GudrunTheRed said:
Stick to your plan and she will eat soon. I know it's very hard but she will not starve herself or harm herself.
i think that havng confidence in this belief, and absolutely no treats, is what conveyed to zack that there was no other choice but his kibble. being casual about whether he ate it or not, no begging him to eat it, no trying to convince him it was good, no acting as if it was any of my business if he ate it or not, it was up to him, and i didn't care, acting that way and truly knowing he would be ok if he chose not to eat as long as not eating wasn't caused by an illness which i knew it wasn't, as long as i knew it was a psychological matter we were dealing with, then my part was finished after i provided the food. as far as mixing things with the kibble went, he absolutely licked them off and left what he didnt' want.
For zack, and your dog may be different but zack convinced me beyond doubt, that if i wanted him to eat his kibble, he could not have any treats, zero treats, for the psychological part of it, because having even one treat caused him to think there were alternatives to the kibble. For him to arrive at the place psychologically where he knew there was nothing for hm to eat but kibble, there had to be nothing edible provided to hiim but his kibble. so for treats, he was giving his toys, non-edible chew toys like ropes. He would act absolutely not interested in the kibble and would play with the toys, and didn't seem to be hungry, and that was ok. that was his business. but after a long day, late in the day, he would go to his bowl and eat all or most of his kibble. i left it down all day and he finally ate it.
i have containers and bags of dog treats up on the refrigerator and in a cabinet that i had to put away in order for him to accept eating dog food/kibble, and i haven't reintroduced them, i have booda bones, nylabone and compressed hooves still in their rapper, never touched by dog. i have been tempted to give them to him, but then i ask myself, what for? He loves his regular toys, he is overjoyed by them, he keeps himself busy with many things. I wonder if he would continue to eat his kibble if i gave him those treats now.
it's fun to give treats so i'm giving up that pleasure, but it's not that big of a deal. the only thing is, zack is very 'busy' when i'm home, and he comes up for attention because he wants to play and this play, fetch and tug o war, gives him important healthy exercise and social interaction after being alone for some hours, but many times, i'm just needing to relax and do something relaxing or enjoyable that doesn't involve him, but he makes me laugh too much the way he asks for attention, it's too cute, and i usually play with him, even if i'm half doing that and half doing something else. But it has occurred to me that like giving a baby a pacifier, or setting a little kid down in front of a TV is a way of an adult getting some free time and space, and i could give him a treat and he'd chew on it, like bully stick or booda bone, for hours, and i would be free. but then he'll probably stop eating his regular food again. i never could bring myself to use the TV to keep my daughter busy either, something about seeing her staring at it really bothered me. with dog chew treats, it's kind of similar except that i see him as doing something that interferes with his nutrition. also, i know it's good for him to have the social interaction since he's alone much of the day.
