Yes I'm writing this. I feel so frustrated. I feel very knowledgeable about food and nutrition, more specifically to picky eaters and puppies. I have to admit I am stumped. Took Miya to the vet today, she was at 58 pounds. Yes for many of you that means your female husky is over weight, Miya is underweight. The vet said she was in perfect health, so I guess some vets are ok with hip bones and rib bones showing. I hate having friends tell me she looks anorexic. It bothers me to know that our 5 pound cat will eat more than Miya most days.

I dealt with tape worm for what seemed forever. Then finally by September I discovered I had a husky. Full of pep, endless energy and a very healthy appetite. Then January it all went back down hill. I have successfully been feeding a partial raw diet and kibble. In September I started weaning her off from cooked hamburger or turkey burger mixed with her kibble to just her kibble and upped her kibble from one cup to 2 cups because of her energy, and because I really wanted to stick to a kibble and raw diet. So it was 1.5-2 cups kibble(and no scolding I kept her on TOTW since she was doing so well, and she has such a sensitive system I didn't want to ruin a good thing). She was perfectly happy with the kibble at lunch time and her raw meaty bone at dinner time. In fact most of the time she was still hungry, I never seen that with her.

In January I started a part time job. I am gone on average three times a week, but she is never alone, hubby is with her at night. Yes our meal time has changed. I started the job on January 2, so I did figure she would have some anxiety over me being gone, but after nearly 2 months I figured she would have adjusted. I have upped our quality time, and tried to make the change as nonchalantly as possible, as if I'm going grocery shopping. Her appetite has tanked. she refuses raw completely, in fact I would have just made the switch, but total refusal, won't touch a bone.

Miya does have some other issues, she was not spayed right and goes into false heat every 6 months, and she had just finished her heat prior to me working, but right about a week before I started working she went into false pregnancy, ugh, yes this is just great. Also our winter has sucked. One week it's in the 70's the next it's in the 20's.

I have limited access to other quality foods, 30 mile one way drive to tractor supply, they have a few options, Earthborn is at a comparible price, but $30 for 14 pound bag, when I have a $30 15 pound bag of TOTW I just opened, or $18 for a 4 pound bag of Merrick or Wellness(I still think is a diamond product) is the same price as the Merrick. I will not try 4health or Diamond, because it is still made by diamond, like TOTW is, so I do not want to try another diamond product, and Blue products have their own current problems, besides Miya didn't do well on Blue.

I broke down tonight while in town, (again no yelling, I am desperate for her to eat), I seen Lassie Way, which is grain free, and I hand fed her a few pieces, and she came out and ate a few more about a half hour ago, so maybe a 1/4 cup of food all day. Which is a lot lately. She will reluctantly eat jerky treat in the morning, and about 3 or 4 bites of cooked meat that I make for our dinner, when I'm home, but that is all the food she has been eating since the first of the year, she did eat her burger mix with kibble, about half her usual maybe 3 times since the first of the year.

All my hard work is gone. I do not know what to do. I follow all my advice I give to people here, to no avail. Can dogs be anorexic? Her activity level is still great, drinks as normal, sleeps normal, poops normal(although only once a day and not as much, since she isn't eating), and seriously I have told hubby no slipping her people food when I'm gone. She does walk to her bowl and sniffs and walks away, I know she is hungry. I'm at my wits end, this has been going on for almost 2 months. Help!! Or at least some moral support and positive, she will not starve herself to death, although at the moment it seems like she is. I can't even understand her refusal to raw, she loves her raw???????

Well, no one else seems to be around this weekend so I guess it's my turn to ... to what??

As you know, I have two dogs here; one Sasha has a problem with being a bit overweight - Food! lemme at it! and Avalanche who could really care less whether he eats or not ... kinda like his owner, we eat when we get hungry.  Sasha's just a big bundle of fur and she's solidly packed so I'm not too concerned about the extra 10-15 pounds she could afford to lose.  Avalanche is my boy with an "overactive thyroid" (hm, not really, but that's one for the vets to consider next time I take him in), he weighs less that Sasha by about 20 pounds and is a good 2 - 3 inches taller but both vets say he's in good health, he has an excellently obnoxious personality and he's the one who's a lot more apt to be playing by himself when he wants out.

