Hi all,

Our new Koolie, Bear, is a very very very slow eater. She's keen when the food first comes out, but quickly seems to get bored with it and wanders off.

Her previous owner mentioned this was a problem with her too.

I've tried:
* Feeding her separately
* Feeding her just meat
* Feeding her just kibbles
* Mixing Schmackos into her meal
* Letting the other two dogs eat her food when she wanders away
all with the same result.

Does anyone have any other suggestions or are the rations that we give our 3 year old Kelpie just too big for a 7 month old Koolie??

Thankyou!

Hi Meg

I must say this wouldn't be a common problem with koolies... Because she starts with enthusiasm it would seem she is well. Is she in good condition? Has she got some cover over her ribs? Or are the sticking out, or submerged under fat? If she has reasonable cover I would say she has just had enough and isn't a piggy eater. If she is covered with fat, she is just stuffed, but if her ribs are sticking out things are more serious. Koolies generally when leading an active lifestyle are difficult to keep condition on at this age, but it is all relevent to her activity level.

If she is in good condition (not skinny) I would be giving her a limited time to eat her meal, say until the others finish then picking it up and offering it to her again at the next meal. If she still isn't fussed she may have another feed source? Does she get tidbits through the day, they may be enough for her.

Good Luck, it would be very unusal for a koolie to starve herself though

I feed my Koolies by the grazing method, which is they have kibble down all the time.
Not everyone can practice this due to over eating by other pets.
But I have found that my Koolies do not eat much, they have enough, go away and come back when their hungry.
I do find that they don't gorge or fight over the food because it is always there.
I agree with Silhouette, if she is skinny there may be an underlying problem.
If she is healthy and active then I wouldn't worry too much, don't continue to offer her alternatives though, this will only make her a picky eater, I think she is just not a gorger, scoffer or shoveler, she has nice manners and chooses to eat slowly.

Hi Meg

Your new Koolie may have been stood over at her last address and may be fearfull of reprisals when eating this said however should have been corrected when fed seperately.

Is the dog secured all day or is it allowed to wander a property where it might find tid bits that supply her diet.

This dog may have an intestinal problem and if this dog is loosing weight should be checked out. Have you wormed this dog recently as this is another reason that it may be off it's food.

I agree with Tjukurpa & Silhouette that there could be a number of reasons for a dog not eating it's food but hope that you overcome this problem.

If the dog isn't loosing any weight you should try to find out where the food is coming from.

Try giving her more exercise that normally arouses the appetite in a dog my dogs when they have been in the dam swimming for a while and then runnung around for a while seem to eat more than when they don't get exercise.

Finally
Are you sure that she is not in pup as this causes bitches to eat less due to a decrease in abdominal space which is filled with growing pup's

I hope that this helps


Jack Wilja Koolies

Hi all

Thanks for your advice - to answer some of your questions, she's not losing weight (in fact she's slowly putting some on), she has the run of the place and is very active and full of joy.

She is eating a bit faster now and at least is finally finishing her dinner so long as we make sure the other two (who don't need any extra food!) leave her be. Perhaps she is just more ladylike than the other two, and perhaps she's still settling in here - we've only had her for a few weeks.

Anyway, thankyou all for the advice - now that she's finally putting on a bit of weight she looks much healthier

Cheers
Meg