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jcdogluv · May 12, 2008, 08:47 PM

My 4 month old puppy just got bit by our neighbor's dog last Friday. He was playful before and now he's scared of literally everything! And the problem is... he stopped drinking ever since. But he had some soft canned food the day after but stopped eating too after that. We were starting to really worry and took him today vet today and she found two punctures on his mouth and a broken tooth so she pulled it out and gave him sutures and a shot of 24 hr painkiller. She said that he should probably start eating and drinking soon since he won't be hurting and gave us painkiller pills to either give him or put in his food once his initial painkiller starts wearing off. But it's been like 5 hrs since he came home from the vet and he still hasn't eaten or drank anything. He always backs up and walks off and hide when we try to feed him. Is it just going to take some time or is there something we can do? Because it seems like the physical problem is fixed but he's like scared to eat/drink now or something?!

tickle · May 13, 2008, 05:22 AM

Something bad happened to him and he is reacting to it. Probably traumatized, plus he had a sore mouth. You just have to give him time, stroke him, reassure him that all is well. He is still a youngster, after all, at four months old and he is coming to grips with having been hurt.

jcdogluv · May 13, 2008, 06:42 AM

Thanks so much! He finally ate some this morning! But I think he realized that it hurt him or something because then he barked and stopped eating. Hopefully he'll be completely healed soon. Do you think he'll be able to go back to his old self eventually? Whenever we give him his fav toys now... he would still just stare at it and not play or anything.

KISS · May 13, 2008, 07:19 AM

Now, would you play with your mouth toys with a sore mouth? I doubt it.

Comfort the puppy as best as you can. Don't overdo it because remember when humans are sick they don't want to eat nor play either. Let the puppy decide. Be close to the puppy, but don't invade his space. Let him/her heal.

jcdogluv · May 14, 2008, 08:10 AM

Thanks for all the help! He's getting much better now. In fact, he's now eating A LOT.. and I'm trying to not let him eat too much. But one problem is that it seems like he's used to the soft canned food now and won't eat his old beneful dry food. I heard that dry food is much better for dog's teeth than canned food when it comes to things like cavities. And also, we put his prescribed painkiller pills in his water and he loves it. I'm afraid that it'll be like the food and he won't drink normal water anymore after he's off the painkillers. What should I do?

And another question... we are getting him neutered end of this month... is he going to stop humping after that? Or is there something else that I have to do to get him stop humping?

KISS · May 14, 2008, 08:37 AM

It's probably a little too soon for dry food. His tongue still has to heal. Feed him the canned stuff, but put a very small amount of dry stuff out. If he is truly hungry, he'll eat it.