My dog is pregnant and not eating very well. Do you have any suggestions of what I can do to get her to eat?

Question

Cindy,

Took my female Krassi to the vet.  Said he did not feel she had a uterine infection by palpitating her. He said she was pregnant though as he could feel the little pups.  We did a urine test and her PH was a little high so said she might have a bladder infection.  Maybe.  So just to be safe we put her on 500 mg of Amoxicilan twice a day. She sometime has a slight clear discharge, but my vet was not concerned a lot with that as it was not green or brown like a pus. Is that normal in pregnant dogs sometimes to have clear discharge? But he is concerned she is not eating well.  She picks at her food.  I go to the store and get her ground chuck.  She will eat that usually about 3 patties about the size of 3 baseballs.  But after she gets her fill she is done and then might pick at it a few hours later.  At times she will eat raw chicken.  But lately she never eats her innova dog food kibbles no matter how I dress it up.  Even tried busting up her kimble to sand size crumbs and put that in the ground chuck and she would not touch it.  So then I gave her plain ground chuck and she sniffed it licked it and then ate it.  I'm majorally stressing out big time.  She is eating but not like she should.  My vet is freaking that I feed her raw as he said she could get salmonella food poisoning which would kill the pups.  So Now I just started cooking it but don't know yet how that will go over with her.  I'm trying chicken broth over her kimble but I'm sure that will go over like a lead balloon as nothing else has worked.

Mike

Accepted Answer

If your dog does not have an infection or problem with her pregnancy, it’s possible that she just doesn’t feel all that great. Hormones can do that! I have had females that weren’t the best eaters while pregnant. I would offer her a variety of things that are healthy and let her eat what she wants. Once she has the puppies I think you will see her appetite pick up a lot, especially during the peak nursing weeks (from about week 3-6)

Your vet is seriously misinformed about raw feeding though, and for him to suggest the pups would die from the mother eating raw ground chuck is just another example of vets using scare tactics on their clients. Our dogs eat a completely raw diet for their entire lives, including while they are pregnant. I am constantly amazed at the bad information that these people give their clients.

That statement in itself is enough for me to suggest you find another vet. Here is a list of vets we have compiled to date, with the help of our customers. If you do not find a vet close by on our list, I would suggest doing a google search on holistic or homeopathic vets in your area. Even if you have no intention of feeding a raw diet, it’s nice to have a vet that is knowledgeable about all forms of feeding and health care for our dogs.

Try not to be overly anxious because dogs really pick up on that, and it may make her less likely to eat well. Realize that as the pups grow she will have less room in her stomach for large meals, I typically end up feeding 4 small meals a day for the last couple of weeks of pregnancy.

Cindy