My 1-year Chihuahua won't eat and is sleeping a lot. What's wrong?

Hi, and thanks for your question. This is a quite generic but concerning presentation. Differentials are many, from gastrointestinal diseases (infection/inflammations often dietary related) to any disease that can spread systemically (causing lethargy for example) like infection, and anything that can cause pain/discomfort. The approach must be logic, starting from offering different kind of food. A check up is needed if inappetence lasts for more than 24hours. Hope this answer was helpful, but please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further. If this answer was helpful please let us know, this will be used to improve our service!

Poor guy. It sounds like he may be painful in his belly or even his joints. This is concerning when a pet is painful and also isn't eating. I would highly recommend that your friend take Peanut to the vet to get him examined. This needs to be looked at closer in order to determine what might be going on here, since so many problems can cause the symptoms he has. I do hope that your friends pet is able to get better soon! Best wishes and take care.

From these symptoms, there could be many things going on, but I am very concerned that Chico is very sick. A puppy sleeps more than an adult, but they should have a high activity level and eat well. I think Chico should get checked out by a vet. There are many things that could be causing his symptoms, including hypoglycemia, bacterial or viral infection (such as parvo virus), internal medical illness, intestinal parasites, etc. After examination, the vet should be able to give you an idea of what is going on, or what diagnostics should be run, such as intestinal parasite screening, bloodwork, parvo test, etc.

There can be lots of causes for lethargy despite a good appetite, including anemia, heart or lung disease, kidney disease, infection, pain, etc. I would recommend an exam with a vet. They may be able to help you figure out what is going on with Thor and what we can do to help him feel better.

I am sorry to hear about your chihuahua. Because of her age and her symptoms (lethargy and decreased appetite) I would definitely recommend an examination by a veterinarian. We can certainly see medical problems in older dogs that can cause these symptoms such as kidney disease, infections, liver disease, and more. An exam by your vet and some bloodwork may help to be sure there isn't a treatable medical issue. If there are no abnormalities found, then they may recommend some over the counter products that can help with anxiety such as Adaptil which is a pheremone product available as a plug-in or collar, Zylkene or Composure which are calming supplements, a thundershirt which is a compression vest that calms some dogs. And in some cases prescription strength medication may be necesssary from your veterinarian.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Loss of appetite can be observed with many conditions such as gastroenteritis, dietary indiscretion, kidney disease, pancreatitis, among many other possibilities. I recommend that you have Mocha evaluated by your veterinarian for further assessment and treatment. They would be able to check for these possibilities and others depending on the findings on exam. Treatment would be based on findings. Good luck and have a great day! Hoping for a speedy recovery!

This lethargy and loss of appetite are both signs of illness include dental problems, systemic illness, infection, or injury. Try offering him some boiled white meat chicken (no bones or skin) and white rice. If he refuses to eat this, have him seen by a vet.