# Newly adopted Chihuahua will not eat



## emelsea (Apr 22, 2011)

We recently (2 weeks ago) adopted a 9 month old chihuahua from the SPCA. They had no information about what he was being fed by his previous owner, and the shelter had been feeding him "whatever was open" (they rely on donations and don't feed a single brand of food). He was at the shelter for only 4 days (we saw him the day he was brought in and brought him home 4 days later). 

I have been offering him Wellness dog food, and he hardly touches it. He'll eat about 15 kibble, twice a day (yes, I count, LOL.) This hardly seems like enough, even for a tiny dog (he weighs 4.5lb). And he shows no enthusiasm for meal times, either. We had a dog previously, and he was always happy at meal time. 

I'm also getting mixed messages about whether to feed him at specific meal times (this is what the trainer recommends, and what we did with our last dog) or to keep his food dish out all day and let him graze (which is what the vet suggests). 

Does anyone have some suggestions? I'm not sure if I should try some different brands to see if something else appeals to him, or just keep offering the same food and hope that eventually he'll eat it.


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## xellil (Apr 4, 2011)

Well, I'm not sure about the brand of dog food, but the amount sounds like enough. Isn't that about 1/4 cup or thereabouts? I would think that would be plenty for a dog that size.

I have free fed dogs alot of my life, and I actually think that's a good way to feed, if you are feeding dry food. We can't do it right now because I have one dog who would eat 10 pounds and explode, but my second dog would do great at free feeding.

you could also try getting a can of clear chicken broth and putting a little on the food, that makes it tastier.

Of course, I switched to raw food last week and my dogs are so eager to eat they can hardly stand themselves. But I know that's nor for everyone.


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## Mokapi (Apr 7, 2011)

When I adopted Chip, he legitimately did not eat for four days. I offered him everything tasty I could think of. He'd drink a little and was actually acting pretty normal, but balked at eating. This may sounds horrible to everyone, but I've always thought that when they get hungry enough, they'll eat. He may be too stressed in a new environment to feel comfortable enough to eat around you.


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## MollyWoppy (Mar 19, 2010)

I think if he is not rapidly losing weight or if he's not really lethargic and depressed, I wouldn't worry too much either. It sounds like he's eating enough to survive and he just may be one of those dogs that don't think food is the be all and end all. My dog is a bit like that, not super crazy about food, people always comment about how she doesn't gobble down her food, just munches on it for a bit now and then.
If it really does worry you though, you can always go to the petshop and get some free samples of different kibbles and see if he likes another brand better. Or try a topper like some really good canned meat or cooked meat or even canned salmon, just something to temp his appetite a bit more. 
Thank you for adopting him and I understand how you must be a bit worried. I'm sure he'll settle down and be fine. Good luck.


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## Savage Destiny (Mar 16, 2011)

MollyWoppy said:


> If it really does worry you though, you can always go to the petshop and get some free samples of different kibbles and see if he likes another brand better. Or try a topper like some really good canned meat or cooked meat or even canned salmon, just something to temp his appetite a bit more.
> Thank you for adopting him and I understand how you must be a bit worried. I'm sure he'll settle down and be fine. Good luck.


Only do this if you're prepared to switch kibbles every time he gets bored, or if you're okay with using toppers or mixers FOREVER. lol 

For picky dogs, I strongly suggest against free feeding. Having food down at all times enables them to be as picky as they like. They can go over, look in the bowl and decide, "Eh, I might get something better, and if I don't this will be here waiting for me." Portioned meal times, with 15-20 minutes to eat before the food vanishes, help encourage eating, because they won't get anything else until the next meal. 

Xellil is also right that a 4lb dog does not need to eat much. Wellness is a pretty calorie dense food, so a little goes a long way!


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## KlaMarie (Dec 30, 2010)

When we brought our Chihuahua puppy home, she refused to eat too. She has a VERY nervous, anxious personality though, so the stress of changing environments really affected her. We ended up having to give her the wet canned food, warmed in the microwave, and my sister would sit beside as she ate. She wouldn't eat if someone wasn't sitting with her. I admit, we probably coddled her way too much. But it really worried us, having this tiny little pup, always shaking, and wouldn't eat. 

A word of caution, a friend of my sister got a teacup yorkie puppy. Their pup also refused to eat. This pup probably had many, many problems related to bad breeding. They didn't want to coddle the dog, and only offered him dry food. He died a couple weeks later. Now I have NO idea what actualyl caused his death, so I'm really not trying to scare you. But I would do whatever is neccesary for my dog to eat (at least enough that he doesn't starve), until he settles in or matures.

Our Chihuahua now eats what is offered to her without a problem, she is still kinda picky. But when she's hungry, she'll eat dry food.


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## xellil (Apr 4, 2011)

I really do think 30 pieces of kibble a day is plenty - when Snorkels was on a diet, she got 8 pieces of kibble in the morning and 7 pieces of kibble at night (I counted too!). And her proper weight is 8-9 pounds. 

She was losing weight, of course, but very slowly.


