah, that is the problem with the toppers. :-( 



dagwall said:


> Well with my inexperience with a dog that wouldn't eat I did cave at first and bought some canned food to mix with the kibble, even added a little water and warmed it up. He still wouldn't eat a number of meals and the food was wasted because I couldn't just put it back and feed it again later. If he actually consistently ate the doctored up food I wouldn't have minded but I wasn't going to keep wasting my time and money on food he still wouldn't eat and I had to trash. Quickly went back to plain kibble that if he didn't eat could be served again at the next meal no problem.


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## wvasko (Dec 15, 2007)

> Well with my inexperience with a dog that wouldn't eat I did cave at first and bought some canned food to mix with the kibble, even added a little water and warmed it up.


Hmmmm! caving I would prefer to think it was a learning experience for you with that dog. You learn by trying, what did not work for your dog does indeed work for many. A can of dog food for dollar and a few cups of kibble is not gonna break the bank. 

One of the ways to learn is by the actual doing of things. I'm just sayin'..


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## jojosmom (Aug 27, 2012)

Thanks again for all the incouragement. This morning I took him for another long walk before work. I tried to feed him again but nothing. I just felt so deperate I gave him 3 chicken nuggets and when my husband came home from work the dog had thrown up all over. So now I dont know if it was the chicken or something else. He has been acting the same and is still drinking water. I will take him to the vet Sat but should I be concerned? Someone told me to put beef gravy over his food. Should I now that he puked?


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## Deaf Dogs (May 28, 2012)

Are you (trying to feed him the same as what he was eating in the shelter? Maybe he just doesn't like it. You could try gravy, however it's full of salt. you might be better off making some beef stock (hamburger boiled in water than poured over his food warm) or chicken/turkey stock to put on his food. I also dont feed my dog kibble day after day, I dont even feed the same kibble day after day. they get toppings, extras, canned foods, raw foods, tripe, 5 or 6 different trypes of kibble and table scraps... I certainly wouldn't want to eat the same thing day after day, why would I make my dogs?

BTW my dogs are not picky eaters and have never been picky... infact out of the 9 dogs my family and I have/had not a single dog was picky


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## Tupples (Apr 27, 2012)

Hey,
Dogs eat grass when they have an upset stomach. That is their natural way of curing themselves. Hope you are feeding him good dog food. Their are different varieties of food available in the market which are breed and age specific. So it will be a good idea to feed him one of those. Good luck.


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## hanksimon (Mar 18, 2009)

I don't know how much chicken coating vs. dog size that we're talking about, but McNuggets have lots of fat, and 3 may be enough to cause puking. At the moment, I would learn from it, ignore it, and move on. I don't think that specific instance of puking is an issue.

Anything, such as gravy, can be greatly diluted, b/c the dog only needs to smell it, not taste it. One thing that I have suggested to other folks is a tablespoon of ketchup mixed in a cup of warm water, then put 1 - 2 teaspoons of that liquid over the dry kibble. Gravy should do the same.


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## jojosmom (Aug 27, 2012)

Leroy update: Last night I gave him 1 hotdog broken up in his food. He picked out the hotdog left the food. I called the er vet and she sugg giving him puppy chow by putting it in water and letting it dissolve in the water since he is drinking. Well, he wont drink the water with the food in it. UUGGHH!! Still no poop but no more throwing up. His energy is fine. My sister is taking him back to the SPCA to get him checked out by thier vet because its free. I just hate to think he might be suffering. He has a wet nose, I dont know if that makes any difference. I got him to eat some bread soaked in the water with the dissolved food so I'm hoping that will hold him over till he can get checked out! I'm also boiling plain chicken and rice and see if that works. I tried the food with gravy last night and nothing.


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## zhaor (Jul 2, 2009)

what are you trying to feed him? Hotdogs, chicken nugget etc are all a lot more appetizing than kibble. When you added the water, did you warm it up? Adding moisture and heat helps bring out smells to make food seem more appetizing.


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## Loki Love (May 23, 2010)

I'd be more concerned if your dog wasn't eating at all - but he is, and he's getting food that is a lot more interesting than his kibble!  It's good to get anything medical ruled out, but at this point I think your pupper has started to train you and knows that if he holds out, something better is coming along 

I'd start tough love and putting the kibble down for 15 minutes and then picking it back up again until the next meal time. No treats in between. (This is of course after ruling out medical issues).

Good luck!


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## titiaamor (Nov 17, 2011)

Eating a hot dog is eating. That's a good sign.

Bob had intestinal parasites when he didn't eat at all....and it was cleared up with a simple treatment from the vet.



jojosmom said:


> Leroy update: Last night I gave him 1 hotdog broken up in his food. He picked out the hotdog left the food. I called the er vet and she sugg giving him puppy chow by putting it in water and letting it dissolve in the water since he is drinking. Well, he wont drink the water with the food in it. UUGGHH!! Still no poop but no more throwing up. His energy is fine. My sister is taking him back to the SPCA to get him checked out by thier vet because its free. I just hate to think he might be suffering. He has a wet nose, I dont know if that makes any difference. I got him to eat some bread soaked in the water with the dissolved food so I'm hoping that will hold him over till he can get checked out! I'm also boiling plain chicken and rice and see if that works. I tried the food with gravy last night and nothing.


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## jojosmom (Aug 27, 2012)

U guys are so helpful. ANd I think you are all right! I think he's playing me. I do want to make sure and get him to the vet just in case but I did the boiled chicken like the vet said and he gobbled it up! I do feel a little better now that he hasnt thrown up in 24 hrs and he is peeing, playing and now has some food in his belly. Thanks again for all the advice! You guys :rockon: Hopefully I can find out tomorrow that you are all right and hes just taking me as a sucker!


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## spotted nikes (Feb 7, 2008)

You can boil some skinless, boneless chicken and white rice and give him several small meals a day with that. Then start mixing some in with his kibble.
What kind of dog food are you feeding? Avoid Pedigree, Kibbles n Bits and Beneful. Costco sells Kirkland brand that is ok. Or Chicken soup for the dog lover is pretty good. Both are fairly inexpensive. Better is Taste of the Wild (I feed the High Prairie version). You can go to www.petfoodadvisor.com or www.petfoodanalysis.com and find a good quality food.
Pick up some pure canned pumpkin next time you're at the grocery store. If he ever has diarrhea, you can add a couple of tablespoons of that to his food, and it'll solidify things, if it's just an upset stomach due to stress or something he ate.


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## hanksimon (Mar 18, 2009)

He sounds smart and you may have to mix a little kibble in with his chicken and rice... so he doesn't pick out the good stuff.... hopefully he won't eat around the kibble 

Tell the SPCA your problem, I'm sure they have lots of experience with this type of thing. And you might ask them for a few days to a couple of weeks worth of whatever food they were feeding him, so you can give him what he was used to and also have enough to gradually transition from his SPCA food, to the type of food you intend to feed him. Altho I'm sure he thinks that boiled chicken is nice.


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## jojosmom (Aug 27, 2012)

Well friends, we took him to the vet and apparently there is tummy bug going around the shelter. THey gave me 3 meds to give him so hopefully he'll start feeling better in a couple days. Thanks all for your help!!!


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## Loki Love (May 23, 2010)

jojosmom said:


> Well friends, we took him to the vet and apparently there is tummy bug going around the shelter. THey gave me 3 meds to give him so hopefully he'll start feeling better in a couple days. Thanks all for your help!!!


Ick.. but good thing you got him checked out!


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