As I see it, my Avalanche is much like your Miya.  I've tried different food with him and he doesn't care ... he'll nose the counter top from time to time but hasn't stolen anything off of it (yet?) that I know of, it seems to be a matter of "Hm, What is that?" not a case of "I want that!"

While he's underweight by anyone's definition - I can see and feel rib and hip bones - he's a long way from unhealthy.  We go out from time to time and I let him run (with me in the jeep) about 4 - 5 miles down the road and then back ... and after a drink, he's ready to do it again.

Anorexia - is a complex eating disorder with three key features:

1. refusal to maintain a healthy body weight
   
2. an intense fear of gaining weight
   
3. a distorted body image

I don't see anything in there that a dog is capable of "thinking". There's no way a dog could have a concept of "body image" or a fear of gaining weight and if she's eating when she needs to then she doesn't "refuse to maintain a (for her) healthy body weight".

Now, calling it like I see it ... as I've said before "A healthy dog is not going to set beside a bowl of good quality dog food and starve themselves to death." You've said all along that she's healthy, ditto that you're doing your best to provide her with a good quality food ... as much as you may not want to hear this, I think it's time to set back, relax and accept that you have the Miss Twiggy of dogdom. (Maybe not the best example, all things considered.) Some dogs, Avalanche and Miya, are quite comfortable being "underweight" ...

We know that dogs can sense our tension or anxiety over different issues, I'd like to suggest that your anxiety or what you see as her skinniness is probably as much of an issue to her as her size is to you - your anxiety is probably exacerbating the situation.

Not what you wanted to hear, but it's the best i can do from a distance ...

I am around, Al, lol. I just don't know how to help for this situation. I had suggested to Renee in the Weigh in thread that she try a flavored spray, and Amy suggested putting bacon grease drippings in the food, and maybe that might spark a light up there in Miya's pretty little head to start eating... but that is all I got. I am no help in this situation, for I have never had to deal with an underweight dog before, whereas infact, I am dealing with an over weight dog currently, but that is easily changed in comparison... I just want hope that someone can think up of something that can be suggested, or might have an underlying cause hypothesis so Renee has something to ask the vet about.
You're right though Al, it very well could be that Miya is a skinny minnie and that is just the way she is, but I would want her to be thorough just in case if there is something going on.

If I top off Avalanches food, he'll eat everything that's there - then won't eat for another three days (or so...) If this weren't chronic with Miya (meaning it's more the normal thing than not) then I'd agree with some topping to spark her interest, what I'm afraid would happen would be the same thing Avalanche does ... or worse, binge and then toss it.

Your comment, Lucy, "in case there is something going on" is why I always qualify my comment about a dog never starving with "a healthy dog". If there are other problems (hormonal possibly, Miya is a female, yes?) then my comment really does not apply! But I think we'll all agree that Renee has probably covered the possible medical issues.

I'm still trying to decide whether Renee was looking for a response from adults who own Husky's, in which case I might not qualify, or just people in general who own adult Husky's.

aljones wrote:

I'm still trying to decide whether Renee was looking for a response from adults who own Husky's, in which case I might not qualify, or just people in general who own adult Husky's.

I almost snorted my drink from laughing at this line bwahaha

Lol, Lucy and Al....thank you, I reworded my thread a bunch of times.....I wanted non puppy owners to respond. I guess more of a rant in need of moral support. I laughed too when I read that Al  I have never been around a dog that didn't eat daily. Miya, like Avalanche will go days with out eating, often times though acts hungry, but doesn't want anything I offer her. Unlike puppy owners, who I have helped, I will not cave in and give her people food, or other things we caution new owners not to do. Her refusal to raw is where I lost it, in conjunction of her vet visit and how low her weight is. She's never been a big kibble eater, but always enjoys her raw(well almost always). To hear the vet say she is a picture of health, yet to me she doesn't, kind of upset me.

Yes she does have a hormone imbalance, I'm stuck with that, unless we re-espay her, and I really don't want to do that again, unless not doing so would shorten her life.

Since she has displayed separation anxiety, could this be another example? Because our dinner time is not happening when I am working? I've been home 24/7/365 for a year and a half now, so should I just go with the flow and she will adjust to the change in time?

