For each owner, the health of his pet is a top priority. Therefore, if a dog refuses to eat - this is always a cause for alarm. You should not panic right away, but it is recommended that you pay close attention to your favorite. There are a lot of reasons for this phenomenon, so you need to analyze all the symptoms well and draw the right conclusions.
If your pet remains active
In this case, we can say that everything is not so bad, but you should not lose vigilance. The fact is that the need for food is leading. Therefore, even if the animal does not experience hunger, it will not refuse food, especially from treats. There must be good reasons for this. So let's look at why a dog refuses to eat.
- If a puppy, growing up, begins to refuse one of the meals, then there is nothing to worry about. Just now he no longer needs additional feeding.
- If the animal plays and frolics, but often turns away from the cup, this may mean that it is simply picky and expects more delicious pieces from the owner.
- If in the evening there was serious physical activity, then do not be surprised that in the morning the dog refuses food.
- Often ignores a bowl of a bitch during estrus. If you have a male dog, and on a walk he meets a flowing female, then the reaction will be similar. These are hormones and nothing more.
- The next reason could be stress. If the owner left the animal in the kennel and went on a business trip, then in almost 100% of cases the dog refuses food. The first days she will not even drink water, but with a good attitude she will soon calm down.
Troubling signs
Usually the owner knows his pet well. It's one thing if he gallops around you merrily, droplets of moisture glisten on his black nose, his eyes shine, but, having poked his head in a cup, the animal begins to look for pieces more tasty. Including, persistently asking for cookies or a sandwich from you. In this case, we can safely say that everything is in order with him.
A completely different situation if the dog did not come in the morning to wake you. Give her a piece of goodies. If she reaches for him, remembering that this is her favorite food, but at the last moment turns away, you need to immediately run to the veterinarian. So something bad is happening in the body. Most likely, this is a powerful intoxication. The animal is hungry, but nausea prevents swallowing. If you stretch it for some more time, the dog will become so weak that it will no longer respond to any food.
What to do
It is very important to stay at home and watch your pets. Then you can definitely say that the dog refuses food. The reasons must be sought together with your doctor. To do this, a specialist should examine the dog, as well as take the necessary tests. If there is a suspicion of the presence of a foreign body in the intestine, then give direction to an ultrasound or X-ray.
You should go to the veterinary clinic a maximum after 36 hours from the moment of refusal of food from an adult dog, and 48 hours for a puppy. If you apply faster - it will only get better.
Write data
The veterinarian will collect a medical history to determine the cause. The dog refuses food for a reason, so your task is to reveal the situation in detail, so that it is easier for the doctor to evaluate it:
- It is very important to fix the period of time from the last meal.
- Try to offer different products, so that the doctor knows for sure whether the animal refuses something specific or everything.
- It is important to capture the dog’s ability to swallow food. To do this, while the condition is just beginning to worsen, offer a favorite treat. Even a seriously ill animal will often swallow it through force. If this does not happen, then inform your doctor.
- Constantly offer water and watch the result: eagerly drinks, refuses.
- Pay attention to the dog's feces. Everything will be important, a change in shape, color, smell.
- If vomiting is noted, be sure to fix its frequency and contents, the color of the discharge.
All this information will be very important in order to understand why the dog refuses to eat.
What can cause a failure?
An experienced veterinarian regularly encounters such problems, and therefore has a number of assumptions that remain to be checked and by the method of exclusion to find what is suitable in your case. If the picture does not fit into any of them, then these reasons will be excluded immediately. It can be:
- Dental problems. If the teeth are damaged or broken, the animal will experience severe pain.
- Gastrointestinal diseases.
- Liver disease.
- Poisoning.
- Viral and infectious diseases.
Each of these causes requires immediate medical attention and treatment.
What else can be attributed to the reasons?
Why does the dog refuse to eat? If the tests are normal, the vaccinations are delivered on time, and the pet categorically refuses food, then pay attention to what you fed him recently. In addition to behavioral and medical problems, there are others:
- poor quality food;
- taking medication.
That is, refusal of food can say a lot. Observe your dog and consult your veterinarian on time. Only in this way can you save him from a variety of problems.
The puppy bitch refuses food
There is a stereotype that the expectant mother should eat well. In fact, before giving birth, the dog often refuses food. It is on this basis that the owner can guess that childbirth is approaching. At the same time, vigor and mobility are preserved, single vomiting or diarrhea is possible. It is not always worth panic if the dog refuses to eat. What to do in this case? Equip the expectant mother a cozy corner. If she took it with pleasure, then soon you will be replenished.
The dog eats poorly and became lethargic
Of course, climatic disasters may be the cause. Animals often lose their appetite in too hot weather. If now is the middle of summer, then it is quite possible that the reason is this. Try to provide the animal with peace in the daytime, and in the evening offer again a bowl with a fresh portion.
But much more often, if the dog is sluggish, refuses to eat, this indicates health problems. If before your pet did not notice anything like this, then this is a very serious symptom in which you can not hesitate to consult a veterinarian. Lethargy, drowsiness and refusal to feed are the first symptoms of enteritis or hepatitis.
Poisoning
If the dog refuses food and water, then this may indicate poisoning. Pay attention if there is difficulty breathing. Especially vividly indicates vomiting poisoning. Try to remember if the dog touched foreign objects on the last walk, be sure to check all the supplies of home household chemicals. Often puppies gnaw at packaging with chemicals. It can be washing powders and bleaches. After that, he, of course, will refuse food.
Poisoning is a very serious condition. A dog can get a severe toxic reaction simply by rummaging in a bin and eating a piece of old chicken. Protein poisoning can cost her her life. But it can be worse. The pet eats the poisoned bait, which it finds by chance. In this case, you have no more than 30 minutes to go to the doctor.
Problems in the digestive tract
At first glance, the situation is very similar. For some reason, the dog refuses food. The causes can be congenital, chronic or consist in a systematic violation in the diet. If you have experienced severe pain in the intestines or stomach, then you understand that you do not want to eat or drink. Such symptoms may be accompanied by diarrhea or severe constipation. Often there are problems with the hind legs.
Refusal of food and drink may indicate that there was a blockage of the digestive tract. Very often a pet swallows something big that stops swallowing. In this case, the only way to save his life is surgery. Do you think that this will not happen with your pet? Young dogs can eat a ball, scarf, socks, thread, pieces of clothing.
Liver problems
The owners are very scared if the dog vomits bile. Refuses food, drinks water, then vomits again. Most often, this is a symptom of chronic gastritis, diseases of the liver, pancreas and gall bladder. This may be a sign of a recent pyroplasmosis. In this case, bile, mixed with gastric juice, tends to go outside, since getting into the stomach, it causes severe cramping. In addition to chronic diseases, the following symptoms lead to: overeating, consumption of spoiled food, as well as food unsuitable for the dog. These are dishes with a high content of spices, salt and fat.
Colds
Often the owners believe that the dog can sleep on the floor, in a draft, and nothing bad will happen. After all, mutts live on the street. In fact, they are as prone to colds as we are. Walking on a rainy day may well turn into a disease. Therefore, returning home, it is necessary to close the windows and dry the dog.
But in this case, there is a temperature and obvious signs of weakness. But the refusal of water is almost never observed in this case. But after refusing food, weakness, or temperature, the death of a pet very often follows. Therefore, you can not delay with a visit to a doctor. Only a specialist can find the real reason and prescribe treatment.