# Luna won't eat or drink



## TheBigRoo (Dec 3, 2011)

Hi everyone, 

So Luna is one of the most animated poodles we've ever had. She's always incredibly happy, loves life, and is always wagging. However, I've become concerned in the last 24-36 hours or so.

Luna apparently ate some grass last Sunday and by Monday late morning, she was having some gastric upset. She threw up a couple times and she threw up some yellow stuff which means she is digesting. Since then, however, she has neither eaten nor had much of anything to drink with the exception of a very small amount of water we gave her earlier today from a water bottle. 

I know that dogs will occasionally eat grass in order to clean out their systems and this has happened once or twice with Luna before of course. Normally however, she just doesn't eat very much for the rest of that day and by the next morning, she's usually better. 

I'm significantly more concerned this time because she will be going on 48 hours without any food and she also has virtually no interest in water. 

We did call our vet today and we're planning to take Luna to the vet tomorrow if she still refuses food and water. The vet prescribed some metronidazole for her today and she's about to have her second pill for the day. 

Is there anything else we should try with her? Other than her refusal to eat or drink (most likely related to whatever's going on with her stomach) she is still very much herself, but she sleeps a lot. 

I'd be lying if i said I wasn't starting to get really worried. The problem with treating such symptoms is just that, a treatment for symptoms and not the underlying cause. The last thing I want to happen is for the vet to stablize her, for us to get her home again, and for her to continually refuse food and water. That's my biggest fear. Any additional advice? Is this just a little stomach bug and she should be fine in a couple days, or should I be more concerned?


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## CharismaticMillie (Jun 16, 2010)

I would be very concerned if any of my dogs stopped eating or drinking. 
Is Luna acting lethargic at all?


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## TheBigRoo (Dec 3, 2011)

Hi Charismaticmillie,

Thanks so much for the reply. We actually do have an Addison's poodle, Annabelle. Her addisons manifested itself differently from Luna's current behavior, however. Luna is not lethargic, at least, not yet. But I imagine she's a bit tired because she has very little fuel inside her right now. 

When Annabelle first crashed with Addisons, her eyes got very red, she was definitely lethargic, would not eat, would not drink, but she also hid away in dark corners. That was VERY scary but we got her up to the vet fast of course. We are planning to do the exact same thing for Luna, though she's not showing any of the lethargy or hiding out that Annabelle did. Right now, Luna simply appears to not be drinking or eating. But the weird thing is that she is pooping and peeing normally. That said, if she does not eat or drink anything by tomorrow morning, she's going up to the vet. We have an appointment at 11 to have her seen.

EDIT: I think the poodle forum has VERY good luck when I post. As i was literally editing this response, Luna went out for business for the last time and when she came in, she lapped up a whole bunch of water. THAT makes me feel much better. Hydration or lack thereof can become much more life threatening much quicker than a day or 2 of not eating. I'm so glad she's at least hydrated herself. We will of course keep an eye on her and hopefully she'll start eating again tomorrow. The vet said she may simply have a bit of gastritis so hopefully the pills are helping. We may also keep e lookout for IBD symptoms as these are also common in poodles.


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## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

I'm glad she is so obviously improving - like you, I worry more about hydration than starvation. As long as she is drinking, she should feel better soon. Keep us posted on the results of your visit to the vet.


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## Carley's Mom (Oct 30, 2011)

My male shih tuz does this from time to time. I can sometimes get him to eat a cooked egg. If you can just get her started eating she might go from there on her own. I sometimes hand feed him something like a few bites of chicken and then he will turn right around and eat all his food.


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## Rowan (May 27, 2011)

Can you entice her to eat by offering some chicken or turkey? Or mix a few pieces into her regular food? (Or beef/buffalo or cooked salmon if she can't tolerate poultry?)

Like others, I was more worried about her refusal to drink than not eat. (I have a very picky eater myself.) It's great that she's starting to act more like herself. 

I have a MPOO with colitis and it's a roller coaster ride. He had solid stool for a couple of months, then it went to mucous-encased stool to loose stool with blood in it. The vet wanted to put him on Science Diet and I refused. He's now on a higher fiber pureed, home cooked concoction and is doing well. Is Luna's stool normal? The fact she's eliminating is a very good sign.