I did look at the sprays Lucy, and I may indeed buy some and see how they work. Amy's idea I've used before. I think I may have discovered a partial solution as a result to Amy's suggestion. Last winter I would use bacon grease to get Miya to eat and this worked for a while. Then she stopped eating. So my next idea is to start a rotation diet with kibble. Keep the amount low, since she doesn't eat much. The part I am unsure of as far as rotation diet, should I slowly switch? as the packages suggest, or just switch and see how she does? Al I believe you do a similar diet for your's, where you switch up brands from time to time? I understand that some dogs just can't make a switch, but I'm thinking she is bored. I have read that some people swear to switching up proteins and kibble, in the long run those people believe their dogs end up healthier.......So I am very willing to hear from others who are successful at a rotation diet and how to go about doing this.

As an update Miya ate like a pig today, about a half cup of the 2 kibbles I have with some steak grease topper for dinner, she had raw beef and bone for lunch, she also found an old bone ate that, as well as an old cow ear and finished that. So I guess she will eat the proper food she should eat when she is good and ready.......Kids

BTW Al, yes this is chronic, she is 2 years and almost 4 months old, and the only time she has had a great appetite was around this past September until the first of the year, so 4 months a year she eats like a normal dog, the other 8 months I guess not. Topping her food off will not encourage her to binge, in fact she has walked away from toppers, or will pick because I release her to eat. She will not beg for our food, although she will try and steal from the cat, since I feed her meat at dinner time, because the cat is a beggar, lol. So for Miya it is a game with the cat vs wanting to eat. I was blessed with a very difficult husky, that is beyond picky and is ultra sensitive........

Renee - Al beat me to it! I read your post and was mulling it over while I made dinner last night (don't ask, we keep weird hours since Wayne retired ). The thing I kept coming back to was..."Miss Twiggy"

Keep in mind that many of the huskies we see on this board are really lean - Miya may just be another one. Ami periodically starts missing meals, totally mystifies me and I can really get in a stew about it. I THINK he's lean underneath the Yeti coat but I'm not certain. With his coat he LOOKS chunky but he definitely has a well-defined tuck up even if I cannot see a waist. I can feel his backbone, his hip bones and his ribs. I feed TOTW plus treats (husband has a ritual at dinner time that involves a custard cup with some people food and a cocktail fork ). Ami's daily bone is more recreational than nutritional - aside from his enjoyment, I do it for teeth cleaning and to keep his poop easy to pick up.

Keep in mind, there are rat studies that show a profound longevity advantage to reduced calorie diets.

I wonder if you are feeling quilty about working and being away from Miya and that is creating, as Jeff suggests, some anxiety around feeding time?

Also, last year, I contacted Diamond when considering their Extreme Athlete food. One of their vets responded that that food (with the high protein and fat) was ONLY suitable to hard working dogs - as in daily training, sledding etc, that even walking 5 miles daily was not enough to warrant such a high protein food. His exact words were -"it will make them sick" and he suggested their chicken rice formula (Ami didn't really like it, his poop was runny and, at the time, I didn't like the small size of the kibble so I stopped using it.) If I remember correctly, the protein/fat % is similar to TOTW high prairie so in the back of my mind, I am uneasy about feeding that. But, my neighbor's vet recommended the TOTW high prairie to help with skin issues so I am continuing with it. Ami, in summer, eats 2 cups, divided into 2 feedings and a "midnight" snack. He is in the 60 - 63 pound range and about 24, +- inches tall.

I know it's difficult, but I would just relax about her weight, consider her to have an endurance runner's build, provide her with the food, she eats it, she doesn't and let it be. (So says the worry wart who goes through hoops when Ami is skipping a meal )

An analogy, perhaps: Wayne and I are both on the shorter side and overweight. We have a 6"1" son with a body fat of 7%, he has always known "enough, I'm not hungry anymore." While is diet, to my mind is abyssmal, and his exercise is spotty at best, he has no known health problems.

Hope this helps you feel better even if it doesn't help put weight on Miya!

I didn't read all the replies, but I found something that works really well for Diz, and have seen some others have success with it for appetite stimulation. DE. Yep, add a tsp to kibble and a tiny bit of water. For some reason they really seem to like it!

