# 10 wk old GSD puppy won't eat??



## amandaeee (Aug 11, 2010)

Hi there;

Sorry if this question has already been addressed somewhere else. I'm new and am hoping someone will be able to offer me a bit of good advice.

I adopted a German Shepherd pup about a week ago. He's now 10 weeks old. Since we got him, he hasn't had much of an appetite. He'll eat about half a cup of food, and then be done with it. Thing is, he'll only eat it that one time... I have to rotate foods every day to get him to eat anything. On top of that, he won't eat it out of the dish, I have to hand feed him.

I work as a vet tech, so I'm not a completely oblivious owner. I'm just at a loss, to be honest. My boss, who is a veterinarian, told me to keep rotating food until we find something that he'll eat more than once. But I hate to do that because of diarrhea, not to mention how much money I'm wasting on food. We're waiting for a fecal sample to come back to ensure he doesn't have any intestinal parasites.

He was infested with seed ticks when we got him; he had over 100 on him, which the breeder neglected to inform me. (I didn't realize until the day after we adopted him) So I was thinking that had something to do with the loss of appetite, but it's been 3 days since we ridded him of the ticks. 

If anyone can offer any advice, I'd appreciate it. I've gone through 6 different types of canned food - he likes all of them, but will only eat it one time.

Thanks in advance.


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## GSDAlphaMom (Jul 20, 2010)

As long as he's healthy and the vet has ruled out any medical issues then he is training you. If you continue to rotate food he will continue to snub anything he doesn't want. Get a good quality food and stick with it. A healthy dog will not strave itself to death.

I had one that did that for awhile and she would go up to 3 days at a time without eating. All because I kept coaxing her to eat and hand feeding and anything to get her to eat. I was creating a monster. Once she figured out I wasn't going to do that anymore she started eathing regularly on her on.

All that being said though is if there are NO health issues. I'm sure working for a vet you have done fecal checks, temp checks and bloodwork. If so I would then I'll bet it's the above.


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## Stosh (Jun 26, 2010)

What she said...if he's parasite free and otherwise healthy then he's just loving the attention- after all you've just had him a week and he's been through a lot. I picked out the food I was going to feed, bought it and gave it to them. Picky eating is a hard habit to break, hope he warms up to his dinner soon. Have any pictures of the little guy?


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## amandaeee (Aug 11, 2010)

Yes, I brought him in this morning to get him checked out; no temp, but waiting on blood work/fecal results. However, my boss said that he doesn't think it's anything medical because Sarge is acting normal, just snubbing the food. 

What I'm worried about with just sticking to one food and not giving in, is him losing any more weight. He only weighs about 10lbs right now, and he should weigh about 5lbs more apparently (according to my boss, I've never had a German Shepherd before- only Labs). The tick infestation also had a bit to do with the weight loss.

But if I do have to do that, do you reccomend any particular brand of large breed puppy food that would get him to eat and is good quality? Thanks


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## amandaeee (Aug 11, 2010)

The only good one I've got at the moment is the avatar one - he doesn't like to hold still.


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## GSDAlphaMom (Jul 20, 2010)

Oh boy that question is all over the board. I think one of the topics (under forums) is on food. Check there. Do go with a large breed forumla. Check the ingredients as they are listed in order of volume of the ingredient (1st ingredient is the most in the formula, 2nd is next etc). One site you can compare ingredients and ratings is www.dogfoodanalysis.com.

You can also try mixing some can with the kibble...though this tends to become permanent once you do it.  I stil add it to mine. I'm sure he's down on his weight due to the ticks and condition he was in and because he was in that condition he may very well have parasites. If so once you get rid of all the critters he is carrying around, he will start to gain.

So glad you rescued the little guy. Let's see some pics of him!


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## amandaeee (Aug 11, 2010)

I'll be sure to check that out - thanks for the link!

I've been mixing the kibble with canned, hopefully he'll give in soon and just eat normally .

If he holds still for a bit today I'll be sure to get some other photos of him; he's just so bouncy!


