Dog won't eat? 8 rules when it's a habit, not illness

If your dog won't eat but is healthy, it has most likely learned that refusing pays off: someone will bring something better. You can reverse this habit in one to two weeks if the whole family sticks to the same rules.

First, though, rule out illness. A sudden loss of appetite is a job for the vet, not for training.

Rule out illness first

Everything below applies to a healthy dog that is simply being fussy. If the appetite changed overnight, don't start with rules.

Why a dog stops eating from the bowl

Small dogs connect the dots quickly. Refusing food means someone turns up with chicken, a bite from the plate or a third treat. On top of that, a small portion looks like "almost nothing" in the bowl, so the owner worries and adds more.

A few days like this are enough. The dog learns that the bowl is only the first offer and that negotiating pays off. That's how you end up with a dog that only eats from your hand.

We did what everyone does: we tried cooking for my maltipoo ourselves. We soon realised it only makes sense in exceptional cases. For us that was her pregnancy, when there was a stage when she didn't want to eat anything.

We usually create picky eaters ourselves. We can undo it the same way.

8 rules that work

1. Fixed mealtimes. Adult dog: 2 meals a day. Puppy: 3–4. Always at the same times.
2. 15 minutes, then the bowl goes. Didn't eat? Pick it up without comment and put it in the fridge. Before serving it again, warm it to room temperature.
3. No swaps during a meal. Replacing the food when your dog walks away teaches it that waiting pays off.
4. Nothing from the table. The whole family plays by the same rules. One bite from grandma undoes a week of work.
5. Treats under control. At most about 10% of daily calories, and never instead of a meal. A chew before dinner is the simplest cause of "no appetite".
6. Exercise first. A walk or a game before eating builds appetite better than coaxing.
7. Calm at the bowl. Don't stand over your dog, don't coax, don't hand-feed.
8. Aroma instead of negotiation. A few drops of salmon oil or a little liver topper on top, within the daily portion.

Dog won't eat food it used to eat

If the same portion is still in the bowl after being warmed up twice, open a fresh jar or try another flavour at the next meal. Opened food can't stand for long: the surface dries out, the aroma fades and it simply stops being appealing. In that case the refusal may have nothing to do with fussiness.

Dry food can go the same way. An open bag loses its smell, and for a small dog with a sensitive nose that's enough to make the bowl boring.

What the first week usually looks like

For most healthy dogs it goes roughly the same way. The first two days are the hardest, mostly for the owner.

Maybe your dog just isn't hungry?

Some "picky eaters" are simply full: the portion from the pack plus treats plus bites from the kitchen. A 4 kg neutered dog needs about 200 kcal a day, and two small chews can take up a third of that.

Work out how many calories your dog really needs in how much to feed a dog, and check how many times a day to feed a dog at its age.