# Dog doesn't want his raw food anymore



## npsjax (Jan 26, 2013)

Hi, 

I have a 3 yr old male german shepherd whose weighs about 94lbs. He is very active as he goes to a daycare 4 days a week from 7:30am-5:30pm where he is constantly walking/playing.. He has been on raw food since he was about 8 months.. we usually give him turkey necks as his bone and then supplement with offal/tripe cubes and chicken or turkey dinner cubes..

For the past 6-7 months I find he has become more and more fussy about eating. Initially we thought it was because he threw up his entire meal after eating lamb so we didn't force him. He started eating again and then wouldn't want the food anymore. We crushed a small piece of liver treat and he gobbled it up... 

We used to give him a variety of meats with bone (chicken backs, turkey necks, beef brisket) but he stopped eating the chicken backs and briskets so we stopped buying them.. Now he doesnt want his turkey necks either and we have to add treats to have him eat his meals.. 

It's getting expensive to keep chucking his meals as once they are thawed up give him 2 days to eat and then throw it out... I am debating switching to kibbles but same issue there... he eats 2 days (if that) and then doesn't want it.. 

Don't know what to do! Seems he eats well at the daycare when he stays overnight but not at home! 

Any ideas would help... Can't afford to keep chucking his meals and don't know what to do with 30lbs of turkey necks in my freezer!


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

I'll take them!

Have you looked at his mouth, teeth are ok? Does the daycare give treats during the day?


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## npsjax (Jan 26, 2013)

LOL! If you live in the Greater Toronto area (Ontario, Canada) sure... 

Teeth seem fine.. He is more than happy to chew and eat a stick if I were to give him one.. He did eat a beef neck couple of days ago but he threw up after eating them (small bits of bone)... 

The daycare does not give them treats during the day.. They give a treat at the end of the day when we pick him up.. It's usually a very tiny treat (compared to his size).


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## wolfy dog (Aug 1, 2012)

Have you tried switching him over to a good quality dry kibble? I had a dog who would refuse three meal times sometimes but never a fourth. He lived till 14 years. 
In your case I would the vet take a look at him and try kibble. If he is healthy and refuses his food, I would not push the issue and not bribe with treats. The more attention, the worse it gets. I would give him 10 minutes to eat and remove the food if he leaves it alone and let the issue rest. Except of course when he is anorexic.
Another take: is he under stress? Day care can be overwhelming. Has there been a change in your family, other dogs etc? Two of mine started to get anorexic when our top dog died and I had a heck of a time getting them to eat for three months.


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## Sunflowers (Feb 17, 2012)

I would think its time for a checkup at the vet's.
This isn't normal, and when they stop eating there is usually something medical going on.


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## Helgie8 (Feb 27, 2013)

OMGosh... my female is the same way. She is also raw fed and she'll eat something for weeks at a time then all of a sudden refuse to eat it. Sometimes she'll refuse the chicken, then it's the liver, she is now refusing the green tripe. She did the same thing when she was on dry food... good for a few weeks then she was done with it. Maybe it's a Shepherd thing! LOL! What I did was after 15 minutes, whatever she didn't eat, I put back in the refrigerator. Then she got it at the next feeding. I use to feed her twice a day, now I switched to once a day and she gets fed closer to dinner time. It's better as she will then eat what I put out for her.


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## cci058 (Nov 18, 2011)

I agree, maybe time for a trip to the vet. When our Maverick did this, turns out she had SIBO (small intestine bacteria overgrowth)


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