Eating and sleeping habits

Question
Our chi is 3 years. Her eating habits are horrible, of course we made a mistake when she did not eat dog food to give her special people healthy meals. If my daughter is not home she can go 24 hrs+ with not eating. It's very sad to know she does not eat well. I think she gets depressed. She seems to sleep during the day as soon as we leave for work. My daughter says she is nocturnal, she seems to be up all night long. How long is ok for her to be awake and asleep. Any feed back would be helpful.
Thank you June

Answer
Hi June...

What exactly are you feeding her?  Has she been examined recently by a qualified veterinarian and have you had blood work done?  You really need to have her seen and have blood work done to rule out any health problems.  Dogs can and do experience depression and sometimes it's due to a medical reason like hypothyroidism.  

You say that she sleeps during the day when you're at work.  Is she the only one at home all day?  No other pets?  No other people home?  Going without eating for 24 hours is not healthy at all and can cause low blood sugar (hypoglycemia) which can have to do with her being inactive, etc.  

I don't think that there's any "set" amount of time for a dog to be awake and asleep.  That most likely varies by age, health, the type of nourishment they're getting, etc.  A dog that is kept alone all day and sleeps the day away might very well be far more active at night.  Again, you need to have a proper veterinary exam and blood work done to make sure that she has no medical problems.

These days there are some marvelous human-grade dog foods out there that even the pickiest dog will eat thinking that it's "people food".  You might check out some of them like Evanger's, Merrick or even EVO.

Jo Ann