Scarfs food!!
Submitted by kaydee007 on June 5, 2012 - 4:16amI know I always have a question but I just want to make sure I do everything right!! When I feed Bruce he scarfs down his food and at times chokes....is this normal behavior for pups and how can I get him to slow down? I feed him 3 cups of food a day... 1.5 in morn and 1.5 in evening. And snack during day while training.
__________________
Happy married mom of 4 and first time mom to my fur baby BRUCE!!!!!!! HE WAS BORN 2/2/12!!!!
Oh Bruce, you silly puppy..
I have heard that putting a ball in their dish forces them to slow down. As well we saw a bowl with bumps molded inside to force them to get only smaller amounts of food at a time. It was at Walmart.
Tucker does this
Tucker does this so we have tried a couple of things. Our vet suggested we take a bowl(cereal bowl) and put it upside down in Tucker's bowl therefore making it harder for him to gulp his food. It works great. We did buy a "slow feeder bowl" and he ate his food, then puked 2 seconds later. I was going to get an elevated feeder/bowls but my friend has one for her Frenchie and she said it doesn't work at all. The upside down bowl is an easy and free way to help the problem. Tucker is fed 2 times/day and a cup and a half at each feeding. At first he would eat his food and puke it up then(sorry this is gross) try and eat it again. God forbid any food goes to waste! Good luck :)
Katie & Tucker a.k.a "Porkchop"
My Zoey does that....
And almost died twice.
First you should make sure the kibble is soaked for a few mintues before meal time (like 5 minutes) so it is wet which is easier to swallow. I use Aloe Vera juice to do this because I have friends who have recommended it because it keeps the tartar from building up on their teeth thus removing or reducing the need for dental cleanings.
Then I feel them in a turkey roasting pan. This way the kibble is not concentrated at the bottom of a bowl where they can get alot of kibble at one time. They kinda have to chase around the kibble to get it. It doesn't slow them down as much as I would like but these things have kept that choking to a minumum.
Good luck : )
We tried
wetting his food(just with water) and he still puked it up. Even when he was being fed 3 times a day. He also eats anything and everything including what I call "non-edibles" such as toys if they're small and soft enough, grass clippings, wood chips, pieces of branches that he's chewed to bits and never poops it out, just throws it up! Last week it was two baby wipes!
I have to admit he has gotten better with his food. The bowl slows him down and works great for us.
It's funny because he never touches my daughters baby toys. I can leave her doll on the coffee table and he's never touched it. He likes to puke things up either when we're in public places(once in Canadian Tire) or when he's in bed with us which is just lovely. When it was food it was 10 seconds after he ate.
The roasting pan is a great idea.
Katie & Tucker a.k.a "Porkchop"
You need to be careful with this.....
I am not trying to make you feel bad or be mean whatsoever.....
but if this behavior continues (him eating all these things) you are going to be looking at a dog who needs surgery.
My Zoey use to de-stuff toys and eat the squeekers. On Christmas one year she ate a squeeker. On Easter we rushed her to the ER vet cause she vomited 19 times in 4 hours. Zoey was admitted to the hospital with pacreatitis and spent a week there ($2000). They could find nothing wrong with her so once she released we did our best to feed her a diet for her pancrease but she continued to vomit. Two weeks later we were sure she was dying....one night called the ER vet and was crying on the phone with the vet that she was dying. She was crying in pain and we were just distraught. She made it thru the night and the next day was having soo much pain and had such bad runs....well, at one point she got up ran to the door and was hysterical to get outside. She then pooped out the squeeker from Christmas.
It cause a blockage and luckily she lived. I do rescue and let me tell you, this is not a good thing on bulldogs. The more they have to have surgery for this, the worse they get and it wears on the bulldog's health. Alot of things they cannot puke up or poop out and then they need surgery.
It is not an easy thing, I know, but I just wanted to put it out there that this type of behavior can really carry serious health issues. Good luck with this....they are wonderful awesome dogs but they sure turn your hair gray prematurely!
definitely
I completely understand. Maybe I made this sound worse than it is but it's not something that happens every week. That's why we're careful what toys he gets, that we clean up grass clippings etc. I know he's not the only bully or dog for that matter that has eaten something he or she shouldn't. I don't know many people who's dog hasn't eaten something they shouldn't have.
I completely understand that this can cause health issue. He isn't a compulsive eater of random objects. I'm sorry you had that situation with Zoey. I hate to hear about serious medical issues with any animal bullies or not. He likes squeakers too but he's watched like a hawk when he has a toy with one or he doesn't get squeaker toys. Now I kind of do feel bad. My husband and I would never want to see him sick.
I probably made it sound a bit extreme :0
Katie & Tucker a.k.a "Porkchop"
3 times a day
Until he is 6 months old he should be eating 3 times a day and you may need to increase his food. At one point Kohl was eating 5 cups a day. Puppies need food to grow and if he's a busy boy all day he is burning up those calories.
Treats are fine because you should be using those to do some simple training, sit, stays, wait, etc. You can use fruits or veges for a low cal treat.
My Stella
Didn't so much eat as she did inhale. My mom used to call her Hoover.
They make special bowls with a thing in the middle that helps them eat slower. I would invest in one :)
And yes, as a puppy, for the first few month. Break up his meals into three portions. Breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Problem with Kippah while she was in a growing spurt
Breaking his meals down to three times should help, we had to do that with Kippah when she went through a growing stage--she could not get to it quick enough. We also got elevated bowls, ours are progressive, we are at the 3rd of 4 heights, and I am sure it is going to stay right there. Breaking the meals down will also help in the potty training. When we first needed to slow her down we sat next to the bowl and pet her while she was eating, it was enough of a distraction to slow her down.
After she turned 8 months we leave the bowl out all the time (she is in her Kennel at night and about 5 hours during the day) So during the day she roams and nibbles here and there. We will probably continue this unless she gains too much weight later in life.
Loves and Smooches, Kippa and Mama (Annette)
You can try a treat ball. We
You can try a treat ball. We got one called the IQ treat ball. Its great because when Oliver was a puppy this was about the only time we got any type of break from having to monitor everything he did. It holds kibble and you can change how easy the kibble falls out. It would take him a good 10 minutes or so to eat a full meal. I think that might have made him more satisfied to because it seemed like he was getting more to eat. It was also really fun to watch him nudge the ball around and learn how to use his paws. We use one of the slow feeder bowls now and he will eat a meal in about a minute but he has not had problems with choking or throwing up.
Tucker loves his....
...... treat ball. Someone gave him one as a gift and I use kibble in it then just cut back that amnt of food at dinner ex., put one scoop in the ball and just give him 2 scoops at dinner instead of 3. After he gets most of the kibble out I take it away so he doesn't chew on it to get the couple of bits out that he couldn't get out by rolling it. His is orange and it's about the size of a melon.
Katie & Tucker a.k.a "Porkchop"
my archie barely chewed...he
my archie barely chewed...he gulped or wolfed down!!!
smoochies the scrunchy face
A couple ideas:
1-Buy a Kong Wobbler and use that to feed. We used it with Ruby and it slowed her down...she had no choice. And it was entertaining to watch and it seemed like she enjoyed the challenge.
2-We now mix Ruby's food with water...the food is almost swimming in it. I have found that this does not slow her down, but she doesn't cough or choke on her food like she used to. (she's now 8 mos...the pic below is old)
Just some thoughts...and you should consider some pet insurance on your sweet boy, since you're not too sure of his breeding background!
Farley was a scarfer too!
I used a stainless steel cookie sheet when he was younger...and now that he is older he gets fed in a stainless steel Slow Feed bowl.