Inhaling her food
How can you get a dog to eat their food slower and chew it. Sophie inhales her food, she eats it so fast I dont think she chews any of it. I am still feelding her 3 times a day. She has eaten fast like this ever since we got her, she will be 5 months next week.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Diane on
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Lol.... That sure sounds familiar! I'm in awe of how quickly our dog scarfs his food. I finally ended up buying a special food bowl designed just for that - it splits the bowl into four sections and just makes it a bit more work to eat. That works fairly well, or at least it slows him down some. The other thing I do occasionally (after reading about it here) was to use treat balls/toys to feed him some of his food...
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Permalink Reply by Teresa on
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Baron does the same thing. I had to get a Kong Wobbler which has slowed his meal to 2-3 minutes from 2-3 seconds,
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Permalink Reply by John Wolff on
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Siri was a "gulper". Perhaps the unspoken thought crossed my mind, "her eating habits will be the death of her".
They were. She choked one bad day when we fed her something too large.
Remember they have different sorts of teeth than we do, and grinding it fine may not be such an issue, esp. if it's kibble, which should fall apart in the stomach anyway, I'd expect.
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Permalink Reply by Bev Levy on
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Mine all eat at the speed of light. The corgis get such small amounts at each meal that I do not worry about it. I feed our doberman in two separate bowls to slow her down since she is a breed that is susceptible to bloat. They also make bowls designed to slow a dog down but I have not tried one.
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Permalink Reply by steve smith on
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- The speed of light ???? That is slow compared to the way Dino and the rest of them eat. But instead of putting a rock in the bowl put a tennis ball in the bowl and they will slow down and eat around it. They might eat the rock
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Permalink Reply by Melissa and Franklin! on
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Just put a big rock in the food. That's what I do if I have a dog that scarfs. Adding some water and also a big rock will slow them down.
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Permalink Reply by Anna Morelli on
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I wouldn't worry about it unless the dog was choking on the food. At 5 months three meals a day are not needed. I would suggest splitting the total amount in two meals and Sophie will feel she's getting more at those two meals. Also, when they are growing, it's hard sometimes to figure out how much food they need.Pups will eat more than adults and their needs varie as they go through growth periods. She may need a bit more food.
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Permalink Reply by Snickmom on
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Here are some of the ways I feed Snickers to slow her down and add mental stimulation. 1) do a trick, get a kibble. 2) treat dispenser like the Kong wobbler, she has many that we switch off. 3) food scatter. I scatter the kibble all over the kitchen floor. 4) muffin tin/ muffin tin with treat balls (similar to putting a rock on it) 5) chase mom around the house- similar to food scatter, but I run around the house singing and tossing a kibble here and there. 6) kibble toss or skitter. I either toss a kibble in the air for her to catch or slide them across the floor one at a time for her to chase. 7) Will hug for food. Since she is not a cuddler, I will entice her into my lap by hand feeding her one at a time. Most meals are a combination of above, depending on how much time I have. This is a fun time for us to spend together, to practice her tricks and to slow down her eating.
My other dogs are fed in the laundry room so they aren't rushing her.
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Permalink Reply by Sandy Stickney on
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We turn our corgis' bowls upside down. It takes them a little longer to have to dig the kibble out of the smaller space. My sister-in-law who has a 100+ lb field lab puts a little water on his food and it seems to slow him down a bit.
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Permalink Reply by Jane on
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We have a slow feed bowl and add a little water to the kibble for Luke. As long as she's not choking on it or anything I honestly wouldn't be too worried.
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For all those who simply put down a food dish for their dogs, lest they feel guilty :-) I have to chime in again. Making it hard for the dog to get his food, putting it in strange places, tossing it around at random, etc. may look like a lot of fun, and may even BE fun, but the end result creates a dog that is more eager to get the food - thus wanting to be faster - even frantic - because it never knows where or when or how to expect food. Food is not a game, but a survival issue. Dogs are not grazers by nature, they are gorgers. It is normal for an animal in the dog family to eat as much as it can at one time, because the next meal may be quite far off. This is what survival is about, so this is the natural behavior.
I am not suggesting letting your dog gorge itself. Pets don't lead the "natural" life, nor eat the natural foods - i.e. prey - that allows that behavior to happen safely, but there is something to be said for traditional feeding methods ( a food bowl put down in the same place, or as part of some simple routine that fits the owner's circumstances ), so the dog can eat in peace an expected meal and an expected amount.
As mentioned in my previous post, I would only do something different if a dog was eating so fast that it was choking on its food.
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