My dog is underweight and won't eat dog food. What can I feed her?

I would recommend having her body condition score figured out first to determine if she is indeed underweight. Some pets are just leaner than others but are not considered to be underweight at all. https://www.google.com/search?client=safari&hl=en-us&ei=3essWYH8BcWXjwT5u4agBg&q=canine+body+condition+score&oq=aaha+body+condition+score&gs_l=mobile-gws-serp.1.0.0i71k1l5.0.0.0.53939.1.1.0.0.0.0.0.0..0.0....0...1..64.mobile-gws-serp..1.0.0.tM15jVEPrL8#imgrc=D5srd2kpWBMU1M: If she is considered to still be underweight then I would try to find out what is causing her weight loss and treating that directly. If there are loose stools then it's best to check her stools for intestinal parasites through your vet. If her stools are normal, then she may be going through a transient period of not gaining proper weight due to a previous illness. Increasing her current food amount can help. You can also try mixing in a high calorie puppy food for a few weeks. I wouldn't suggest this unless she is otherwise healthy and nothing else seems to help, because a consistent high calorie diet can do more harm (i.e. Pancreatitis) than good in some cases. Best of luck with your pet Layla.

First, consider an exam with your veterinarian to diagnose any underlying medical causes. Next, you can feed a high quality performance diet to get weight on her. Once she is at weight, you can adjust the diet as needed for maintenance. You can also try a puppy diet until she is at weight.

Grains are beneficial to dogs, and I only recommend putting a dog on a grain free diet if there is a medical reason why they shouldn't have them, such as allergies. If Adel eats very little of this food, it could be that she doesn't like it and may benefit from another food. I personally recommend feeding dogs Royal Canin or Hill's Science diet. Both are high quality foods that dogs find very tasty; in fact, my dogs eat Royal Canin and love it. You could consider switching her to one of those foods to see if she eats more of it, but if you do make the switch, I would do it slowly to prevent GI upset. You can increase the number of times you feed her, and you can also try to tempt her to eat her food by soaking it in gently warmed low sodium beef or chicken broth. If she does eat it, gradually reduce the amount of broth you add to her food until she is eating the food only.

Try feeding her a complete food for small dogs. I personally like to feed Royal Canin, Iams or Hill's Science. There are quite a few good brands of dog food out there, just make sure it is for small dogs and for her age bracket.

I am sorry to hear about Marley! I would recommend an examination by a vet to see if his weight is healthy. While "chubby" chihuahuas may be cute, it is not healthy for a dog to be overweight. Often we are so used to seeing overweight pets a pet of a healthy weight looks too thin to us. You can use these images to try to evaluate your pet's body condition: https://www.purina.co.uk/dogs/health-and-nutrition/exercise-and-weight-management/dog-body-condition-tool If your dog is truly underweight, then the vet can discuss tests to check for medical causes for his low appetite or weight issue.

You may try adding a scoop of canned weight loss dog food. This would likely have less calories than chicken or hamburger. You must also remember that dogs try to train us. As long as she is healthy, she will eat when she is hungry. It is OK for most dogs to miss a meal here and there as long as they don’t have a metabolic health concerns (like diabetes). You may also try mixing the canned food with water to create a gruel and pour this over the kibble and mix well. I hope this helps and please feel free to post any additional questions.

It can be normal for some dogs to be picky eaters, especially if they are rewarded with human food if they wait long enough. It is not normal however for Yuki to be losing weight. I would recommend seeing your veterinarian to rule out a medical problem first - if she seems otherwise healthy you can then discuss trying to find a commercial dog food that she likes (canned food might be an option), or discuss talking to a nutritionist to formulate a balanced home cooked diet.