As a dachshund owner, we need to take care of their diet schedule for their optimal growth and development. They are alway keen to eat food but sometimes they dosen’t show any excitement for the food, at first i am also quite confused about why won’t my dachshund eat anything? But after lot of research about it i found the reason behind dachshund low appitite, if you are also dachshund owner you probably face this issue once in a life if yes, after reading blog you will find a solution for dachshund low appetite.
Potential causes of the dachshund not eating food
There are various of your dachshund not feeding properly or loss of appetite on their regular feed. We need to understand the main reason behind it to cure it and make their appetite level normal again properly.
Digestive issue
Dachshunds have a sensitive digestive system, their digestive system can be easily distressed by small diet and environmental changes. When we change their diet suddenly, it affects their digestive system negatively and likely results in not showing excitement for food.
Teeth and gum diseases
Dachshunds are dogs that are prone to dental-related issues. They have sensitive gums, which are inclined to diseases like periodontal disease. Their smaller jaw size and narrow snouts make it harder for them to remove remaining food and which builds harmful bacteria, can cause infection on their gums. In this situation of having gums infection, they feel pain because of inflammation and bacterial infection in their gums and mouth, which causes them not to eat food despite their appetite.
Environmental causes
The environment also plays an important role in your dachshund’s appetite level. Environmental factor such as stress level and noise level can disrupt their normal appetite and cause a low appetite.
Dachshunds are sensitive to environmental changes. They may feel anxious when their environment changes, whether you are going on a trip with your dachshund or migrating to another location. Feeling anxious made them less hungry and caused a low appetite in your dachshund.
This is a temporary condition that only remains for a short time; after some time, they start to eat normally.
Stress and anxiety
Dachshunds are naturally sensitive to anxiety when they feel stressed, whether it happens due to environmental issues or other factors. Their stress reduces their motivation for food and causes a loss of appetite.
They are also inclined to separation anxiety, where your dog feels uncomfortable when they are left alone. Separation anxiety can also cause a reduction in their appetite because stress decreases their dopamine level in the brain, which is the primary brain chemical for food motivation.
How to improve a dachshund’s appetite
Check their emotional health
Keeping an eye on your dog’s emotional health is most important because their appetite level depends on their emotional condition. When they feel well, they have a high appetite level; and the other hand, when they feel anxious or stressed, they may have a low appetite.
We can monitor our dog’s health by observing their behaviour, they may show behaviour like excessive barking, howling when they are feeling bad emotionally.
If you notice any signs of your dog’s stress and anxiety, you need to immediately take action for their emotional health.
Check their dental health
Dachshunds are prone to dental health issues because of their narrow mouth. In a narrow area, we can’t clean their gums and teeth, which can store food and harmful bacteria and cause inflammation of the gums. This can cause painful sensations when they chew food and do not eat food despite their appetite.
In this situation, we need to treat their gum-related issue first, and when they feel better from it, they automatically eat food normally.
Food cycling
Dachshunds can get bored with the same food every day. When they are fed the same food option every day for a long period of time, they may feel bored with that food. There are many ways to overcome food boredom in dachshunds. I personally use multiple flavored foods for dachshunds after some days of use. This helps your dogs to taste new flavored food and lowers the chance of feeling bored with food, which noticeably increases your dog’s appetite.
Improve environment
A good environment plays an important role in a dachshund’s normal appetite, when they are kept in a bed environment such as a high noise level, which can cause stress and anxiety in your dog and potentially a low appetite.
We can improve our environment by providing them a comfortable bed, toys, and other essentials for your dog. We need to take action to address the external environmental factors by reducing the noise level because a noisy environment negatively affects their appetite.
Diet quantity
Giving your dachshund an excessive quantity of feed can reduce their excitement for the food. When they are provided with excess food, they can’t feel excited for the food like when they taste it first time. That’s why limit is key, you need to provide food for them in normal quantity, overproviding them a food can cause reduce excitement for the food and reduce appetite in further feeding.
In this situation, you need to reduce their feed quantity by a small portion to make them excited for the next meal and feel hungry after some time of feeding.
Keep them active
.Exercise helps them to burn calories, which is important for your dog’s health and normal appetite. Taking them for a walk, leash walking, helps them to burn their calorie which is the primary factor of normal appetite. You can read our blog we wrote about “dachshund exercise” to provide them with a suitable exercise.
Make a routine
Giving feed at the same time of day helps to regulate your dachshund’s appetite. When you give feed to them in a random time, their body confuses about in which time they need to feel hungry and disruption in appetite.
Clean their teeth regularly
Teeth and gum-related issue can negatively affect their feeding habit. They have a narrow mouth, which makes them susceptible to teeth and gum-related issues, which can negatively affect their appetite level due to pain when they chew food.
Consult your vetnerian
The above signs and symptoms can indicate a serious health condition. For that, consult your vet first if your dog has a related condition. Only a certified vet can give an accurate treatment checking their sign and symptoms.
Conclusion
Dachshunds always feel excited for their food and treats, but sometimes they show some signs and symptoms that indicate their reduced appetite. They can experience a low appetite for various reasons that I explained above. Sometimes we wonder about this questions “why won’t my dachshund eat” because of their low appetite. First, we need to identify their reason behind their low appetite level, whether it appears due to external conditions or any underlying health conditions, to treat them accurately. If your dogs have mild appetite loss, you can try the tips I provided above to make them excited to the food.
