Alayne took our new arrival, tiny Pip, last week to see our internal medicine specialist, Dr. Tanya Donovan. We were concerned about a growth on his neck, as well as his underlying health, given his age and physical condition -- he's very, very thin.
In the photo above, Tanya is doing an ultrasound-guided draw of urine from Pip's bladder. During her abdominal screening, she had detected some thickening of the bladder wall and wanted to get a urinanalysis done to see what was going on. It turns out Pip does have a urinary tract infection, which may -- or may not -- be the cause of the thickening wall. We have started him on antibiotics to clear up the infection, and will recheck his bladder in a couple of weeks to see if that took care of it.
The lump on his neck was benign, thank heavens. It was an inflammatory reaction to something in his past, either an injury or an old injection site. Adding to the good news, his blood work was fine, too.
We had noticed that he just didn't seem to have much of an appetite. (No, not a dental issue.) We'd leave different kinds of yummy food in his crate with him overnight, and while he'd pick and lick at it, every morning much of the food would still be there. He'd even leave our fresh cooked ground beef sitting there. But on that trip to Burlington to see Dr. Donovan, Alayne stopped at a local sandwich shop to get something to eat -- and Pip, who was sitting in the front seat next to her, couldn't get enough of her turkey sandwich. Hmm.
Back at the farm last weekend, we fed him some thinly sliced roast beef by hand, which he voraciously ate. And he acted hungry! Was it just "people food" that he had been used to eating? I put another bowl of our cooked ground beef in front of him while he was in his basket bed in the living room. Pip looked at the bowl, then up at me ... and ignored it. Strange. Then Alayne had a hunch. She went over to his basket, scooped up some of the ground beef in her fingers, and offered it to him. He devoured it. She offered him more from her hand. He devoured it again. And again.
We had finally cracked the code. This little dog must have been fed by hand his entire life. We suspected someone had held Pip in his or her lap at the table and fed him tidbits from their own meals. That's how he ate (and probably why he was so thin, never getting enough nutrition that way). He was just used to being hand-fed.
We've never seen this before, but now that we know what it takes to get enough food into Pip, he's been having quite a feast these past several days. Our goal now is to help him make the transition from hand-fed to self-fed!
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In her extreme old age, my dog sometimes didn't want to eat -- even the homemade chicken and rice I made for her. But when we offered it by hand-feeding, she ate, and this extended her life for another month. Maybe since dogs are pack animals, this kind of social eating is more appealing than the dog dish? Some of our dogs also make a point to bring a mouthful of food into the living room where the humans are eating to eat with them. Have you considered the possibility that it is just your presence, and not the hand-feeding, that encourages Pip to eat?
I really enjoy your blog and find it quite inspirational!
Posted by: Robin | June 05, 2012 at 02:38 PM
Dogs learn what they live! Met a rescued Great Dane that in the beginning, when called for dinner, always went to BBQ grill in yard, sat & waited! He had been left behind by a college fraternity! Much love to Pip!!
Posted by: kathy | June 05, 2012 at 12:29 PM
Another thing that might help is making the mixture into little meatballs - I found this worked with my toy poodle who can just not eat - or lose interest in eating part way through. His food's a mixture of wet & dry - but the main thing is that the balls go down quickly and in Pip's case might resemble morsels of food fed by hand.
Posted by: Christopher Davis | June 02, 2012 at 09:39 PM
At the rate Pip is eating, he'll be as chubby as Wilbur in no time. Good detective work!
Posted by: Kathleen Rivard | June 02, 2012 at 12:33 PM
Definitely rare, but I've met picky eaters before, and the novelty factor of food presented on a spoon or the fingers often overrides the pickiness. And people food begged from the person is always more attractive than the ever-so-delectable food served in a dog bowl. This does seem to be an extreme case though, and it makes me wonder if Pip has trouble smelling. The fact that he's so thin makes it seem as if he doesn't even know what to do with food unless he receives it in the manner he's used to. Anyway, it's great you cracked the code on this one.
