My 4 mos old Lab won't eat his dog food. This has been happening over the past 3 weeks and we have taken him to the vet, who doesn't know why he isn't eating. he has an appetite and will eat treats and pretty much anything BUT his puppy chow. We even bought Iams (he was getting purina puppy chow previously), but he doesn't like that either. If I put something he does like in w/ the dry food he just licks it off of the dry food. He probably is only getting 1-2 c. max a day of his dry food.

I don't want to keep buying food if he isn't going to eat it and I am getting desperate.

Melinda

to begin with, I wouldn't feed my pet iams, could you be giving your pup too many treats ? At 4 months he can be slowly switched over to adult food, he's a large breed puppy and needs the extra in adult food, he could be getting enough if he's eating 1-2 cups, do you put down one cup in the morning and then lift it after he's finished? roughly about 15 minutes? then repeat it again at night, don't give him any treats inbetween, see if this works, for the past two weeks my 5 month old labX pup has only been eating about 1.5- 2 cups a day herself.

labman

Here is the only reliable guide to whether you have a problem or not,

As long as the ribs don't show too much, he doesn't have a problem. With most Labs, over eating is the problem,

I did have a male Lab puppy once that refused to eat the regular adult Purina when I switched him to it. Switching him to a concentrated adult chow similar to Iam's kept him fit to take out in public. I think Iam's is a little high in fat, but I know of a couple of service dog schools that feed it, and nobody knows more, or is more interested in long, active lives as them. 1-2 cups sounds a little low to me. I think by 4 months, my Labs are usually eating at least 3 cups.

If your boy fails to eat enough to maintain the ideal body condition on adult Iam's, take him back to the vet. If that vet doesn't find the problem, try another one.

maxd

Thank you for the response. My dog doesn't appear to be too thin - his ribs aren't visable but he definitely is on the thinner side. He probably gets 2-2'1/2 cups of food a day...but the vet said he should be eating 5. That sounds much too high, based on what you both said...do you agree?

How do you feel about this new food I got to try to see if it is just the food: Solid Gold (wolf blend I think it is called?)? I just bought it and Max loved it for the first two days. Now he is back to being apathetic about it.

He definitely still has an appetite, even if he doesn't eat his food - maybe he would rather have treats, etc? I feel like I need to give him treats right now because we are training him and need reinforcement?

beme

My lab would'nt eat either so after spending over $980 we ound this stuff called Caniday it is the best stuff my dog is a hunting dog and the vet says the healthiest dog she has ever seen.Take my word you wont regret.

labman

It really isn't good to jump around with different foods, and especially not different protean sources. Most any of the foods available are fine. Choose a food. For the light eaters, the meat based ones are best. Put down a cup or more twice a day. Take up any uneaten food after 15 minutes. Do not offer him any food and very little in treats until the next meal. Keep an eye on him comparing him to the chart I posted. As long as he is at least close to the ideal body condition, don't worry about it. If he fails to eat enough that he sinks to the under fed puppy condition, I would try a different vet.

Dogs vary widely. A few years ago, I had to feed Lucky 6 cups of Pro Plan a day to keep his ribs hidden. I went so far as to check with my friends that feed it too, to see how their dogs were doing. They were feeding normal amounts. My year old Sheba does fine on about 3 cups a day. Let well enough alone.