It is so unpleasant that you are offering various types of dog foods & treats and your dog is simply rejecting. This can be very alarming behavior for the pet owner as dogs can face serious health issues due to lack of nutritions. To find the best answer and solution for the question “Why my dog won’t eat?” the very first step is to find the reasons of why pet isn’t eating as he/she supposed to.
There can be number of reasons why a dog is losing interest in eating anything. There can be dog food quality issues and dog’s health related issues too.
Being responsible owner, we should not only find the issue but also treat it properly so we can bring the pet back to eating routine for healthy lifestyle.
Reasons: Why my dog won’t eat?
#1- Dog’s Food
This is the most common reason that can make dogs unappetizing as there are few dog foods containing less proteins. As there are companies using low quality ingredients in pet foods to lower the prices which has a noticeable effect on how pets react to cheap foods.Sudden change in dog’s food can also make dogs avoid it.
#2- Recent or Common Illness
Sometimes due to weather or atmospheric change, dogs can get sick and they feel different taste of their own regular foods. In such cases, dog won’t eat but it is normal and issue will be fixed in a little time.
#3- My Dog is Picky
Like we humans, some dogs can be picky too and can have their own food preferences. They can like certain flavours but can reject others too. Or maybe there can be some special ingredients they like in their dog’s food while some dogs can reject sour taste ingredients like certain vegetable flavours.
#4- Dental Issues
Dental issues, bleeding or swollen gums, loose or broken teeth ache and oral tumors etc. can cause the pain while eating and due to lack of ability to express such issues stay unnoticed. If dog won’t eat due to dental issues, he/she must be treated properly else even minor issues can worsen.
#5- Environment change
Sudden environment change may feel a dog nervous or uneasy which may directly affect their appetite. Even, changing their food location within home such as moving dog’s dish to new location may cause loss of appetite.
#6- Mood Issues
Like humans, some dogs have mood issues. My dog won’t eat if I am offering same flavour or brand for years as he/she can get bored eventually. Their most favourite foods can turn into the ones they are avoiding now. Mixing up few foods to add value is a great idea.
Topping of gravy or wet food is considered a good trick.
To fix mood issues, try mixture of dry food with wet food to bring your dog back to regular eating routine.
#7- Stomach Issues
Sometimes, dog may eat something inappropriate for them which can disturb their stomach that can take little time to get fixed but it can become a cause of appetite loss.
Seemingly tasty stuff like flying bugs or trashed foods can attract the dogs, even the most trained dogs can get temptation. Eating grass or vomiting can happen in such cases as dogs are actually facing stomach pains and might be attempting to get rid of what they ate mistakenly.
Appetite loss is common in such situation as they can avoid their regular food until they start feeling better again.