In terms of the raw, it could be she just doesn't like whatever you're giving her. When Diz was on raw, he seemed to really dislike lamb and duck. He would fast for days, and finally break down and eat if I didn't cave. But it just didn't seem worth it. Also, maybe you could ask one of the pet stores in the town you shop in, to order something for you. I have Dizzy on Zignature, and it's been the only thing that has been really consistent for him.

In terms of amount, he eats 1 & 2/3 cups per day. 2/3 in the morning and 1 cup at night. I had to cut back from 2 cups recently because he was looking a bit chunky.

@Amy, yes you did make me feel better. I have to learn to deal with a dog who just has more energy and less appetite than most dogs. I'm still going to consider a rotation diet and see if it helps some. And I do feel guilty leaving her, I have to just do my thing and let her be.....

@Jen, We've talked about DE before, I seriously never thought it would be like a topper to a dog. Hmmm interesting. As far as raw is concerned, I do switch up with chicken, turkey, venison and beef. Her avoidance to raw, really sparked my interest in posting this up. What i found that was strange with her is she will take a piece of raw as if she wants it and spits it out. In my desperation last week, I lightly cooked her pieces and she chowed down. Last night she ate her raw just fine, no prodding and no searing, just gobbled it up. I also wish we had pet stores here, 65 mile one way trip to Petsmart is the only option. We do have feed stores, but they cater to live stock food more so than specialty dog food, ugh. So I feel it is still my best way to feed her is some kibble, and some raw. Duck and Pork have never agreed with her whether it was kibble or raw.

I know it was silly for me to ask about dogs being Anorexic, however, I really don't understand why a dog will act hungry and given choices flat out refuses to eat. As in Amy's description of her son, it makes more sense. Miya is a self imposed disciplined dog, as in, in the house she acts like the laziest dog on earth, get her outside and she could keep up with any sled dog, even those who race, when I seriously have the time she will go for miles and miles, food is not her priority, even on the hardest work out days. Her food intake is very much the same, she has never been excited for any type of food, and eats when she darn well feels like it, that's where my frustration kicks in.

Can anyone answer my question on the rotation diet? Should I wing it or should I make the gradual switch? Since it's kibble and different manufacturers, should I gradually add in new with the old, or just cold turkey her into the next new bag? I know with raw it makes no difference, but raw is protein only and not someone elses formula.

Renee, my experience with switching food. With both of mine it doesn't matter whether I take the time to make a gradual switch or not. If it's there Sasha will eat, it doesn't matter and Avalanche will nibble whatever when he's damn good and ready.
From comments I've seen here and elsewhere, I think it's going to depend entirely on the dog - some, like mine, don't care what's put in front of them but others will suffer bouts of "What's this?" on up to bad cases of diarrhea. I'm afraid it's going to be a case of trying and seeing how Miya reacts.

Thanks Al, I'm going to wing it, since she doesn't eat much kibble on a consistent basis anyways. For Miya she really has never had problems unless it has corn and wheat in it, I switch her treats up constantly and has never had a problem. So again Thank You!!

My experience mirrors Al...sometimes I run out of Archer's food, I give him Ami's, or vice versa...no issues a bit. (now, we have them on the same food so it doesn't happen as often, but one or the other of us either switch flavors or, I recently tried a bag of Berkley and Jenson grain free duck and vegetable - I thought it was cheaper until I double checked the TOTW. I was wrong.

Also, I occasionally throw in a bag of 4Health - the turkey has close to the high praire protein/fat values. I honestly don't have a problem with Diamond - yes they've had recalls but they have, to my knowledge, all been issues with salmonella. Medscape did an article warning of salmonella potential in any dogfood and recommending hand washing after handling kibble but otherwise no real issues. And, for those of you feeding raw, most chicken is almost certainly contaminated with salmonella in this country until proven otherwise. From my reading, salmonella really isn't a problem for dogs because of their rapid gut transit and low stomach pH. I think I take more risks eating at a chinese buffet or using scallions and eating sprouts. I'm assume the bones I feed have some level of eColi contamination though none of us has had any issues. (Maybe not, it's a small, family butcher not a mass production meat line). I just don't put the bones on my butcher block and always wash my hands after handling.

