My picky dog only eats at night. Is this normal or concerning?

Some dogs have their own schedule in terms of eating. We have dogs that graze throughout the day small amounts, dogs that will eat any food in front of them immediately to the point of making themselves sick, and other dogs like yours that may just eat at certain times. As long as your vet thinks your dog's weight is appropriate/ their growth is acceptable and Norik is not having diarrhea or vomiting then I wouldn't be concerned. I would recommend if Norik hasn't been to the vet recently for his vet to examine him and be sure he is of an appropriate weight.

Some dogs are simply picky eaters and will only eat their dog food when they are really hungry. Often these dogs learn that if they wait to eat their food, something tastier will be offered. I would recommend visiting your vet first to make sure Marshall is in good health with no evidence of weight loss or gastrointestinal disease that could be affecting his appetite. If he is maintaining his weight, it's probably fine for him to eat when he's hungry and you don't have to worry about tempting him to eat or mixing his food with table scraps.

It's very common for some dogs to be more motivated to eat right away when there are other dogs present, since there's an element of competition involved in a multi-dog household - she likely knows that in that environment, if she doesn't eat right away, it may not still be there later! With dogs who are picky eaters, the major question I always ask is - is the dog a normal healthy weight, and acting normal otherwise? If so, then I don't worry about it. Some dogs are naturally "grazers" and may not be all that motivated to eat right away as soon as food is offered. Or you may be feeding more than she really needs, and she may simply not be very hungry sometimes. If the dog is underweight, or showing other symptoms of illness such as vomiting, diarrhea, acting lethargic, etc., then a medical work-up would be indicated to help figure out what the underlying problem is so it can be treated appropriately. But if the dog it not overly thin and otherwise acting normal, then I don't worry too much about it - she'll eat when she's hungry! I'm also not a big fan of dressing up the food with tasty "extras" to entice the dog to eat, since this is generally not necessary and can teach the dog to hold out for better and better things over time if she learns that you'll keep adding extra treats if she doesn't eat right away. So you could certainly take your girl in for a check-up to make sure she's healthy, if you're concerned - but if your vet doesn't feel that there is a genuine medical issue present, I'd just put her food down at her regular mealtime and leave her alone. A healthy dog won't starve themselves, so she'll eat when she wants to. :)

Some dogs are just picky eaters or are not very food driven. So we have some dogs, like your typical labrador, that will eat anything and everything within 30 seconds of it being put down, and others that are more picky and graze throughout the day. There are not necessarily medical drawbacks to leaving her food down throughout the day, or at least leaving it down for a few hours in the morning and a few in the evening. Sometimes unfortunately with dogs who are picky we just have to be tough and not offer them a different food every time they decide they aren't excited about their current one. We can predispose dogs to food allergies if we are changing their foods all the time and we do get allergies later in life it is much harder to find a good diet for them. I would choose one food and stick with it, and she will eventually get hungry and eat it. The exception is toy breed puppies which can develop hypoglycemia if they go too long without eating https://veterinarypartner.vin.com/default.aspx?pid=19239&id=4952329 , but adult dogs should be able to tolerate this. I am a fan of the purina pro plan line, which is available at most pet stores and is good quality, they also have dry diets, wet diets, and their Savor line has kibbles along with softer/chewy kibbles which my dogs love. If there is some treat that she is very fond of you can mix it in with the food that you want her to eat and slowly decrease the amount of the treat each day so she gets used to the other food. Some people find putting some low sodium chicken broth on the food can entice them to start eating a food and you can slowly decreas the amount placed on the food, or warming food up slightly makes it more appetizing.

As long as she eats and is not losing weight, don't stress out over it. It is true that smaller breeds can be a bit more finicky. Switching foods would not be recommended as it can lead to gastrointestinal upset and reinforce her finicky nature. Instead, try mixing in a bit of warm water or a teaspoon of baby food to stimulate the appetite.

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Arielle Reign. If she is not overweight and you are not having difficulties potty training her, then it should be fine to allow her to graze on her food throughout the day. Be sure to accurately measure how much you are offering her each day so you can monitor what she is consuming. Some dogs do prefer to be fed in this manner. I hope this information helps!

As long as Rosie is acting normal and is not losing weight this might be normal behavior for her. However if she has any drooling, odor from her mouth, vomiting or is losing weight I would be concerned about something else going on such as an infection in her mouth, inflammation of her stomach, or even kidney issues. If you notice any of those signs she needs to be checked out by her veterinarian.