Intestinal Blockage??

[Oh Little Oji]

Unfortunately, I would guess that once the newness of the chicken wings wears off, he will start turning them down too. I doubt they'll solve the problem. They are, at least at this point, getting some nutritious food in him though.

 

[Rits]

I decided to TRY and test things out by feeding him ONE raw chicken wing. He gobbled it up! I fed him another one after that..and same thing, he gobbled it up as if he had his appetite back. I'm so confused. So he won't eat his kibble that he has been gobbling up since he was a puppy, not even with his favorite baby food..but he will eat chicken wings if I feed it to him. What does this mean?

Question... is it possible something is OFF with his food? Have you changed the food at all during this time or is it the same bag of food? Maybe he's trying to tell you something about that bag of food. If he's willing to eat raw and treats at the vet, I would be inspecting that bag of food and maybe trying a different bag.

 

[WiglWerm]

Totally agree with @Rits maybe something is wrong with the food...it happens..A lot.

 

[LifeofRubie]

another update: I withheld food from him since him still turning down food yesterday after the vet visit. It has been 24 hours now. I put down food this morning and just put down food again for him for dinner and he turned down both meals..again..even after not eating for 24 hours. This is so unlike him. I'm worried sick. Ok..so I know this isn't always the greatest idea but I have read a lot about people feeding raw diets to their dogs recently. I don't plan on feeding him a raw diet but I bought raw chicken wings from the grocery store earlier today for myself but after seeing him turn down two meals in a row since yesterday, I decided to TRY and test things out by feeding him ONE raw chicken wing. He gobbled it up! I fed him another one after that..and same thing, he gobbled it up as if he had his appetite back. I'm so confused. So he won't eat his kibble that he has been gobbling up since he was a puppy, not even with his favorite baby food..but he will eat chicken wings if I feed it to him. What does this mean?

I would be really careful feeding him whole chicken wings. He really should have bigger pieces so he has to chew. If they don't chew, the bones, while harmless and digestible when small, CAN cause a problem. Also, there are sodium contents and stuff to watch for so do your research before tossing him random meat.

That being said, there are a lot of folks on here who feed raw and it can be wonderful when properly done. If that's the road you want to go down, do your research as it can be very overwhelming when you first start. I know you want your boy to eat, it's very frustrating. We tried several foods with Rubie and whether her hormones leveled out of we just found a food she really likes, I don't know, but she did come out of this phase with no long term side effects.

 

[Apollo's Dobermom]

I made bone broth for the first time. Not sure if it turned out right. I put raw beef soup bone in there with kale and carrots and two tbsp of the BRAGG vinegar apple cider. Do I feed him everything except for the bone? The beef fell off the bone so can I just add the soup, beef, kale, and carrots onto his kibble? Will he become a picky eater from this? I'm scared he will expect this meal every time from now on. I didn't feed it to him yet, it's cooling. Also, it seems very oily? Is that normal?

 

[Apollo's Dobermom]

before

and

after

 

[Regalis]

I believe it's supposed to be cooked until the bone dissolves and things like kale added at the end. It takes a day or so to cook from what I've read. I think you're also supposed to let it cool and scoop off the fatty layer.

I would also try changing foods. What brand has he been on? Have you checked it for recalls?

I don't know that it will make him a picky eater, but he may come to expect it but being such a beneficial thing, I wouldn't be too concerned with using it.

 

[Apollo's Dobermom]

He has been eating Puppy Purina Pro Plan the Lamb and Rice formula since he was weaned off his mom's milk. He never had any issues with it and it is what his breeder feeds all of her dogs and they all seem very healthy. She is reputable and I have only read good things about her.

 

[Apollo's Dobermom]

I had the bone broth in the crockpot for 15 hours. I put it on his kibble and he ate everything

 

[Regalis]

Dogfoodadvisor.com

I would switch foods asap. Purina is not a quality food.

 

[Apollo's Dobermom]

Why is grain free so important? I keep hearing some people say grain is fine and others say it's terrible. Also, what dry dog food would you recommend?

 

[Regalis]

Grain free is important as dogs do not need grain or even digest many of the grains we see in dog foods. They are used as fillers. Cheap, low quality fillers.

So this is your current food
Purina Pro Plan Focus (Dry)

This is one of the leading grain free foods that is readily available for most people
Taste of the Wild (Dry)

Earthborn is another I highly recommend.

