[shoelessjoe]

I read all the posts about dogs not eating and couldn't find anything about Labs not eating. I was told a couple years ago by someone that Labs have no "full" sensor and will eat themselves to death if you leave food out. Well my Yellow Lab is 2 years old and is in perfect health that I know of. My Vet said last month that he has the best shape of any Lab he has ever seen! But now all of a sudden he has stopped eating. We put his food out in the morning and leave it there all day. It is 7:21 pm right now and he has about 10 pieces of food left in bowl. He has been doing this everyday for about 2 weeks now. He won't eat anymore than 3 cups a day. I would not be concerned if he was another breed, but since he is a Lab I am. Any help from the Labman is appreciated. Thanks,
Joe

[labman]

Most Labs are terrible gluttons, luring people into shorting their lives by over feeding. However Labs do not read what the experts say, and may ignore it. I had one Lab that actually ate so little his ribs showed before I switched to one of the concentrated chows. The 3 cups are about what I am feeding my one Lab now, but she is 11 and not real active. Additionally I am concerned about it being a fairly sudden change. Has he lost weight? Two weeks of undernourishment should show some sign of weight loss. As long as you can't see his ribs and no other signs, cut back to what he eats and keep an eye on him. If you see a lack of energy, diarrhea, constipation, or other changes, better call the vet. Some slowing down is natural as they approach maturity at 3 years old.

Some dogs process chow more efficiently than others. I had a Lab a few years ago, I had to feed 6 cups of Pro Plan a day. He was producing larger softer stools. I was accusing Pro Plan of cheapening their chow. I checked with others feeding it, but it was just him.