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Why Sick Dogs Only Eat From My Hand
"Melts in Your Mouth! And Also In My Hand!"

One thing you get a lot of in the clinic is sick dogs. And I mean REALLY sick dogs. Who don't even want to eat a whole variety of commercial and home cooked chicken that we try to offer them. Sometimes we even try cat food because its smellier. And nothing work sometimes.

I had a Dobermann after having neck surgery not want to eat, after trying everything in the clinic, I finally resorted to just force feeding cooked chicken into his mouth. After multilple tries of stuffing tiny pieces into his mouth he slowly realised that this was tasty! He stopped resisting my attempts to feed him and started licking the chicken, "juice" and all off my hand. I tried to offer the same chicken to him in a bowl but he wouldn't have it. Once it was in my hand he licked it off with moderate hungryness. Strange.

There was another doggy in after she got hit by a car. Tried the smelliest food and had no luck. Then a vet took a look at her breed (staffordshire bull terrier)and suggested dry food. It worked! But only in my hand. At least initially to get her munchy then she would go for it in a bowl.

What is it with these dogs? Is it their colour? (Both are black, or shades thereof), or do things just taste nicer in MY hands? I think the only "added" tastes my hands would have in the clinic are the chlorhexidine disinfectant soap that I use frequently there. Maybe the cultures who eat with their hands have soemthing going that we utensil weilding folk haven't realised yet.

I think I will just have to continue feeding sick doggies from my hands and live with the smell of chicken, canned food and dog drool on my hands.