# concerned about winstons appetite



## RCTRIPLEFRESH5 (Feb 11, 2010)

maybe it's the adjustment period..maybe he doesnt like his food(taste of the wild wetlands)....maybe something serious is wrong with him?

Winston;s appetite doesn't seem to good to me. I pour 3 cups of food into his dish at around 6pm, and he will eat a little, and then come back to it throughout the night. I'd be lucky if he eats 3, and usually he eats 2 maybe.

im considering trying a new food(wellness core) as i have a 43 dollar credit at petco. wellness core is pricey..60 bucks for 26 pounds..but it's the only thing id buy at petco.

the rescue said she was giving him 3 cups TWICE a day because the wanted him to gain som weight...but here at home, he;s not even eating 3 once!!! it's very anxiety provoking!
my last dog died of mast cell tumors, and as the cancer progressed he started drinking his water slowly, lost his appetite, was itching and licking his paws(which winston has been doing)..and laying down a lot..(winston likes to be lazy)

it is just very worrisome..because u never know if Winston is sick, or if he is just adjusting..or if it;s his personality.

I really hope winston has cancer!
-Dave


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## SerenityFL (Sep 28, 2010)

RCTRIPLEFRESH5 said:


> maybe it's the adjustment period..maybe he doesnt like his food(taste of the wild wetlands)....maybe something serious is wrong with him?
> 
> Winston;s appetite doesn't seem to good to me. I pour 3 cups of food into his dish at around 6pm, and he will eat a little, and then come back to it throughout the night. I'd be lucky if he eats 3, and usually he eats 2 maybe.
> 
> ...


I'm certainly not an expert but I would think it could be an adjustment period. Are you giving him the same food that the rescue was giving him? 

I think you have a typo on your last statement. Think you meant to say, "does not have".

Anyway, you're still grieving for Shane. You're still blaming yourself for Shane's cancer. Nothing you did caused Shane's cancer. It's going to be some time before you stop thinking that everything going on with your new dog is because of cancer. It tells me that Shane's cancer and death was very traumatic for you. But you can't think that everything going on with your new dog is because of cancer. 

If he's itching, take him to the vet and find out what's up. Have his weight checked to see if he's at a healthy weight. Grazing is not necessarily a bad thing as long as the animal is not over eating. Some animals are just like that...they eat a little now, a little later, a little more later than that.

I don't know if you have taken Winston to the vet since you got him but he should be taken, given a thorough exam, check for everything. Not only for the dog but also to give you some peace of mind so that you don't think that if the dog sneezes, it means he has cancer or if the dog isn't in to playing fetch today, it's cause he has cancer. I'm not knocking you, do not read it like that. I'm saying, again, Shane's illness and death was obviously hard on you, you have tremendous guilt over it and you are...frankly, scared that it's going to happen again. Shell shocked, if you will. So, for your peace of mind and to make sure that Winston is fine, take him to the vet, get everything done that you can and then you can relax or fix whatever, (ie: itchy paws).

Breathe. It's going to be ok.


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## wags (Jan 31, 2009)

Rc, what? You had to have typed that WRONG ~YOU REALLY HOPE WINSTON HAS CANCER~~ you mean you really hope Winston DOES NOT have cancer right?????????????????????????????????????


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## wags (Jan 31, 2009)

Ok, Did you have him for a vet check yet? Take him in if oyu have not. Also he just got to your home recently. He needs time to adjust remember he's been from place to place for a while so I am sure anxiety is setting in for him not know gee and I staying here am I moving again what's going on! Your doing a great job and being a concerned new daddy is natural. You just lost Shane now your concerned for Winston. Winston is a young healthy pup! He's going through changes your new to him he has to get use to things! As for changing foods, you certainly can try wellness core. Try giving him food either twice a day or split it up morning noon night , whatever works best. See you have to figure out his routine and he has to get use to your routine. Take him for a walk , play fetch with him, then see if he's hungry. Give it time, it will all work out. Just remember this is all new for him as well as for you! Your doing fine! But if you have not vet checked him yet ,go to the vet with him. You will feel better, and he will too! Now go have a nice soothing smoothie and get Winston a nice bone to chew on and relax!


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## Ania's Mommy (Feb 8, 2009)

Probably just an adjustment period. 