Posted by: Tonya Allen | June 02, 2012 at 08:00 AM
Pip is so adorable...I just want to kiss that little face! I'm so glad that all went well with the vet visit and that Pip is going to be just fine :)
I'm glad that he is at least eating now and hopefully he'll be eating by himself soon!
Posted by: Ann | June 02, 2012 at 02:22 AM
How clever of you folks to figure out how to feed Pip! It's never a dull moment at RDR. I'm surprised Pip walks well; a doll-size dog that was hand-fed might also have been a dog that was carried everywhere.
Let's hope Pip will learn to eat from a dish and that the reverse won't happen (that the other dogs will begin to demand hand-feeding!). :)
Here's wishing Pip and all at RDR a wonderful June!
Posted by: Moon Rani | June 01, 2012 at 03:50 PM
Awwww. What a great ending to this story! Made my week. :-) Thanks.
Posted by: Lisa Brown | June 01, 2012 at 03:08 PM
Amazing, and how unique! What a great observation! Delighted you have been able to crack the code and that Pip's health is sounding better than 1st impressions. Wonderful!
Posted by: Margaret | June 01, 2012 at 12:43 PM
Ooooh...wait till Widget hears that someone is being Hand Fed!! Wonder how that will go over!!!
Posted by: Anne in FL | June 01, 2012 at 12:29 PM
When we've known dogs that went off their feed for whatever reason (usually depression over being moved, being displaced by a new dog, etc), my husband's trick was to take a handful of food and pretend to eat it, making chewing, smacking noises, while ignoring the dog. Invariably the dog got interested, at which point my husband would "notice" the dog and say, "Oh, would you like some too?" Then he'd "share" his portion with the dog, who was delighted to dine with the human. Pretty soon, the dog would be eating out of his own dish. Like most people, some dogs just don't enjoy dining alone, so when they have someone to share with, the meal is a more pleasant experience.
Posted by: Debbie Burke | June 01, 2012 at 11:35 AM
Wonderful news on the bump and the blood work! Hooray.
Funny about the food...but so happy to hear the little guy is filling up his tummy.
Posted by: Chloe | June 01, 2012 at 10:28 AM
You guys are on it! Once again! Bon Appetit, Pip!
Posted by: Lisa K. - San Diego | June 01, 2012 at 09:54 AM
Oh yeah! perseverance and observation have paid off once again. He is a happier little boy now that his belly is full. We vote every day!!
Posted by: Anne in FL | June 01, 2012 at 09:20 AM
I want the job of feeding Pip everyday! What a unigue little man he is. So thankful to hear the tumor was benign.
Posted by: Mary H./Washington state | June 01, 2012 at 08:50 AM
Thank you so much for the great update on Pip!
He won't be so thin for much longer, will he?;-)
How do you plan to make him eat by himself, eventually?
Posted by: Carla Polastro-Nigro | June 01, 2012 at 07:44 AM
What a doll! I don't know why, but on the rare occasions that my dogs are off their food for some reason, they will often eat every bit of it from my hands. So there I am, scooping canned dog food from their bowl with my fingers, and them licking it off!
Posted by: Amber Lipari | June 01, 2012 at 07:06 AM
You two are very, very smart angels!
Pip is lucky to be with you... I'm sure he'll figure out the bowl situation soon enough.
LOL - or maybe not! You two might just have a little dog on your laps instead of a napkin from now on.
Honestly, I've never heard of a quirk like this before - it's so darn cute and lovable that ya almost want to continue the tradition...
Hugs to Pip~
Posted by: Gena | June 01, 2012 at 12:21 AM
Always, always amazed at your dedication. Love you guys!
Posted by: Shirley * James/Portland, OR | May 31, 2012 at 11:13 PM
Whew!
Phyllis
Posted by: Phyllis Snow | May 31, 2012 at 09:25 PM
Glad to hear such good news, especially the lump, about the Pipster!
Posted by: Janet in Cambridge | May 31, 2012 at 08:43 PM