My Australian shepherd will not eat his food. I live in a hot climate, and I feed him at night. He will eat if you stay outside with him, but otherwise will not touch his food until the next day. He is an outdoor pet, 10 years old, and has eaten the same food pretty much his entire life. Sometimes I mix in table scraps with the food, and he will eat this, but passes-up the dog food. When he does not eat his food, ants quickly invade the dish, making the problem worse. He eats out of a small bowl off the ground. He will drink water. Is there anything I can do to help hm eat?

Why is he outside and why is his food left to attract ants? You stay with him until he eats (give him a certain amount of time, say, a half hour), and then remove any uneaten food. He will get the drift soon.