I hope Luna is back to her energetic self and soon!


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## ArreauStandardPoodle (Sep 1, 2009)

Can you let us know how she is today and how the vet appointment goes please?


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## TheBigRoo (Dec 3, 2011)

Hey all, 

Thanks for your concerns. especially Rowan and Arreau. So yes, Luna is doing significantly better today. She wouldn't really eat out of her bowl this morning, but was more enticed by hand feeding. We hand fed her some sweet potato and applesauce which she loved. And, she drank water on her own of course. I believe she's on the mend now so we called up the vet and put her appointment on standby just in case, but it appears the metronidazole is doing its job. I think it's going to take a few more days until she's 100% again but she's slowly getting there. I'm glad she's at least keeping food and water down. She blapped up a tiny bit of water this morning, but that could be because she drank a lot at once. For the most part, she's keeping her nutrients down. She's also pretty spry but I think she may sleep a bit more than usual while she continues to improve.

Rowan, I'm so sorry for the Colitis. The way you describe your MPOO's evacuations reminds us very much of what can happen with the bowels with an addisons poodle. Annabelle, our silver FPOO had very similar issues with her stool before she was diagnosed. It would be firm for a while, then become mucousy and eventually she'd get a fissure of some sort and would have some bloody stool as well. 

Even ON medication for Addisons (Florinef and a bit of prednisone) her condition is a total balancing act. We've had a couple of instances since her first crash where her levels can start going all over the place. That again begins to effect her personality, her stools, everything. Once we balanace off the meds again, she returns to normal, so we know what that's like, definitely.

Luna hasn't made a stool yet today but that's more likely because her tummy has been so empty. She has been peeing though. I will keep you all posted, but I'm keeping my fingers crossed that she'll be fine now. We're keeping a very close eye on her of course.


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## petitpie (Nov 16, 2011)

So glad to hear that Luna is feeling better! :act-up:

Please keep us posted on Luna and Annabelle.


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## desertreef (Nov 14, 2009)

Hi Jeff! 
Someone told me about the silver mini post so I came to look and see this from you... How is Luna doing today? Has her appetite improved? I would be concerned as well. I'll send you a private note later but know that I'm sending positive vibes your way for your lovely Luna.


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## liljaker (Aug 6, 2011)

Rowan said:


> Can you entice her to eat by offering some chicken or turkey? Or mix a few pieces into her regular food? (Or beef/buffalo or cooked salmon if she can't tolerate poultry?)
> 
> Like others, I was more worried about her refusal to drink than not eat. (I have a very picky eater myself.) It's great that she's starting to act more like herself.
> 
> ...


Rowan: Didn't realize you had a mpoo with colitis. I went through that with Jake, but his was IBD we think. With Sunny, I think his "poop issues" have more to do with his stress, sensitivities, etc., than a physical condition, but my vet, too suggested Science Diet. My comment was "you're kidding right?" and he said, "well, I know how you feel about commercial food" and he was right! No SD for Sunny.


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## Rowan (May 27, 2011)

liljaker said:


> Rowan: Didn't realize you had a mpoo with colitis. I went through that with Jake, but his was IBD we think. With Sunny, I think his "poop issues" have more to do with his stress, sensitivities, etc., than a physical condition, but my vet, too suggested Science Diet. My comment was "you're kidding right?" and he said, "well, I know how you feel about commercial food" and he was right! No SD for Sunny.


It's Merlin who suffers from colitis. I posted about it here  : http://www.poodleforum.com/29-poodle-health/16596-its-you-your-dogs-advocate.html


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## ShelbySP (Dec 28, 2011)

I'm sure Luna will be fine..sounds like she's already on the mend.

My SP has colitis also and she is also a very finicky eater and used to be underweight. However, she has been on Prescription Diet c/d which is highly digestible and high in calories, plus we sprinkle Pure Bite dried chicken on it (we call it magic dust) and she is a beautiful 34 lbs now (used to be under 30lbs)..yes you read the right. She would get colitis flare ups every 6 mths so on to the meds, and then we'd wean her off. Over the past yr, now that she's older, she was getting the runs and mucus much more often, so we have her on a maintenance dose of 1 pill every 2 days and she's great.!


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