Tayda won't eat when *I* feed her…

[Tayda_Lenny]

So I am the one that does the pilling in my house. Tayda really doesn't like it but I try to make the experience as "matter of fact" as possible. She has always been a picky eater so it really hasn't surprised me that she doesn't want to eat.

BUT, I was out of town this weekend and my boyfriend watched the dogs for me. Tayda gobbled up EVERYTHING he fed her… right away. He fed her the exact same thing that I feed her. But when I do it, she slowly comes up, takes a sniff, maybe licks a kibble or two and then walks away. I got home and watched him feed her in the morning and was shocked that she walked right over to it, started eating and finished it all! She never does that when I feed her. Then that very same night, I fed her, and she was back to not eating.

This makes me sad. Is she suspicious of me and what I feed her since I do the pilling and she doesn't like it? Is there any way for me to reverse this behavior of hers toward me or toward the food when I feed her?

[nobarkus]

Maybe you're so worried about it that she senses it and doesn't eat. Your boyfriend isn't worried about it and she eats. Try exercising her before dinner and she'll be hungry.

[Kananga]

@nobarkus:

Maybe you're so worried about it that she senses it and doesn't eat. Your boyfriend isn't worried about it and she eats. Try exercising her before dinner and she'll be hungry.

+1

Amazing what dogs can sense. My B will never accept a treat from someone he does not know. Something about it he senses and will refuse to be even interested in the treat.

But when I feed him it's basically second nature for me, so there's nothing to sense I suppose. Actually, when he's being naughty (chewing on something and me discovering it), he will actually be hesitant to eat because he knows I'm mad at him. He will still eat his food, but he almost second guesses it first.

[nobarkus]

I just got my tri from a rescue and she said he just wouldn't hardly eat. I walk him 2 hours a day and I'm not worried about his not eating a bit. He eats a full bowl in a few minutes.

[tanza]

Tayda's problem is that I think that she is associating her pills with you feeding her… I doubt that it has anything to do with exercising her and since she has Fanconi, giving the pills is not going to change. It is heartbreaking.......

[Quercus]

@Tayda_Lenny:

So I am the one that does the pilling in my house. Tayda really doesn't like it but I try to make the experience as "matter of fact" as possible. She has always been a picky eater so it really hasn't surprised me that she doesn't want to eat.

BUT, I was out of town this weekend and my boyfriend watched the dogs for me. Tayda gobbled up EVERYTHING he fed her… right away. He fed her the exact same thing that I feed her. But when I do it, she slowly comes up, takes a sniff, maybe licks a kibble or two and then walks away. I got home and watched him feed her in the morning and was shocked that she walked right over to it, started eating and finished it all! She never does that when I feed her. Then that very same night, I fed her, and she was back to not eating.

This makes me sad. Is she suspicious of me and what I feed her since I do the pilling and she doesn't like it? Is there any way for me to reverse this behavior of hers toward me or toward the food when I feed her?

The only thing I can think of would be to pill her at a totally different time than the feeding. So she doesn't associate them? Maybe you are already doing that. Maybe change the place, the time, everything that you can change for both pilling and feeding. Also maybe you could reward her with something super special after the pilling…like a big hunk of liver or steak? But not her regular food.

It may just be a phase too...she may realize, as Pat said with Jaadii, that this will happen, and she may as well get used to it.

I am really sorry you have to go through this...I can imagine it must be heartbreaking. Hang in there.

[tanza]

Another thing that I did with Maggii (or any that had to be pilled a lot) was, like you I didn't call them to me (of course with old age they were deaf anyway..ggg)… but I would just go find them when it was time for pills and carry them to the kitchen... give the pills, praise them for being good (and not chomping on my fingers too much).... and turn them loose... That way they really didn't associate it with regular feeding times...

And by the way.. for anyone that wonders why we "harp" on Fanconi tested BEFORE breeding or making sure your B has been tested... this is just one case of how horrible trying to deal with a Fanconi dog can be. Granted Tayda is "before" we had the DNA test... but now there is no excuse ever for breeding an affected Basenjis (OK off the soapbox and into the flame suit)

[EskiLovr]

Thanks for being willing to wear the flame suit, Pat! Every time I read one of these types of threads I just want to cry. It's heartbreaking that anyone has to go through this, and now that we have the test, no one SHOULD have to! Wear the suit, and shout it from the rooftops. Some of us are right behind you.

[thunderbird8588]

My Basenji was always indifferent to food, he would sometimes go for a day without eating on quite a regular basis as if to fast? Could this be something they did in the wild?
When he became older and needed medicating i couldn't be as relaxed about him not eating and my life revolved around wether Benji had eaten or not. Sometimes he needed a boost to get him going, this was usualy a bowl of tea in the morning, he then sometimes ate his food. In the evening there were times when i had to spoon feed him and yes i know he was spoiled but who cares.
Shelley

[agilebasenji]

Have you tried a couple of spoon fulls of muttloaf on the food?

http://www.maryshouse.us/Recipes.htm

I make 1/2 a recipe and dollop some on the evening meal and serve with warm water. Needless to say, my dogs love dinner; even Digital who usually does not eat his breakfast.

[basenji_fan]

@agilebasenji:

Have you tried a couple of spoon fulls of muttloaf on the food?

http://www.maryshouse.us/Recipes.htm

I make 1/2 a recipe and dollop some on the evening meal and serve with warm water. Needless to say, my dogs love dinner; even Digital who usually does not eat his breakfast.

Slightly off topic, but I love this link, thank you

[jys1011]

Poor little Tater I have to give C3 most of his pills too (he's usually the one getting sick) but I try to give it to them with a slice of cheese or bacon or something I made for dinner but not during feeding. They both hate pills so I try to make it a special as possible. Hang in there!

[Shaye's Mom]

My dog eats her breakfast slowly - a few bites after her walk, then maybe nibbles here and there right through the day. Then, after dinnertime for us, she really plows through the rest of her food so it all gets in her, but not at "normal" eating times. She likes going to bed with a full stomach, I guess, but doesn't care about eating much in the morning. We don't worry about it, because she does eat what she should, plus treats, in the course of the day, and she looks great. On the very few occasions she is "off" her food, I start adding stuff - chicken broth, different veggies, mashed up meat, and that gets her "on" again.

[Tayda_Lenny]

This thread was resurrected by a spammer but thought I'd give an update anyway. Tayda went in for her followup and she is doing great! Dr. Gonto said that her test results looked perfect.

She's still a picky little eater - she usually refuses to eat in the morning, but at night she is much better. Can't complain!

[kiroja]

Yay Tayda! That's fabulous news Michelle! Hopefully now you guys can relax and stay in the "zone" for a long time. Well as much as you can relax with these picky little buttheads. lol

[thunderbird8588]

Glad to hear Tayda is doing better

[Rita Jean]

Happy to hear Tayda is doing so much better.

Rita Jean

[Basenjimamma]

That is awesome news. Hopefully Tayda will keep the really negative effects of fanconi far away for a long time.

[MacPack]

Wonderful news! Topper gets 4-5 pills twice a day and he too is very suspicious. I alternate things, but a tiny bit of cream cheese with a couple of pills in it, dunked in left-over pot roast gravy, is the best I have found. When all else fails, I dunk the pills in a bite of vanilla ice cream.

Keep up the great work with Tayda!