Why does my dog do this?

[Danestress]

I have a funny dog. He loves raw hides and bully sticks and other kinds of treats, and I like to give him these things that must be worked on, because it helps relieve some energy and boredom.

 

However, my dog will only chew on these things if I am home. I typically leave him in my bathroom when we re not home. That way he has plenty of room, his bed, water, etc. He has a delicate stomach and I don't leave him loose because I won't risk him vomiting everywhere. It does happen:(

 

I wish he would chew on this raw hide when I am gone. I would feel better, knowing he has something to occupy himself. But he won't. Any reason why? I am almost never gone more that three hours. He is five years old.

[Parrothead]

My dog has the same martyr syndrome going on. He won't eat while we are gone. When he has to go to daycare he only eats if K turns it into a game.

 

K's mom died while we were on this last trip and she left Baxter with her hubby. D said the only way he got Baxter to eat the last few days was to mix some cheese in his cereal. :D

[klmama]

A friend's dog won't eat or drink while the family is gone, even though he has the run of the house and his food and water are available. It seems he is concerned about not being able to go outside, as he'll willingly eat and drink if others are caring for him.

Edited September 22, 2012 by klmama

[Impish]

Don't know about the not eating, but I caution you about rawhide.

 

If you drop rawhide in a bucket of water, it will swell to several times it's size. The same thing can happen if the dog swallows a chunk. I know of several breeders that lost dogs from giving them rawhide.

[Jen500]

Maybe his energy level is synced with when he is alone vs when you are home? My dog has an activity pattern--sleeps and just hangs out most of the day while we're doing school, then has energy later in the day when he knows he'll get play time and go for a walk. Or does he chew on inappropriate things while you're gone and you want him to chew on his toys?

 

I agree about being careful about what you give him to chew on. Our dog will bite off chunks of rawhide..sometimes they get a bit stuck in his throat. And he's a large dog. I actually stopped giving him those because of this, and it seemed he was getting very gassy from them. :tongue_smilie:

[Rose in BC]

Don't know about the not eating, but I caution you about rawhide.

 

If you drop rawhide in a bucket of water, it will swell to several times it's size. The same thing can happen if the dog swallows a chunk. I know of several breeders that lost dogs from giving them rawhide.

 

:iagree: no rawhide for our dogs. I had to pull a piece from our basset hound's throat years ago. . .vet told us he strongly advises against rawhide. We boil up beef soup bones and let them chew those. They love them!

 

My dogs don't do much except sleep when we're not around. I think that's normal.

[Pawz4me]

I don't know why some dogs won't eat or drink when their owners are gone, but I can assure you it's fairly common behavior.

 

FWIW, I'm not a fan of rawhide. And particularly not for a dog with a sensitive stomach. It's not impossible that the rawhide is the cause of, or a big contributor to, his stomach problems.

[ktgrok]

stress. Dogs won't eat when stressed.