Retriever Rescue

It is now nearly a year since we lost Defa at nearly sixteen years of age. Our remaining dog, Poppy, aged thirteen, has coped well with the loss but has not eaten dried food for some time now despite the pair of them eating it all of their lives. We have tried her on tins, Pedigree Chum/Butchers etc, and she seemed OK with this until recently but she now seems to have lost her appetite for even these. Normally she would eat anything and take treats from people we meet whilst walking, but she now generally refuses even these. Her teeth are in excellent condition and, apart from arthritis (for which she has Rimadel) she is in good health.
If anyone has any advice on this problem we would be grateful.
Many thanks,
Colin

What a worry but if there is no underlying problem I would give her anything she wants even if it is the same food as you are eating. Mashed potato Pasta anything at all just to get her going again. Perhaps when you put her food down you are anxious wondering if she is going to eat it and she may be picking up on this anxiety and thinking Dad is worried about my food I better leave it.

Perhaps very small meals 3 4 or even 5 times a day.

Good Luck Jan

Chloe, one of our labs is a very anxious dog and recently went off the food that she had had quite happily (Pero), through trial and error we put her on Wainwrights Adult Tray Dog Food, its a complete food which works out at about 70p (ish) per tray but she only needs one a day. She hasn't looked back since.

They are such a worry when they go off their food. I hope she is tucking in soon.

xx

This must be such a worry for you all.
It could be that she still feels the loss of Defa. We have no way of knowing how they feel.
As has already been said...food in any shape or form...as long as she's eating something.

Wishing her (and you all) well x

I agree with Jan, dont worry too much about what you are feeding just as long as she enjoys it. At 13 years old she has earned the right to a little pampering. But also remember, at her age she has no doubt slowed down quite a bit so will not be burning up the calories so will not be needing anything like as much food as in her younger days.

But I must also add that there are a few medical reasons which might be responsible. How is she in herself? Body shape? What is her coat like? How does her breath smell? As an example, for a while I was looking at my old Beth and thinking about her good waistline for an old dog. Then it dawned on me that it was not that she had a nice "Tuck up" as much as that she had a tumour inside her forcing her rib cage down. Dont get me wrong, I'm not suggesting this in your case, I'm just using it as an illustration of not always taking things at face value.

Regards, John

Hi again ~ I am grateful for all the comments and advice and can assure you that we will take it on board. Regarding the last post, Poppy has indeed slowed down and I think that this may be the main reason for the loss of appetite. As I said previously, she is in very good shape, teeth, coat and general health all good. Breath doesn't smell either! She doesn't look overweight but in fact, she weighs in at 35 kgs, which I am led to believe is about right.
I guess we'll just pamper her and give her what she wants, nothing new there then!
Thanks again.
Colin

Coat and breath tell an awful lot about a dog. Obviously breath can point to a problem with teeth, but it can also point to Diabetes and other several hormonal problems. Coat can again show several things including Thyroid, Addison’s and Cushing’s.

But the big thing here is weight. I like my Labradors at around 32kg and Goldens tend to be just a little heavier. So 35kg is not a million miles away. So, if whether she is eating or not she is eating enough to maintain her weight. So from that I’d simply reduce the amount slightly. Just watch closely that she maintains her weight.

Regards, John

Have to agree with Jan & John on this one, at 13 she is a grand old lady so I would be first getting her checked out at the vets,to check nothing is untoward,anyone who knows me knows I am not a fan of Rymadyl or Metacam,as this can upset some dogs tums,( I learnt to my cost with my old Ben) then putting her onto 3 small meals a day, also adding some mash or mashed carrot etc,mice lamb also goes down well, or maybe some boiled fish and mash, just to wet the appetite.


Good luck...

At least you must be a bit reassured now we have all had a say. Perhaps you can relax now and not worry just give her whatever she wants in small amounts.

We are reassured, thanks. We find that the Rimadel seems to give her some relief from her arthritic hip and do not associate this with her loss of appetite. Our dog, Defa, who we lost last November, was almost sixteen years old and Rimadel helped him also.
Thanks again,
Colin

My old Chow Chow went off her food regularly - no health issues were involved, she just didn't feel like eating sometimes. If she was off for more than a day or two, we used to mix pasta, a bit of mince and diced carrots in a bowl with a bit of water then cook it in the microwave. After a little cooling off, she'd eat it every time then revert back to normal food (Hills in her case).

I used to hate olives till I hit 35 then suddenly couldn't get enough of them. Tastes change with age - maybe Poppy's palette is just maturing and needing a bit more stimulation.

Hope it all comes right in the end.