Why is my golden retriever only eating one meal? Should I worry?

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Lucky. Golden retrievers typically have voracious appetites. So a sudden change is worrisome. I recommend that she sees her veterinarian to ensure there is not a health problem. For example, an upper respiratory tract infection can cause a change in appetite. If she is even mildly congested then it will be harder to smell the food. This can lower the appetite. I hope this information helps!

I'm glad to hear that Molly is such a spunky older girl! Not to worry - feeding her once per day is perfectly reasonable. I generally recommend twice daily feedings for adult dogs simply because most dogs prefer eating more often, but it sounds as though Molly has made her preferences perfectly clear! Some dogs are just less food motivated than others. As long as she eats a good dinner, there's no cause for concern.

I would check to see if Bongo has lost weight or not. If he's not lost weight and/or has maintained his weight, then it would be fine to keep him on one meal a day. If you are concerned he isn't getting enough food, you can give him the daily recommended allotment of food during this one meal. Some dogs can eat one meal a day and be just fine. If that's the way you can keep him eating, then you can do it. I hope this helps!

Hi, and thanks for your question. This is a very 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. An immediate check up is needed as persistent inappetence could deteriorate his clinical condition rapidly. 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!

Toby is absolutely adorable! You have a great question. He should still be eating three times a day at this age, once morning, noon, and evening. When he turns six months old, he can be fed twice a day (morning and evening). As for how much at each meal, take the daily recommended allotment on his bag of food, and divide it into three equal portions to feed throughout the day. Once he reaches six months of age, divide it into two equal portions. I hope this helps :-)

Hello, you may be overfeeding him in the evening so that he is not hungry in the morning. I would recommend dividing his evening meal by two and feeding that amount on two different times. This may promote him to eat twice daily vs a single time per day. If this does not help, then Whiskey may need further diagnostics to include bloodwork and potentially an ultrasound to rule out an underlying disease. Hope this helps and best of luck.

What a great question. It’s the age old debate about whether we should feed dogs once a day, twice a day, or three times a day. Honestly, it depends on the dog. if the dog is healthy and happy, and he is keeping his weight at a healthy amount that is not too heavy or too light, I see no reason with feeding him only once a day. One recommendation I would also add to you if you do intend to only feed him once is to keep his food elevated and use a special type of feeding bowl that forces him to eat slowly. There are certain bowls with prongs in them that force your pet to eat slowly. The reasoning is that large breed dogs like yours can sometimes have gastrointestinal problems like bloat, etc. if they inhale their food without chewing. Feeding only once a day can sometimes cause a dog to ravenously eat so you have to be careful. But again it depends on the dog and most that I have come into contact with that are only fed one meal a day still do fairly well. Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach and I hope I have helped. Have a nice day.