Emma is almost 4 1/2, now. She's settled down, into a REALLY nice dog. I've finally found a combination of foods and supplements that WORKS for her, and the change is incredible!
Emma used to be a total chowhound. She'd eat anything, any time, anywhere. She was the very definition of "food whore". She literally has eaten until swallowing made her YELP.
Now? Not so much, LOL. She eats until she's finished, then walks away from her bowl. When she first started that, I flipped out and had tons of bloodwork run, and she was fine. She's getting into a habit, just the last... two weeks, maybe. She'll eat about half of her breakfast. I pick it up, and stick it in the fridge. She gets a little lunch. Sometimes, I offer the breakfast, and sometimes, I'll offer something different. She eats, either way, but only a little bit. Then, I mix her dinner with whatever is left in her bowl, and she finishes the whole thing, and wants her bedtime snack. She's a night eater! Who knew?
She spent the first 3 years of her life looking like death, warmed over. Her coat was awful. If she hadn't had so much muscle, nobody would have believed that I fed her. Her ribs, hip bones, and vertebrae were all clearly visible. If she got sick, you could see her skull clearly, as well. Over the last year, her coat has come in wonderfully, and she's gained about 4 lbs. She is MORE muscular than before, and she looks healthy. She's still lean enough (ribs are quite easy to feel, but no bones are seen), but I watch her weight, to make sure she isn't gaining. Any heavier would be rough on her joints.
She doesn't get sick as much, anymore, either. The GI upsets have calmed to a quiet storm (from hurricane levels, LOL). Her allergies are still there (and the food allergies are worse), but the general "allergic" state has calmed down, quite a bit. Her skin rarely gets yeasty, anymore. she's had ONE ear ache, in a year, and I'm not convinced it wasn't something (like sand) in there, bugging her. I am so thrilled to say that she doesn't get Benedryll on a daily basis, anymore. Only on an as needed.
All of this happened.... when I stopped cooking her food. I mostly did it out of laziness and frustration. NO food was working, and I was sick of trying, and cooking that dang meat every week was TOO MUCH WORK (I was exhausted, working 3 jobs, with 2 dogs who didn't get along)! I stopped, and she started changing. I'm STILL amazed, by it.
The night eating thing is WEIRD! I never knew she had a preference for when to eat her food.