Thank you Amy, I assume the salmonella and Ecoli warnings are for us humans, rather than for our dogs, the acid in their stomachs break down raw bones, it probably kills those types of "bugs". With the raw I feed it is human grade, and from our butcher, same deal, small town butchers rock, lol. as far as 4health, I had samples and she didn't have interest in it, I may try again. I will be buying 5 pound bags from now on, since I have a 15 pound bag I just opened, ugh, it would take kitty the rest of her life to finish that off, since she only gets maybe 12 pieces a day, lol. Yes she chooses dog food over kitty kibble, and at almost 15 years old I'm not going to argue with her.

MiyasMomma wrote:

Thank you Amy, I assume the salmonella and Ecoli warnings are for us humans, rather than for our dogs, the acid in their stomachs break down raw bones, it probably kills those types of "bugs". With the raw I feed it is human grade, and from our butcher, same deal, small town butchers rock, lol. as far as 4health, I had samples and she didn't have interest in it, I may try again. I will be buying 5 pound bags from now on, since I have a 15 pound bag I just opened, ugh, it would take kitty the rest of her life to finish that off, since she only gets maybe 12 pieces a day, lol. Yes she chooses dog food over kitty kibble, and at almost 15 years old I'm not going to argue with her.

Yup - people warnings. The raw chicken thing - IS human grade. Consumer reports found high levels of salmonella in bunches of chicken. I just assume at this point, that ANY raw meat has contamination and handle it accordingly.

Kitty and doggie kibble One day I looked out - the birds were eating the catfood out of the cat bowl. Later in the day, kitty was eating the doggie kibble. Always, the dogs lunge whenever kitty kibble is within reach. C'est la vie

Renee, did you run a blood test on this girl and check all of her levels? This doesn't sound normal at all and I am wondering if there is an underlying issue.

I have a female who could graze a good bowl all day for two days and maybe finish two cups. She never misses a raw meal because we only feed once a day. If I feed her multiple times a day, she won't finish her food and loses weight. She also refuses certain meats and at certain temperatures. She's a weirdo.

IMO, cut out the kibble completely. You are only creating an issue with the deterrent to raw by adding a food that has flavor enhancers, thus turning her off to a species appropriate diet. Fast her twenty for hours and feed her. Start feeding her raw once a day and I'll bet she will eat.

But get bloodwork. There could be a problem.

Thanks Megan ... that was why I commented about getting my guy checked for a thyroid problem but Renee has been so conscientious about what she's trying to do I thought that coming out and directly saying that there might be more of a problem would add too much to an already upsetting topic. (( See, I can be sensitive sometimes ... ))

Megan, I did not have him run a blood test. I did though today corner him, me and him, so I could talk with him, without hubby being around, and the clinic was quiet. I mentioned what was going on, how she had lost about 10 pounds in 2 months, told him about me starting a job, I mentioned the botched spay. (After arguing with husband, I reluctantly stayed with same clinic, but insisted on seeing only this vet out of the 4). I spoke and he listened, which was refreshing. I clued him in on being knowledgeable on huskies, raw feeding, and general health. He really feels that it is separation anxiety, told me to relax, and give her time to adjust. He did say, if need be, if her appetite continues to be poor, he would run tests. He is not used to informed owners. He mentioned that he has no problem with a raw diet, it's the other vets that do. His only caveat was how the raw is processed, he didn't feel confident in poultry that was human grade, lol, he said that is where the trouble starts. Hmmmm interesting. He said by far Miya is the healthiest dog that comes in, he mentioned that health comes through in their coat, skin and eyes as much as energy, and appetite.

Since you go to a holistic vet, I'm wondering if he leans that way, but because of the clinic he can not really practice that way. He was impressed with my knowledge of raw feeding, required shots, and flea, tick, and all types of worm prevention.  