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## emelsea (Apr 22, 2011)

The type of Wellness I am feeding him is the small breed formula, and the kibble are very tiny. I need 130 to equal half an ounce (measured out on my digital kitchen scale). 30 kibble don't even register on it.

We have found one thing that he will eat with enthusiasm, and that is eggs, either scrambled or hard cooked. Especially the yolks of hard cooked eggs. My husband dumped some of his scrambled eggs on top of the kibble this morning, and Zeus (the dog) ate everything - eggs and kibble. Yesterday I had a couple hard cooked eggs with my lunch, and he whined at my feet so after I finished I cut up another one and let him have some. He continued to bed after I'd given him all of the yolk (he didn't seem impressed with the white and left it on the floor.)

How often is it OK to feed him eggs or egg yolks?


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## emelsea (Apr 22, 2011)

Savage Destiny said:


> Only do this if you're prepared to switch kibbles every time he gets bored, or if you're okay with using toppers or mixers FOREVER. lol
> 
> For picky dogs, I strongly suggest against free feeding. Having food down at all times enables them to be as picky as they like. They can go over, look in the bowl and decide, "Eh, I might get something better, and if I don't this will be here waiting for me." Portioned meal times, with 15-20 minutes to eat before the food vanishes, help encourage eating, because they won't get anything else until the next meal.
> 
> Xellil is also right that a 4lb dog does not need to eat much. Wellness is a pretty calorie dense food, so a little goes a long way!


I'd have no problem with toppers, but I would take issue with having to change dry food constantly to satisfy his boredom or pickiness. I have gotten some samples of kibble from friends with dogs, just to see if he liked one of them instead of the Wellness. We tried Performatrin, Taste of the Wild and Natural Balance, and he showed no real interest in any of them, so I'm just going to stick with the Wellness.


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## tem_sat (Jun 20, 2010)

emelsea said:


> The type of Wellness I am feeding him is the small breed formula, and the kibble are very tiny. I need 130 to equal half an ounce (measured out on my digital kitchen scale). 30 kibble don't even register on it.


That sure sounds extremely strange. Probably the smallest kibble I have ever fed was EVO Small Bites and 130 peices of EVO would most likely be WAY too much for my 12lb doxie. I would assume your new Chi should eat 1/4th of a cup. When I feed my doxie Acana, I always weigh it. He gets 50 grams, which equates to 1.8 ounces. He also gets approximately 10 grams of boneless raw protein. I would expect your Chi would need about 1/2 of that total amount.

Acana Wild Prairie's caloric distribution shows to be 425 kcals per cup (per 115 grams), so that would come out to be about 3.7 kcals per gram. Bean would get 185 kcals. Comparing that to Wellness Small Breed at 420 kcals per cup (per 115 grams), it is virtually identical. 

I would double check that scale or get a cheapie scale from the grocery store.


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## emelsea (Apr 22, 2011)

I measured it out in grams, and 15 kibble wavered between 1 and 2 grams. 1/4 cup = 30 grams. I've never seen EVO, so I've included a couple pictures so that you can compare the size of the kibble.







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## 3Musketeers (Nov 4, 2010)

I say buy one of those measuring cups, like the kind for liquids or rice, and just use that to measure out 1/4 cup of kibble, no need to get so caught up in numbers .
That is... 1/4 cup daily for a 5lb dog, so that would be maybe 1/8 of a cup twice daily!
Tiny dogs eat tiny amounts.


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## MollyWoppy (Mar 19, 2010)

Holy crap, my cat eats more than that! A bag of kibble will last you forever! 
Wouldn't it make a difference that a 9 month old is really still a pup and probably using a lot more energy than an adult dog?
I just wanted to add as well that it does sound like your pup is a bit fussy when it comes to kibbles. Personally, I'd stick to the same kibble, but change proteins with each bag, just for variety in the diet.


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## xellil (Apr 4, 2011)

That looks somewhere around 1/8 cup, I would think.

I bought a 5 pound bag of food when I got Snorkels and it lasted 6 months.


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## tem_sat (Jun 20, 2010)

I agree w/X, probably lining that bowl would be about a 1/4 cup. Another measuring device is a regular coffee mug. 1/4 of that is very very close to exactly what you should be feeding per day.


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## KittyKat (Feb 11, 2011)

If your dog is still refusing food, take her on a long walk. It will help bond you and your dog, while stimulating their appetite. 

Since they eat so little, you can use the food for training too, so they always work for their food. =)


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## Jacksons Mom (Jun 13, 2010)

I've dealt with the picky dog don't wanna eat thing for a while. I just feed him canned food mixed with kibble now. It's something I don't mind doing and he actually enjoys his meals so much!

Jackson is 16lbs and very active and eats 1/2 cup of Acana kibble per day with a tablespoon of wet food and it's the perfect amount for him. 3/4 cup would be the MOST I'd feed him. I kind of judge based on how much activity he had for the day, if he's still acting hungry, etc.

He never will just eat first thing in the morning. He needs some activity first - a walk, or some other kind of activity, to get him motivated to eat.


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