My dog won't eat from his bowl!!!

[Daiana]

Does anyone have any ideas on how to get my dog to eat out of his bowl? He's a 10 month old Chihuahua, but from day one he won't take food from a bowl. At first I thought he didn't like the reflection from the stainless steel, but it doesn't seem to matter what I put the food in, he won't eat it unless it's on the floor or out of my hand. Help! This is getting extremely frustrating! I've tried to just leave it, in the hopes that he'll get hungry enough and eat, but I think he'd rather starve!

Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated!

[Luba]

Well try mixing something in it that he really likes, and give him a low flat bowl instead of something high and slippery.

Try a little baby food with the meal...rub a little on the edge of the rim with your finger...then some around the edges on the inside of the bowl and some right at the bottom

goodluck

[Lucky Rescue]

This could take awhile. Start off feeding him from the floor. Next, get something flat, like a paper plate. Move on to a saucer, then a very shallow bowl. This must be done very gradually - maybe one new bowl or plate a week.

If he refuses to eat out of any of the new plates, etc you put down, back up a step and use the previous container.

Finally, put down the food in the bowl you will continue to use - maybe a cat bowl, since they are very shallow!

Good idea Luba has, about putting TINY tastes of something good in with the food.

With most dogs, you could just wait until they get hungry enough, but with very tiny puppies like yours, he MUST eat regularly.

[Daiana]

Thanks to everone for the suggestions! I tried it last night, and I mixed up tiny bits of his favorite treats into his food. It took a little coaxing, and he spend some time lpicking through his food, but bit by bit, he managed to eat some of his food too. I used a small saucer from a cup and saucer set, which is pretty shallow. When I fed him this morning, he was still picking around, and spitting the kibble out to get to the treats, but I'll keep at it and see if it gets better. I'll let you guys know!

I'm really glad to have found this site. I think you guys are awesome! Thanks again for the help. This little guy means the world to me and I would do anything to keep him happy and healthy.

[Lucky Rescue]

By the way, what are you feeding him? If it's dry kibble, are the pieces too big and hard for him? What brand are you using?
I'm wondering if canned food might be better for him.

I don't know much about Chis, but every one I've heard of, like my sister-in-law's, seems to be very picky and fussy about food.

[Daiana]

I'm feeding him dry kibble, and the brand is Royal Canin. The food is designed especially for toy breeds, and the pieces are about the tiniest I've seen so far. He does seem to be a bit fussy (at least with his main diet, but never with treats!), but everything I've read says that dry kibble is better for their digestion so that's why I chose to feed him that. I'll keep at it and see how his feeding goes this evening and I'll let you know.

Gosh you guys are wonderful! Thanks for caring and taking the time to help!