What I Learned About Feeding a Dog with No Appetite (from Illness & New Medication)

There’s picky eating, and then there’s watching your dog turn down practically everything you put in front of her for weeks on end. I thought I knew picky. Freya has always had some strong opinions about food. She likes what she likes, and sometimes she suddenly doesn’t like what she liked yesterday. Then she developed heart disease and started taking multiple medications, and I learned what a dog with almost no appetite actually looks like. For a while, feeding her became one of the most stressful parts of my day. Something she happily ate yesterday could be completely unacceptable today. She might eat from my hand but not her bowl. I’d finally find something she at least sort of liked (like lean burger patties), buy more of it, and discover that Freya’s relationship with that particular food had apparently ended overnight. Thankfully, we’re in a much better place now. She’s eating dog food again, although kibble seems to have been permanently voted off the island. Freshpet Delivery custom meals are her absolute favorite right now, although she’ll also eat several other wet foods (depending on her mood). Getting here taught me quite a bit, though. So rather than give you another g...