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## GSDAlphaMom (Jul 20, 2010)

If you can get BG (Before Grain) canned my guys like that. You can't use the dry for him yet though as it's Grain Free (not recommended for puppies)


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## Stosh (Jun 26, 2010)

He's adorable! And a good sign that he's so active. Does your vet recommend a certain brand? We use Nature's Variety dry kibble and frozen raw chicken patties. You can check out the raw diets that lots of gsd owners feed and there's a lot of info regarding brands. You could add an egg to the dry you have now or moisten it to see if that helps. If you're worried about weight, there should be a recipe for satin balls, many people have fed them successfully. Naturally, you don't want him to gain too much, gsds need to stay pretty lean while they're growing so there isn't added pressure on their joints. Didn't know what you were in for did you?! He's a cutie and I'm sure those brown eyes are irresistible when he says, 'let me eat out of your hand Mom.'


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## gsdraven (Jul 8, 2009)

I've been going through this with my current foster although he is a lot older than your puppy. He would gladly eat cheese or chicken but would turn his nose up at dog food and treats. It took hand feeding him wet food to get him going. He is completely healthy and somehow had enegry so he wasn't sick. I found that he likes to eat in his crate, alone. He still isn't eating great but the only time he does eat is when I leave it in his crate with him... maybe try that?

When Raven was a puppy, she was a very picky eater as well. She often at late at night after her food had been sitting there all day. They can be so picky!


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## BowWowMeow (May 7, 2007)

What brands of food are you trying? See if you can find some Merrick canned food. Most dogs go nuts over that stuff. My cousins' puppy wasn't eating his kibble and had gotten very skinny. They started adding the Merrick and he started eating like a champ. He still needs the Merrick in his food but as long as he has that he's fine. 

You could try adding a raw egg or some fresh chicken or low fat beef and see if he likes that mixed in. 

Are his poops normal? How much exercise is he getting?


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## GSDAlphaMom (Jul 20, 2010)

I would stick to one kibble but rotate canned. My dogs won't touch Merrick which BowWow's love so test a few of the top brands. Mine will eat the BG (Before Grain). It is meat and water for packing, nothing else. Sometimes Wellness and Evo but BG is their fav on the canned. They won't eat anything that has rice and fillers in it. The tripe is one of their favorites.


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## amandaeee (Aug 11, 2010)

Stosh said:


> He's adorable! And a good sign that he's so active. Does your vet recommend a certain brand? We use Nature's Variety dry kibble and frozen raw chicken patties. You can check out the raw diets that lots of gsd owners feed and there's a lot of info regarding brands. You could add an egg to the dry you have now or moisten it to see if that helps. If you're worried about weight, there should be a recipe for satin balls, many people have fed them successfully. Naturally, you don't want him to gain too much, gsds need to stay pretty lean while they're growing so there isn't added pressure on their joints. *Didn't know what you were in for did you?!* He's a cutie and I'm sure those brown eyes are irresistible when he says, 'let me eat out of your hand Mom.'


 
Definitely wasn't prepared for a picky eater . I've owned quite a few dogs, but never had one that I had to _convince_ to eat.


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## amandaeee (Aug 11, 2010)

gsdraven said:


> I've been going through this with my current foster although he is a lot older than your puppy. He would gladly eat cheese or chicken but would turn his nose up at dog food and treats. It took hand feeding him wet food to get him going. He is completely healthy and somehow had enegry so he wasn't sick. *I found that he likes to eat in his crate, alone. He still isn't eating great but the only time he does eat is when I leave it in his crate with him... maybe try that?*
> 
> When Raven was a puppy, she was a very picky eater as well. She often at late at night after her food had been sitting there all day. They can be so picky!


If only I could get him to understand that the crate isn't a bad thing. I've never had such a needy puppy! He absolutely hates it. Working on having him lay down in it while we're hanging about watching TV so he gets use to it- also giving him a chewy bone only when he's in there. If I ever get him use to the crate I'll try feeding him in there, but I'm hoping that the eating issue will fix itself before he's done being crate trained .


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## GSDAlphaMom (Jul 20, 2010)

Find a really really special treat that he only gets in the crate. Dried tripe, little smokie, something extra yummie. Also have him go in (with treat) for very short stints so he doesn't think he's always going to be in there for a long time.

And when he's not in there leave it open, ususally they will go in on their own when they are ready for a nap.


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## amandaeee (Aug 11, 2010)

BowWowMeow said:


> What brands of food are you trying? See if you can find some Merrick canned food. Most dogs go nuts over that stuff. My cousins' puppy wasn't eating his kibble and had gotten very skinny. They started adding the Merrick and he started eating like a champ. He still needs the Merrick in his food but as long as he has that he's fine.
> 
> You could try adding a raw egg or some fresh chicken or low fat beef and see if he likes that mixed in.
> 
> Are his poops normal? How much exercise is he getting?


