[Buffy]

I have an 8 and a half year old Staffy/Ridgeback cross who's recently gone off her food.

It's not that she doesn't have an appetite, she still begs for scraps. But she just wont touch her own food unless it's fed to her by hand.
I've tried switching her to different dry foods and mixing it with wet food but she doesn't want to know, though occasioally she will eat wet food.

The only thing that's been different is that she's recently started coming into season, not spotting yet, but adopting her toys as psudo puppies, which is actually quite normal behaviour for her ^-^

It's been going on for about 5 days now, and I really don't know how to sort it out. I can't afford to take her to the vet as I'm a full time unemployed student.

anyone got any ideas?

[cigwyllt]

Sounds like she is having a phantom pregnancy. The best thing you could do for her is have her spayed after this season. She is still young enough to benefit from the op and it would make her much happier.

As for the food - tough love It sounds like a behaviour thing if she still has an appetite for scraps and hand fed stuff. So if she was mine I would pick a dry food and stick with it. Put down a small amount for 15 minutes then take it away and give nothing else until the next meal time and again, only leave it for 15 mins before taking the bowl away. If she is healthy and she is being offered appropriate food she will not starve. If she is not healthy you need to get her to the vet.

[Buffy]

I'll give it a try

I'm just really confused as what could be causing it. She's never done anything like this before, and I've had her since she was a puppy.
She's been on the same dry food for years, it's the only one she likes and she's never turned her nose up at it before

[cigwyllt]

Their hormones make them do funny things. My dog goes through silly phases when he won't eat but I just ignore it and he soon comes round.