 

[CRDobe]

Some dogs do fine on grain free, others less so. Grain free still has carbs in the form of peas, potato, chickpeas, etc. I avoid corn, wheat and soy. My girl gets Nature's Variety Prairie and I rotate the flavors. It has brown rice, barley, oats and she thrives on it. It might not be rated quite has high as Origen or Acana but those aren't available here in CR.

 

[LifeofRubie]

Rubie is on ACANA Freshwater Fish and does really well on it. People argue grain is not part of their natural diet (very little carbs fed in RAW diets) and is cheap filler for higher quality ingredients. This is also a great resource since Dog Food Advisor is easier to use when you know what you're looking for:

Best Dog Food Reviews and Ratings of 2017 - Reviews.com

Check Chewy.com or petflow.com for autoship savings.

Usually for the bone broth you fill a crock pot with raw bones without too much meat on them, just cover them with water and add the ACV. High for 1 hour, low for 23 hours. Remove all solids, let it cool, skim off the fat. If you've done it right, it should look like jelly. When it's jelly like, they shouldn't get more than a tablespoon or two during meal time as it's rich and can give them soft stools

 

[Rits]

He has been eating Puppy Purina Pro Plan the Lamb and Rice formula since he was weaned off his mom's milk. He never had any issues with it and it is what his breeder feeds all of her dogs and they all seem very healthy. She is reputable and I have only read good things about her.

It could just be that specific bag of food. Inspect it up and down and maybe consider trying a different small bag to see if he eats it without any toppers. Bad batches can happen in any step of the food process from manufacturer to shipment to sitting on the shelf.

 

[My2Girls]

My breeder also had the litter on Purina Pro Plan but the large breed puppy chicken and rice formula (Shadow's Euro so she'll be larger than American ). Honestly, I think and this is just my thinking, breeders use it because it's not bottom of the barrel stuff like puppy chow, it has a decent price point and readily available in most chain pet stores. I think this combination just makes it easy for new puppy owners to be able to get the food and causes less stress for the new pup while transitioning to a new environment. i could be wrong but that's just my thinking. And I think some breeders just know you'll switch to a better kibble.

 

[AresMyDobie]

Because grain is not part of a dogs natural diet and is just a filler because it's cheap and inexpensive for the dog food companies. Purina pro plan isn't the greatest actually I wouldn't touch anything purina. I would look for a high quality food.
Dogfoodadvisory.com

I def would also never feed blue buffalo.

Athena my pup is currently on taste of the wild and I switch her protein source once she is about to run out. She like the rest of my crew will be fed a raw diet in about a week or so.

The bones don't dissolve with bone broth but you def want to cook it for about 24 hours, take the bones out and strain it. I think your boy is going through a phase and it sounds similar to what happened to my male when he was 8 months old. This is ultimately why I did a bunch of research and asked @strykerdobe a billion questions and started to feed a raw diet. I'm still learning daily about feeding raw but I absolutely love what the diet has done for my dogs.
As stated it's not for every dog but it works for my crew and I can't wait to get Athena off kibble and start her on a raw diet.
I hope your boy gets better and am glad that the bone broth encouraged him to eat

 

[My2Girls]

It could just be that specific bag of food. Inspect it up and down and maybe consider trying a different small bag to see if he eats it without any toppers. Bad batches can happen in any step of the food process from manufacturer to shipment to sitting on the shelf.

I agree with this. We bought a bag from a different pet store than the usual one we buy from and it had moth larva in it. Yes little worms crawling around. I noticed web like things in the canister and I was like WTF and then I noticed them. So gross. I returned it right away. Got a store credit and never bought bagged food from there again. The manager explained that sometimes this can happen in transit.

 

[Regalis]

I think both of my current dogs came to me on Purina. Kaizer is currently on totw high prairie puppy and the lab is on earthborn great plains.

I think for most people, the objective is to feed the best food you can afford and get easily that your dog does well on. I change my dogs food up from time to time. Kaizer also gets some raw added in. The lab is on a much stricter diet with no raw due to allergy issues.

 

[My2Girls]

Just make sure you pick one that doesn't have a history of recalls. You'd be surprised at the amount of foods that get recalled for having some of the most awful things in them.