# 9 month old male pup with decreased appetite....



## CalamityJane (Mar 16, 2008)

Hi all,

Jack is almost 9 months old now. He has previously had a good appetite, but this past week or so he just isn't as interested in meals. We have been out in the RV for the past 2 months, dogs too. He did fine on this outing, but as we returned to our home state, he just seemed to be less interested in his food.

He does eat, eagerly, about one of his meals per day, then usually part of one of his other meals. Usually the evening one. I've been feeding him three times a day, due to his being a large pup. I feed amount according to the instructions on the bag, about 4 1/2 cups a day, giving him one and a half cups per meal.

He does not act sick or hurt. He runs and plays, drinks water, pees, poops. He is attentive during training sessions. Affectionate, and nose is wet. Nothing seems amiss, just that he is noticeably eating less.

Any ideas? I can certainly call the vet if I need to, just thought I'd ask here first, since there are no other signs of something wrong. Could it be that he is just not having a growth spurt right now? Or, have anything to do with returning from a much cooler place to warmer weather? Though it's certainly not hot here, it is warmer than where we were.

Thanks.


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## Willowy (Dec 10, 2007)

Since he IS eating, and eagerly, just not as much as he used to, he's probably just slowing down in his growing. If he stops eating altogether, or picks at his food, or seems sick in any way, a vet check would be in order, but at this point I'd say he's just not needing as much as you're feeding him.


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## TooneyDogs (Aug 6, 2007)

Sounds like a metabolism change. So long as he's eating and his weight is still good I'd just pick up what he doesn't eat. He's getting close to the age where he can't handle the high calorie puppy food so, watch for weight gain.


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## cjac&mac (Feb 12, 2007)

what kind of dog is he?


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## CalamityJane (Mar 16, 2008)

cjac&mac said:


> what kind of dog is he?



He's a mixed breed, most likely Great Pyrenees (mom) and Husky or Malamute (dad). Mom was a stray, had her puppies in our barn.

He's a big boy, and he's in the little picture below in my signature.


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## cjac&mac (Feb 12, 2007)

what kind of food do you feed and do you supplement with bones or treats? If so what type and how many?


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## Patt (Feb 12, 2008)

I wouldn't go by the amount of food to feed on the bag, it is usually too much. 

How much does he weigh?


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## JackandJordi (Oct 22, 2008)

Patt said:


> I wouldn't go by the amount of food to feed on the bag, it is usually too much. How much does he weigh?


I definitely agree with this- they usually recommend far too much. 

If your puppy is acting normally in every other way and just eating less, feed less


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## cjac&mac (Feb 12, 2007)

JackandJordi said:


> I definitely agree with this- they usually recommend far too much.
> 
> If your puppy is acting normally in every other way and just eating less, feed less


The recommendations are always higher because the manufacturers would rather have complaints from people with fat dogs than dead dogs, from not feeding enough.LOL


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## JackandJordi (Oct 22, 2008)

cjac&mac said:


> The recommendations are always higher because the manufacturers would rather have complaints from people with fat dogs than dead dogs, from not feeding enough.LOL


And mostly because they want to sell more dog food


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## Meghan&Pedro (Nov 6, 2006)

Yes, the feeding guidelines are high, especially on a puppy food. 

They want to ensure that your puppy has what they need to grow.

As a general rule with puppy foods I offer 'free choice' up to the amount they suggest. (no, I don't allow grazing!!)

If my dog cleans out his bowl and licks it when he's done because he's going through a growth spurt, and I'm feeding on the light end of what they suggest, I will offer the full amount suggested. If he's not eating with gusto, or seems to be storing any unessicary fat, I will cut back to the leaner end of what they suggest.

They also spray the kibble with a vitamin/mineral complex to compensate for the nutrition that they're cooking out of the food.

They put this complex in the oil, and spray it on the outside of the kibble once it's done being made.

This makes it more palatable, but also ensures that your dog doesn't run into any deficiencies due to where the kibble may fall short (vitamins, minerals, enzymes, pro/prebiotics etc are cooked out of the ingredients during the making of the pet food )

If your dog is not eating even CLOSE to what they suggest, then you could run into deficiencies.

For example : if the bag suggests that you feed 3-5 cups of food a day for a dog that is 40-60lbs well, yeah, 5 cups is going to be too much for a 40lb, less active dog. HOWEVER if your 60lb dog is eating TWO cups of this food a day, there is always a chance of running into deficiencies, as well as poor body condition (maybe not underweight, but a problem holding a good lean muscle mass)

So no, don't worry if he's not eating the full amount. But if he's not eating even close, or if he starts to lean out you'll want to try to urge him to eat more.

A few easy ways are :
1. always walk your dog BEFORE meals, not after. This meets their psychological needs of traveling to find food

2. Adding a bit of warm water and letting it soak for 15 seconds before you feed will increase the smell of the kibble without dressing it, and will also make your dog look at you and want the kibble the whole time you're preparing it.

3. put your dogs food down for 3 minutes. If he doesn't eat it in that time, then pick it up. No cookies, no bones, no treats until the next meal. He'll start to figure out that if he doesn't eat it, it's not going to wait for him. And I know 3 minutes sounds like a short time, but if you set an egg timer, you'll realize that it is more than enough time to eat a few kibbles.


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## cjac&mac (Feb 12, 2007)

Meghan&Pedro said:


> So no, don't worry if he's not eating the full amount. But if he's not eating even close, or if he starts to lean out you'll want to try to urge him to eat more.
> 
> A few easy ways are :
> 1. always walk your dog BEFORE meals, not after. This meets their psychological needs of traveling to find food
> ...


I couldn't agree more.


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## CalamityJane (Mar 16, 2008)

Thanks everybody, for all the replies. I appreciate the suggestions and input.

I tend to agree that he just doesn't need as much as I was feeding him. He was probably doing a lot of growing---well, no "probably" to it, he grew a lot during his fifth, sixth, and seventh months. Now he's probably slowing down, I certainly HOPE so! 

He weighs 85 pounds now. As I said before, he acts just fine so we will just keep an eye on it for now.

Thanks again.


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## PatriciaLynn (Oct 20, 2008)

Great advice from everybody, some I will use for my year old Boxer who isn't always interested in meals because he wants to play too much. I wanted to tell you CalamityJane, what a beautiful pup you have there!


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## CalamityJane (Mar 16, 2008)

PatriciaLynn said:


> Great advice from everybody, some I will use for my year old Boxer who isn't always interested in meals because he wants to play too much. I wanted to tell you CalamityJane, what a beautiful pup you have there!


Thank you Patty! He's a sweetheart, too.


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## Meghan&Pedro (Nov 6, 2006)

Well I hope it all works out for you 
Good luck, and let us know how it goes over the next few weeks.

and 85lbs? Big boy!


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