My Jindo is not eating-please help

[doliver]

I adopted a Jindo (Sasha) from a rescue organization 2 months ago. She has always been a picky eater and the woman I adopted her from said that she had to mix some canned dog food to get her to eat.

I avoided that at first, but then Sasha reduced her eating and she has lost a couple of pounds. So I went to Pet Smart and talked to them and they recommended "Bill Jack" food because the smell was inticing to dogs. That worked for a while, but now she is refusing to eat that as well.

So I have started to mix some canned food with it, but she is still only eating about 1/2 a cup to a cup (of dry dog food mixed with canned) a day. She currently weighs about 28 pounds, but should probably weigh around 35. So she should be easily eating more than 2 cups a day, right?

She doesn't seem sick.........she has lots of energy and we walk every morning and she plays every evening. But I am concerned for her because I am starting to be able to see her ribs.

I am tring to follow the Alpha techniques and eat before she does. But, after I give her the food, I don't pick up it up after 15 minutes because I want her to eat when she gets hungry. Is this defeating the purpose? Do you think this is just a behavior thing? I don't give her many treats, but have started to give her cheese as her training treats to try and fatten her up, she scarffs that down without a problem.

What do you think I should do?

Thanks in advance for your advice!

[Kate]

Hi there,

I can understand why you are worried about Sasha, but I wouldn't stress too much yet as she sounds happy and healthy in every other way

Most animals scoff down their food but some can be very picky. You may need to try different foods to see what she likes and maybe use a variety to stop her getting bored. Just beware of changing any food too quickly as this may cause diarrhea.

Dogs are like people in that some are thinner than others. Weight is a good measure but I prefer body condition score. Look at Sasha from above - she should have a waist (ie from her ribs to her hips she should come in a bit), and when you look from the side her stomach should curve up a bit too. Her ribs shouldn't be really easy to see but should be quite easy to feel.

Unfortunately I think we get used to seeing overweight dogs, so thinner and probably healthier dogs look underweight.

Depending on the food, 2 cups might be too much for Sasha. As long as she is still running around and being active I wouldn't be too concerned. If she becomes lethargic or is really not interested in any food then a trip to the vet may be necessary.

Let us know how things go
Kate

[doliver]

Thanks for your reply! I think I will also try getting some stuff to sprinkle on her food to make it more interesting for her. Hopefully that will help too!