Food for Thought...

Feeding a dog is usually easy. It is NOT feeding a dog that can be a challenge!

Ahi, chicken, carrots and melon are just some of Jalapeño's favorite foods. Or should I say, were some of the savory and sweet snacks that were guaranteed to make her tail wag and her pupils crack out. But everything changes when there is a pregnancy. Suddenly your little eater wrinkles her nose and curls her lip and literally turns green-flash green as smells that once appealed now repel.

Jalapeño is an athlete. She runs, she swims, she pants. When she became pregnant she was at her perfect weight, a solid, wiry and muscular 55 pounds. We limited her exercise early on so that she wouldn't knock her babies loose as she tore her way down into the creek in search of balls or crashed into a wave with complete disregard for her safety and my mental health. Once she was a month pregnant, we started running her again. I have had to watch her weight closely because she does not have any extra fat to burn. This is very hard to do when she refuses to eat.

Yet she has gained 12.5 pounds over the course of her pregnancy. Puppies are the bulk of it and her muscle tone is still strong. I guess a diet of scrambled eggs, cooked meat, rice and tortillas is keeping her going. She has eaten a little puppy kibble and I managed to coax three (chewable!!!) tablets down her gullet with about a kilo of peanut butter coating them yesterday.

So I am no longer in panic mode. Small meals, frequently. And I found out today that I should give her ice cream.

It is a win, win situation for both of us!

Here is a video of Jalapeño fetching.