I have a 9 week old Austrailian Cattle Dog who has suddenly stopped eating normally.. I have been feeding him a mix of dry and wet, about 3 to 1, and for the first few days, he ate with vigor. Now when i put his food down in the morning, he doesn't even taste it.. is there something i should do differently? He acts completely normal in every other way..

Hi

9 weeks old - so is he new to you? If so this would suggest he's been with you about a week if so it's quite normal for a puppy to go of food for a few days. If there are no other signs of illness and he's eating at other times, gaining weight and toiletting normally then he perhaps has decided he doesn't want breakfast anymore. Not the best meal to miss for a puppy so you might want to give him a smaller meal at night so he wakes up more hungry. If it's a mid morning meal/lunchtim, then he might just not wanmt it any more. Puppies this young are usually on four meals a day but some do get ready to go to three early.

hth

Pam n the boys

You are correct; I have had Ozzie for about a week now, but it's not just his breakfast.. It seems as though yesterday morning, he just decided he didn't want food anymore.. I have gotten him to eat a little dry food now and then, but when compared to the "famine-style" appetite he was sporting just 2 days ago, i got a little worried.. I figured he'd eat when he got hungry, but this is my "boy"..LOL I just wanted to make sure i wasn't missing anything that would signal a health problem.. He still roughhouses with the cat, my roommate, and myself, and he's still using the bathroom normally, although i don't know where he's getting the material to work with... Any advice is appreciated..

Have you been supplementing his regular meals with other food? If you have given your puppy people food it is very possible he is holding out for better quality grub, like steak or roast chicken. :-) Some dogs will eat anything you give them - others become real gourmets and food critics. For young puppies it is usually better to keep them to a regular diet with no goodies, or at least mix the extras in small quantities with their dog food.

Stacey

I haven't been giving him anything other than a regular dog treat every so often to help along the obedience training, although i haven't been doing anything serious.. just making him sit for his dinner; stuff like that. This is my first puppy, so i'm really going all out to make sure i do everything right and raise a good camping buddy.. Thanks for your insight, though.. Any help I can get is appreciated.. :-)

Hi, as long as he is happy and lively and behaving normally and "toilet" is normal, I wouldn't worry yet. If there was something wrong he would appear unwell. Just keep putting the food down at your normal times and remove it half an hour later. Lots of pups this age do go off their food now and again - and its then that many owners try chopping and changing the diet to find something they like. They may eat a new food for a day or two and then they go off that too. I would stick with the food you are feeding, as long as its a good quality puppy food.

We are hoping to get an ACD in the near future, and have been told many times that they can live off the smell of an oily rag! Puppies can be fussy (not usually ACD's though, from what I have read), some will say just put it down at mealtimes - four times a day at this age - but it took me 3 weeks to find Dylan a food he would happily eat. If he will happily eat chicken or other highly tasty foods there is probably not a lot wrong

Let us know how you get on with him

Hayley

(Out of curiosity where did you get him from, and who are his parents?)