Do you plan on continuing to free feed? If not, I'd give "tough-love" a shot. You do this by putting his food down for 15 minutes. Don't try to conjole him to eat. Just put the food bowl down and walk away. After 15 minutes, if he hasn't started to eat, you pick up the food. Do NOT feed any treats or anything during the day (remember, you want him to be hungry). Then, at the next meal time, repeat the process. A DOG WILL NOT STARVE ITSELF IN THE PRESENCE OF FOOD. Doing this is NOT cruel or mean, so don't think that it is. It merely helps let your dog know that they cannot get away with being picky.

If you plan on continuing with free feeding, well, I'm not sure I can be of much help. Free feeding promotes eating when the dog feels like it. Not when you say. It also makes it hard to gauge how much they really are eating.


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## cast71 (Sep 16, 2010)

If I'm feeding Gunner only dry food for the day, I will put down the days worth and he would just pick at it all day long. He always saves a little for after our last walk at night. Pretty funny. When I fed TOTW, I fed 3.5 cups a day and he's 85 lbs. If Winston is only eating 2.5-3 cups I wouldn't worry. Just keep an eye out and make sure he doesn't get too skinny. You don't want to start seeing all his ribs. Gunner was very skinny up until around 7. When I fed 100% raw, I had to feed over 3% body weight. Than his metabolism slowed a little and he gained a little. Before that all my friends thought I was starving him. 5 different vets thought he was at perfect weight. Skinny is better than overweight;0)


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## RCTRIPLEFRESH5 (Feb 11, 2010)

cast71 said:


> If I'm feeding Gunner only dry food for the day, I will put down the days worth and he would just pick at it all day long. He always saves a little for after our last walk at night. Pretty funny. When I fed TOTW, I fed 3.5 cups a day and he's 85 lbs. If Winston is only eating 2.5-3 cups I wouldn't worry. Just keep an eye out and make sure he doesn't get too skinny. You don't want to start seeing all his ribs. Gunner was very skinny up until around 7. When I fed 100% raw, I had to feed over 3% body weight. Than his metabolism slowed a little and he gained a little. Before that all my friends thought I was starving him. 5 different vets thought he was at perfect weight. Skinny is better than overweight;0)


wisnton is 100 pounds..so shouldnt he be eating more than gunner lol. also the rescue says he should be around 110 ideally.

and yeah i made a typo in the op


ania, i put 3 cups in his bowl, and i might not know exactly how much he eats, but i know he doesnt finish it.
the rescue tested him on everything with their vet, but it's in my contract, i have to take him to ours within a month of getting him.


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## chowder (Sep 7, 2008)

Some dogs are just naturally not big eaters. When Rocky ate Orijen, he was 85 pounds and ate less then 2 cups a day. Some days he would eat the two cups and some days he wouldn't eat anything. It was just his nature. it also depends on their activity level. Right now it's summer and dogs are not out running around a lot so they just don't need a lot of food. Their metabolisms slow down in the heat. 

As long as he is eating something, I wouldn't worry. Put a cup down in the morning. If he doesn't eat it in an hour, take it away and give it back at supper time with another cup. If he does eat the morning cup, then give him a second cup at night. He might be one like Chelsy that just prefers to eat at night or does better with two smaller meals like Rocky. It may take a little trial and error on your part but don't stress.


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## Unosmom (May 3, 2009)

He's probably still adjusting, you can add some chicken broth to it to see if it'll entice him.


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## rannmiller (Jun 27, 2008)

What was the rescue feeding him before? Were you able to mix it with his new food or just switch him straight over?


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## RCTRIPLEFRESH5 (Feb 11, 2010)

rannmiller said:


> What was the rescue feeding him before? Were you able to mix it with his new food or just switch him straight over?


He was on proplan chicken and rice...but i decided to just switch


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## cast71 (Sep 16, 2010)

RCTRIPLEFRESH5 said:


> wisnton is 100 pounds..so shouldnt he be eating more than gunner lol. also the rescue says he should be around 110 ideally.


Depends on metabolism and activity level. Dogs are smart, they'll eat as much as they need. Some will eat too much if you let them. I never recommend free feeding, but putting down 3-4 cups 1x a day is not free feeding. Free feeding is filling up the bowl to the max and refilling it when empty. If you want, you can add canned 95% meat or some extra cooked meat, if you think he needs to eat more.

Hows he doing on TOTW?