Megan, I would go all raw, I just don't feel confident that meat, organs and bone is everything I should give her. I know the breakdown on each, I know how much per day to feed, I just feel that kibble gives the added minerals and vitamins that raw isn't giving. Am I wrong? I'm sure I would have to do supplements. What about what the vet said about the processing of human grade food? There is no option here for me as far as getting freeze dried, or prepackage raw. I am on my own on this so I would have to buy at my local grocery store(which is very limited on products), and I would be limited to mainly beef and chicken products, an occasional fresh venison, and then frozen human grade fish, turkey(unless I try frozen duck, and fresh pork). When I'm talking duck that is expensive, and with the pork I'm weary of certain diseases in pork I've read about. I'd appreciate your knowledge and others who know raw feeding more than myself to help out....

Al, It never crossed my mind on thyroid, I'm going to relax a little and see how her appetite does for another week or so, she has been eating since the day after I started this thread. I think the vet may be right, since i have a terrible headache tonight and was laying on the bed, and Miya played her favorite game with me, a very rambunctious game called bug, lol, my hand is a bug and I try landing on her nose, and she tries to eat bug instead, lol it's very amusing to her.

Amy, I was going to mention the whole salmonella thing to the vet, but he was pretty insistent on purchasing raw in the vacuumed sealed packages only, that was safe.

First off, let me say that I don't feed raw and have never. I am not opposed, just more work and expense than I am willing to commit.

Now, some observations. We have had a string of feral and not so feral cats adopt us over the years. The cats with the glossiest coats and clearest eyes were the ones that hunted the most. Watching them eat their prey was informative. Rabbits, mice, or birds, our eaten all the same. They started at the head and ate EVERYTHING! Fur, feathers, eyes, bones. Except the tails and one tiny little organ I could never identify.

Ditto with Ami. With the voles and birds, he ate them whole... chewed them up, but whole. With the rabbit, he did as the cats did... start at the head and eat everything from head on down. But in 2 meals... he ate the head first, stuck the rest of it in the "freezer" - ie, under the snow in the brush and finished it off the next day. Interestingly, he left one small organ like the cats did.

So if prey model is your plan, that is how they eat their prey.

Oh... and as for the scavenger theory. Damn dogs now view my compost pile as a buffet that contains only vegetable matter, egg shells, shredded newspaper. Used to have coffee grounds but that's on hold until I figure out how to keep the dogs out of it. The seem to be eating the eggshells, mostly. And dragging the paper all over the place.

Amy, yes this the way I believe raw should be fed too. I had to teach my neighbor who is fostering a bob cat kitten, this, and she nearly lost her cookies when I told her to feed whole fur, bones and all. This poor little guy had lost his canine teeth because of lack of proper nutrition. She thought as a kitten that kitten food and milk would be enough. Between myself and the vet(the one I talked to) we taught her proper raw feed. The little guy isn't so little, sadly he will never be able to go back into the wild, since his canine adult teeth never came in. She has her husband set up snares for rabbits and he hunts small game the guy.

Side note Amy, my neighbor has an abundance of chicken eggs and has been sharing with me. I had a can of fresh eggs on the ground and was talking with her. Miya was no where to be found. Then we noticed she was licking her chops, 3 eggs missing. The little stinker at egg shell and all.

With your compost, try building something with a lid on it, my dad had too so nothing would steal it as well. Silly dogs,

MiyasMomma wrote:

Megan, I did not have him run a blood test. I did though today corner him, me and him, so I could talk with him, without hubby being around, and the clinic was quiet. I mentioned what was going on, how she had lost about 10 pounds in 2 months, told him about me starting a job, I mentioned the botched spay. (After arguing with husband, I reluctantly stayed with same clinic, but insisted on seeing only this vet out of the 4). I spoke and he listened, which was refreshing. I clued him in on being knowledgeable on huskies, raw feeding, and general health. He really feels that it is separation anxiety, told me to relax, and give her time to adjust. He did say, if need be, if her appetite continues to be poor, he would run tests. He is not used to informed owners. He mentioned that he has no problem with a raw diet, it's the other vets that do. His only caveat was how the raw is processed, he didn't feel confident in poultry that was human grade, lol, he said that is where the trouble starts. Hmmmm interesting. He said by far Miya is the healthiest dog that comes in, he mentioned that health comes through in their coat, skin and eyes as much as energy, and appetite.

Since you go to a holistic vet, I'm wondering if he leans that way, but because of the clinic he can not really practice that way. He was impressed with my knowledge of raw feeding, required shots, and flea, tick, and all types of worm prevention.  

