Dog died recently, other dog wont eat

Archeron

Hi all,
Hoping to ask advice.

recently, my 14 year old red setter died and his little buddy, a 10 year old Springer has been refusing to eat since. The Springer knew the setter all his life, and I know he may be lonely without his life long friend.

He doesn't seem too badly affected by this, as he is still very affectionate, playful and has lots of energy, he plays as much as he always did, and runs around happily, but he has just gone totally off his food. The only thing he seems to want to eat lately are those Markies biscuits. We've tried lots of different types and brands of food but he just turns up his nose at them all. I'm worried about this, even though he doesn't seem to be physically affected.
Its 3 weeks now that this has been going on.

Has anyone any experience of this when one pet dies and the other is affected in any way?
Cheers

Inexile

Sorry to hear your lost your setter - its hard to lose a friend.

Firstly make sure your springer does not have any medical issues - for example it could have dental or stomach problem but because of the circumstance it is assumed the dog is grieving.

Some dogs do grieve though from what you say your dog is in good form otherwise. Try tempting him to eat by mixing up some tasty treats in his food eg. tuna, meat, eggs or whatever is his favourite.

As a matter of interest what are you feeding the dog on as if it was a reasonable food you shouldn't need to change it if it was suiting him and swapping different brands too frequently wont help.

Archeron

Thanks Inexile

We had been feeding him normal canned food with dry mixer, he had a particular love for the Lidl brand (the giant tins), but has gone off it now. Because of this we've tried a variety of different brands, Caesar, Pedigree and so on, but he might take two bites and he's done. He still likes people food of course and happily eats ham, chicken etc, but we don't want to become reliant on that!

Thanks again

aonb

If he has gone off the Lidl giant tins of food, Im not surprised - they're pretty yukky - sorry if that offends.

I doubt too if the Markies will keep him going, as an active springer, as a longterm diet. Apologies too if that offends - not meant to.

There may be an underlying physical problem, apart from grief, I would have him checked as already suggested.

In the meantime, you could buy some chicken legs/thighs. Cook up in water with a cup of rice. Take the chicken out of the pot. Debone the chicken, chop it up and mix up well again with the cooked rice. This is tasty enough to tempt his appetite.

Archeron

Thanks Aonb, and no offence at all, I think the Lidl stuff is gak too, but he always liked it. As you say, markies can't be a long term answer. I'll try your suggestion on the chicken and rice, And get im checked out. thanks.

mightyreds

Exact same thing happened to a close friend of mine but he had a king charles that refused to eat. He brought it to the vet and she said the dog was fine, it died a couple of days later I dunno what from, but the problems started when his first dog got knocked down.

aonb

Archeron wrote: »

Thanks Aonb, and no offence at all, I think the Lidl stuff is gak too, but he always liked it. As you say, markies can't be a long term answer. I'll try your suggestion on the chicken and rice, And get im checked out. thanks.

Arent dogs mystifying - typical that he would like such rubbish. I bought my dogs some excellent NATURE DIET food - none liked it, 1 refused to eat it. On same day bought 2 bags of pretty good BURNS - 1 wont eat it. You cant win.
Hope you get your chap sorted out - let us know how you go.

jimf

aonb wrote: »

Arent dogs mystifying - typical that he would like such rubbish. I bought my dogs some excellent NATURE DIET food - none liked it, 1 refused to eat it. On same day bought 2 bags of pretty good BURNS - 1 wont eat it. You cant win.
Hope you get your chap sorted out - let us know how you go.

Try cat food it always works for mine if their off form

Pretzill

Archeron wrote: »

Hi all,
Hoping to ask advice.

recently, my 14 year old red setter died and his little buddy, a 10 year old Springer has been refusing to eat since. The Springer knew the setter all his life, and I know he may be lonely without his life long friend.

He doesn't seem too badly affected by this, as he is still very affectionate, playful and has lots of energy, he plays as much as he always did, and runs around happily, but he has just gone totally off his food. The only thing he seems to want to eat lately are those Markies biscuits. We've tried lots of different types and brands of food but he just turns up his nose at them all. I'm worried about this, even though he doesn't seem to be physically affected.
Its 3 weeks now that this has been going on.

Has anyone any experience of this when one pet dies and the other is affected in any way?
Cheers

I presume when your setter was alive that both dogs got fed together - at the same time I mean? It could be that he's missng having his pal around at mealtimes - you know how dogs scoff their dinner for fear the other one will get to finish it off.

When one of my dogs was recvering from an illness the other dog would eat half his dinner, step away and let her finish his off - she was very thin at the time I think he was tryng to fatten her up!

She died this year and one of the first thngs I did was remove her bowl - the other dogs ate as normal though.

Maybe you should feed him in a different spot at a different time - and yes try chicken and rice it will be gentle on the tummy.

p.s and yes the other dog almost 15 has been affected by her passing - but in otherways - like not so interested in walks etc - (then maybe I'm reading too much into it and it's just his age - they were never apart all their lives until she died)

mutley dastardly

Very sorry to hear about your loss Archeron. You and your Springer must both be taking it hard, particularly when your Setter was a part of the family for so long.

In my experience the most important thing to try keep your normal routine - the same eating, exercise, play, bed times. Your Springer will already be confused about the disappearance of his pal, you remaining calm and reassuring that everything is going as always is likely to be the best thing for him.

That being said, that attitude is a little cold when the poor little fella is mourning, so don't be afraid to do a little more activities he enjoys - walks, fetch, games etc - stuff the both of you can do together that are fun and will take his their mind off the loss for a while. Try create a ritual out of this extra play time (if you can) for at least a few weeks, that will give him something to look forward to each day.

Keeping around toys or blankets that belong to your Setter for a transitional period is often advised. But probably my biggest piece of advice is to not rush out to replace your Setter any time soon. Wait a while and give your remaining dog a chance to become familiar with the situation. A new dog can sometimes cause further confusion for your pet. Consistency and stability is most important right now.

And obviously if his attitude does not get any happier and he doesn't come back to eating properly bring him straight to the vet.Hope some of this is helpful, sorry again for you loss.