Skinny Irish setter won't eat

[Melody Rodarte]

Hi Everyone,

I have a beautiful 17 month Irish Setter female that refuses to eat no matter what I feed her.

She's lost some of her luster in her coat and has a bald spot on her thigh. I've been to many different vets and no one can tell me what's wrong. Can anyone help shed some light on what the problem might be. The vet bills are in the thousands now from tests done and all come out negative.

Worried mom,

Melody

[Astrid Landsaat]

Well she was on the skinny side when she was on Eukanuba. I had her on Performance too. She was very interested in her new food an she loved to eat that. So I still had half a bag Eukanuba , I did throw it in the waste bin.

[Dee Rance]

Hi there
I have a young man here, he hasn't eaten by himself for nearly 6 months now, it doesn't bother him if he eats or not, he was loosing so much weight that I started doing something that I said that I would never do, hand feeding him, there is a down side, that he will probably keep me feeding him for quite a long time, but hey it doesn't take long out of my day, and he is starting to take bits by himself now, I think that they will starve themselves to death given the rite circumstances, but that they will ultimately start to want to take food for themselves. I don't say it is the rite way to go, probably it definitely isn't, but it keeps them with plenty of weight, just in case they get something wrong with them, and they then have 'something to fall back on'
Fin used to look at food as though I was trying to poison him, his mother would do the same, but she is now eating by herself too, and how, eating her food my food and anything she can get her mouth around, it is wonderful to see.. so I suppose it does work,

[Dixie Cruise]

Hi Melody. I am sorry you are having this problem ... it is always tremendously worrisome when a dog won't eat. I would not worry too much about finding the perfect food ... the first place is to get her to eat. Period. If hand feeding helps, then do it and do not worry that you might have to do it forever. If she will eat Eukanuba or any other brand ... then go with it and try to shift her to a different brank later if that is what you feel is needed. Right now, calories are the most important thing, in my opinion. Have you tried green tripe? It can be ordered on the internet in cans and I am told that it is highly nutritious AND highly tasty to dogs ... also smelly to humans, but if she will eat it then who cares? Best wishes. Hope you can resolve this soon.

[Melody Rodarte]

Hey,
I did try Eukanuba for about a three weeks. The first few days she loved it. After that once again she started shunning it and looking at me like I was crazy for even putting it down. I'll put some wet food and frozen mixed veggies in her food at times and she will usually enjoy it but I have to keep switching flavors. (heaven forbid I give Nani lamb twice in a row) I tried tripe a long time ago when she was a pup and she treated it like everything else; ate it up for a day and turned her nose the next. I jused to just leave a bowl of dry food out and let her graze all day but my other dog is such a fatty she won't let anything sit around for more than a few minutes. How old is a Setter before their full coat comes in?

[Melody Rodarte]

I haven't tried any cat food yet. I have a cat so maybe Nani can borrow some of her food. I decided to get Nani spayed. The vet had told me that might help her put on some weight and since she has some health problems I didn't think it would be responsible breeding her. She's my first Setter and I've only met one other English Setter on Island. They aren't very common around here so most vets and groomers aren't very experienced with the breed.

[Melody Rodarte]

LOL! A dog a little on the thick side is much easier than one that's skin, bones, and hair. I really hope she does bulk up a bit when she gets older. For now I guess I'll just keep doing what I'm doing. She's on a waiting list to see a canine allergist because she gets frequent ear infections no matter how clean and dry I keep her ears. But you know I live in Hawaii and it's hot and humid year round. She also LOVES going to the beach and digging in the sand. My other dog is a doberman and she's the polar opposite from Nani. I love my setter reguardless of her quirky flaws.

[Dixie Cruise]

My Cosmo had constant ear infections (yeast) since we brought him home from Ohio ... we live in DC, which is very humid although probably does not compare to Hawaii (in MANY respects!) Anyway, as soon as we put him on a grain free food (Blue Buffalo Wilderness Salmon) the ear infections cleared up completely. So good luck with your allergist and I hope you find a solution soon.