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## rannmiller (Jun 27, 2008)

RCTRIPLEFRESH5 said:


> He was on proplan chicken and rice...but i decided to just switch


Did you switch gradually or go straight over? How long have you had him? (sorry if I missed that part)


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## RCTRIPLEFRESH5 (Feb 11, 2010)

rannmiller said:


> Did you switch gradually or go straight over? How long have you had him? (sorry if I missed that part)


we just switched over without mixing. i did ot want to keep him on proplan, and people on this forum said it was worth a shot to see if he does ok without gradual mixing, so i decided that would be y preference.

we adopted him on thursday


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## rannmiller (Jun 27, 2008)

Well I think we just found the problem. Some dogs do ok with switching cold turkey like that and some don't. Clearly it seems like he would do better with a gradual switchover. I'd highly recommend getting some of the Proplan chicken and start mixing it with the TOTW. Do 75% proplan and 25% TOTW to start and gradually wean him over, that should help.


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## SilverBeat (Jan 16, 2011)

Rannmiller is right, I think you should try a gradual switch and see if he does better. If not, some dogs are just not very food-motivated. My friend's Pyr is like that. You could also get an extra-large kong, mix his food with a bit of chicken broth or canned food, and stuff it in there. He may be more enticed if he has to work for it.


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## 3Musketeers (Nov 4, 2010)

Give him time, what has it been.. 2, 3 days?
If he just doesn't like the food much (heck maybe he misses those terrible, yet tasty carbs), he'll have to eat it more anyways, but some dogs will go days without eating a thing, however you say he IS eating, so that's a good sign.
Some canned food might do the trick, plus the water content will help.
Maybe he just doesn't like duck very much, just watch his weight and energy for the next two-three weeks.

Also, remember that feeding guidelines tend to be exaggerated, maybe the bag says 3 cups, but in reality he might do fine on 2 1/2.

Wellness Core is nice too, but Merrick Beforegrain, and Blue Wilderness use an animal fat instead of Canola Oil, thus making them a little bit better and possibly tastier.
Since this is Petco credit you're talking about, check out the Pinnacle grain-free formulas those are pretty decent as well, they are also lower protein (but still good meat content), which for now, seeing as he was used to a low protein, grain rich diet, might be easier for him to handle.


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## Caty M (Aug 13, 2010)

Give it time!!.. My IG pup when I got her home didn't eat well for almost a week! Only half of what she was supposed to eat. She lost a few ounces but gained them back quickly. Some dogs (and some people!) eat less when under periods of stress..


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## rannmiller (Jun 27, 2008)

I believe PetCo has Before Grain and Wilderness as well, so you could also check that out. But I'd honestly recommend starting with the Proplan and switching him over slowly since TOTW is so much less expensive.


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## cast71 (Sep 16, 2010)

I wouldn't switch foods again so quickly, unless your having extreme digestive problems. I would at least finish off the TOTW and than next bag try something else. It's actually better to rotate. I remember you saying you like primitive natural and instinct. You could try those next and keep them in rotation with the 2 TOTW formulas;0) I bet Winstons appetite gets better in a week or so, once he settles in. Also try to keep him active. He's a big working dog that needs a job;0) That should give him a better appetite.


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## RCTRIPLEFRESH5 (Feb 11, 2010)

cast71 said:


> I wouldn't switch foods again so quickly, unless your having extreme digestive problems. I would at least finish off the TOTW and than next bag try something else. It's actually better to rotate. I remember you saying you like primitive natural and instinct. You could try those next and keep them in rotation with the 2 TOTW formulas;0) I bet Winstons appetite gets better in a week or so, once he settles in. Also try to keep him active. He's a big working dog that needs a job;0) That should give him a better appetite.


i honestly am probably over reacting. he has only been here since thursday, and in reality he is prob eating 3 cups of food. when ipour in each cup, i fill a whole measuring cup, as opposed to going to the one cup line...i did the same with shane.
totw bag says 4 cups of food, so since that is exaggerated 3 under stress isnt too bad.

i think going to the proplan is not the best idea..right now he is detoxing from that trash, and i dont think it is the issue.
we only have 14 pounds of totw eft over from shane..i think after we finish this off ill buy another 30 pounds, and then switch to core. I think leaving winston on totw for 2-3 weeks(14 pounds) and then giving him core...wouldnt be too smart.


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