Megan, I would go all raw, I just don't feel confident that meat, organs and bone is everything I should give her. I know the breakdown on each, I know how much per day to feed, I just feel that kibble gives the added minerals and vitamins that raw isn't giving. Am I wrong? I'm sure I would have to do supplements. What about what the vet said about the processing of human grade food? There is no option here for me as far as getting freeze dried, or prepackage raw. I am on my own on this so I would have to buy at my local grocery store(which is very limited on products), and I would be limited to mainly beef and chicken products, an occasional fresh venison, and then frozen human grade fish, turkey(unless I try frozen duck, and fresh pork). When I'm talking duck that is expensive, and with the pork I'm weary of certain diseases in pork I've read about. I'd appreciate your knowledge and others who know raw feeding more than myself to help out....

Al, It never crossed my mind on thyroid, I'm going to relax a little and see how her appetite does for another week or so, she has been eating since the day after I started this thread. I think the vet may be right, since i have a terrible headache tonight and was laying on the bed, and Miya played her favorite game with me, a very rambunctious game called bug, lol, my hand is a bug and I try landing on her nose, and she tries to eat bug instead, lol it's very amusing to her.

Amy, I was going to mention the whole salmonella thing to the vet, but he was pretty insistent on purchasing raw in the vacuumed sealed packages only, that was safe.

Your dog will get all the nutrients necessary from raw. My dogs bloodwork is impeccable, they are not deficient on anything. That being said, you can add veggies and fruit (pureed) and coconut oil if you are worried All of us do raw a little differently and that is okay.

As far as the packaging and processing, you human grade is totally safe in certain cases. If all you have access to is whole turkeys, butcher them. It is pretty easy to hack it up and put it in bags. Feed chicken mainly, beef 1-2x a week and I feed sardines/fish once a week. It provides variety, but also helps keep the budget down. Where are you located? I might know of some sources. I have never, ever, purchased pre-packaged raw that is in packages. I do prey model raw, so I buy in bulk from meat packing plants. I've never had an issue with them getting some from the meat, only had cannon butt a few times because I over fed organ.  I do not feed pork. I think it's dirty and won't do it. lol

Dogs cannot get E. Coli or Salmonella. Their digestive tracts are not long enough for the bacteria to breed effectively. This is something that would concern you, not the dogs. Just clean up well and you will be fine. My vet thinks it is hilarious when uneducated vets suggest that your dog will get human diseases...especially since wolves don't get it, and kibble is often contaminated anyway.

Please do the blood work. Go somewhere else if you have to. If this is something that can be fixed it's better to start now rather than later. Or if it's something really rough, like cancer (sorry, i know that is morbid), you want to begin treating it now. Trust me.

Megan, I live about 60 miles south of Abilene, TX. Coleman County, to be more exact. It is a very tiny, rural area. I agree if this continues to do blood work. We did blood work around a year ago for the same reason, and she had a UTI and everything in the blood part of the tests was perfect. If something else with her was effected, besides her appetite I would be running to get the blood work done. Btw, you are not morbid you are pointing out the realities, I understand and appreciate that. I am an over protective mother to this dog, lol. As every body else here is. I have the reality of low quality vet care here, so I check Miya out myself, lol, I press on her belly, check her teeth, move her joints around, some basic things, just to know what my dog is like on a normal healthy day, so if I come across a bump, or her tummy is sensitive I know what to tell the vet. I have learned to pre diagnose Miya, so I can tell the vet what to do. It's sad, but it's my reality, I love this dog too much at times, my husband hates that fact, but I do.

Any extra info or vet advice I'll appreciate. I'll read more of the raw feed threads, I just don't think feeding for example a chicken leg quarter and some liver is enough, vegies are of no concern to me, unless you are implying that the vegies will replace fur as a fiber source. Since I can not bring myself to feeding her small animals, she would be missing that one piece of feeding raw.

I have never fed fur. They don't need the fur and wolves do not always eat the fur.

Feeding a chicken leg quarter and some liver is more than enough. Trust me. I'm on 3 years of this, not a newbie.

Oh, I do indeed trust you Megan, I would not have asked if I didn't.

You mentioned that your girl is particular on temps of her foods, can you explain more?