I've tried a couple different ones -
Science Diet
Nutro
Purina Pro Health
Iams

and a couple other higher quality ones that I can't think of the name of . I've been trying everything, even super market brands. I'm at a complete loss. I'm not sure of any Merrick brands - would they carry them in a pet store, or would I have to order them?

Never heard of adding a raw egg, but I'll try that and see what comes of it. His bowel movements are loose from time to time, but I'm acounting that to the switches in food. We take him for long walks (20-30 mins) two or three times a day, and inbetween that we go for a couple short walks as well. (I'm trying to tire him out pretty good at night so I can attempt to crate train him.) He's got a lot of energy.


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## amandaeee (Aug 11, 2010)

GSDAlphaMom said:


> Find a really really special treat that he only gets in the crate. Dried tripe, little smokie, something extra yummie. Also have him go in (with treat) for very short stints so he doesn't think he's always going to be in there for a long time.
> 
> And when he's not in there leave it open, ususally they will go in on their own when they are ready for a nap.


I've stuck to the same kibble, which he won't eat at all unless the canned is mixed in. But yep, I've got a big chewy bone just in the crate, and he doesn't get it unless he's in there- if he tries to bring it out with him, I take it away and put it back in the crate. 

He goes nuts when we close it. I've done it three or four times where I've closed him in and left him until he calms down, but that takes almost a half hour . So now when he goes in with the bone, we just leave it open for him. It's hard to train him when I've got neighboors coming over and complaining about the noise of him barking/whining .


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## Zoeys mom (Jan 23, 2010)

I mix canned food in for mine it's not a huge deal if he's actually eating. As far as your neighbors go I would apologize for the noise and ensure them it is temporary while your new pup is adjusting. Other than that ignore them it's not against the law for your puppy to whine for 30 minutes I promise. When we got our lab Henry the first night he screeched in his crate for three hours before settling down, and right when he did an animal control officer begins knocking at my door at 2:00a.m. I answer and ask if theres a problem, and he states he got a noise complaint from a neighbor about a loud dog. So I remove the blanket from atop my puppy labs crate and show him the loud dog. The guy laugh's and tells us when he got his lab his neighbor's called the cops on him,lol We both laughed and that was that- he told my neighbor's they needed to be patient we were crate training our puppy


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## amandaeee (Aug 11, 2010)

Zoeys mom said:


> I mix canned food in for mine it's not a huge deal if he's actually eating. As far as your neighbors go I would apologize for the noise and ensure them it is temporary while your new pup is adjusting. Other than that ignore them it's not against the law for your puppy to whine for 30 minutes I promise. When we got our lab Henry the first night he screeched in his crate for three hours before settling down, and right when he did an animal control officer begins knocking at my door at 2:00a.m. I answer and ask if theres a problem, and he states he got a noise complaint from a neighbor about a loud dog. So I remove the blanket from atop my puppy labs crate and show him the loud dog. The guy laugh's and tells us when he got his lab his neighbor's called the cops on him,lol We both laughed and that was that- he told my neighbor's they needed to be patient we were crate training our puppy


He's just so difficult; even just now I tried to feed him Nutro canned food (that he liked a couple hours ago) and he isn't having it. 

I'm not worried about getting the cops called on me  my fiance (we live together) is a cop for the city we live in, so no worries there. I just don't want any bad feelings between my neighboors and I, so I try to train him with the crate during the daytime.


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## GSDAlphaMom (Jul 20, 2010)

the kibbles you listed are mainly grain and contain corn. As for the canned Nutro my dogs won't touch it. Pet Surplus has the biggest dog food selection but they are only in major cities. The highest end that Petsmart sells is Blue Buffalo. I would get some of their canned and try it. Petco has more choices than Petsmart if you have one of those local.


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## amandaeee (Aug 11, 2010)

Got the Blue Buffalo today and he loves it. Thanks for the advice 

Oh, he also slept through the night in the crate  got up with him around 3am (my choice to get up, he wasn't whining) and he went right back in. Whined a little bit at first but otherwise good. Very proud of the little guy.


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