Why is my dog not eating for weeks, lethargic, with clear tests?

I would take a flash light and look through her mouth really well. Including under her tongue. I have had a few cases over the year with painful wounds hidden in the mouth. Also, I assume the x-rays were of her abdomen? If she continues to not eat then I would also take an x-ray of her chest to make sure she doesn’t have an infection or something else going on there. The chest is a place problems can hide. In addition, upper intestinal partial obstructions can be very difficult to prove on x-rays. If we continue to have no answer I would ask for either a barium series or an abdominal ultrasound. She is young and an intestinal foreign object is high on my list of possibilities. Best of luck and keep looking! The answer is somewhere! I hope she improves soon. Thank you for using Pet Coach.

Unfortunately, bloodwork will only tell us part of what is going on internally. Sometimes figuring out what is wrong can require additional testing such as urine samples, x-rays or ultrasounds. You didn't mention Luna's age, but have her listed as unspayed. Depending on when her last heat cycle was, you may want to discus with your veterinarian if she could have been bred or is having a uterine infection. Not eating or drinking is a serious medical problem, so I would strongly recommend contacting your veterinarian for their recommendation on the next diagnostic or treatment steps you can take with Luna to figure out what is going on and how to make her feel better. Good luck! I hope that was helpful. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Acute pancreatitis and gastrointestinal inflammation/infections are still possible as well as foreign body ingestion with material not visible on X rays (ultrasound in these cases might be more sensitive). Given the lack of improvement, I would suggest to have her checked again and have a test for pancreatitis (it is a blood test called cPLI) performed. If not eating and probably in a sort of abdominal discomfort, nutritional support and pain relief meds are needed.

That duration of inappetance is very concerning. Did you family vet prescribe some therapy, anti nausea medication? It sounds like your kid needs to see a specialist. For a case like this an internal medicine specialist would be the best person to see. A full abdominal ultrasound with an experienced ultrasonographer (either a radiologist or internist) is likely the first step if blood work and xrays are normal. Unfortunately some pets cases are complex and some disease processes require more advanced testing then what family vets can provide. Likely your family vet has ruled out some common things but an internist will look for the uncommon things. Unfortunately decreased appetite is a very non specific symptom because in animals when they do not feel good for any reason they can stop eating. Your family vet should be able to provide a referral for you if you are interested in this option. I hope this helps and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

Hi there and thank you for using Pet Coach to address your concern. Based on your history and description, I would recommend an abdominal ultrasound as the next diagnostic step. The protein being low could be related to a GI inflammatory disease or intestinal cancer. X-rays do not show enough detail of the intestines or organs so things can be missed on x-rays that would show up on an ultrasound. I hope this helps guide you in the right direction. Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns.

The best next steps would be more tests to help get to the bottom of her symptoms. Typically we start with xrays and ultrasound if bloodwork is normal. Mainly looking for any cause as lethargy and weight loss are non specific. If nothing is found on imaging then loss of nutrition via the GI tract is possible and so sometimes additonal testing is needed to assess this. If your family vet is stumped, some pets get referred to see a specialist (a veterinary internist) for additional help in diagnosis. Additionally medications can be tried to help with any nausea/stimulate the appetite but if an underlying cause can be found and treated that will always be better. I hope this helps and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

I am so very sorry to hear about your dog. This must be very stressful. If your vet has found nothing on x-ray or bloodwork and Chiquis is not improving it sounds like it is time for more advanced diagnostics, such as endoscopy or ultrasound, or referral to an internist. This vomiting is very concerning and we need additional testing to determine why it is happening.