General Eating Question

Bethany0016 · Posted: Sun Dec 02, 2007 3:52 pm Post subject: General Eating Question

So since day one, Jake has never eaten out of the bowl so much as uses his nose to get it all over the place and then eat it. We started with metal bowls and we thought maybe the noise the food made against the sides scared him. So now he has some really nice bowls (clay maybe?) that are heavy and don't make any noise but he still does it. I guess I don't really mind it but its a bit of a nuisance to have to pick kibble up off the floor on a daily basis. I've seen dogs carry a mouthful off (he does this, too) and eat it but never tossing it out of the bowl to eat it. Any suggestions or is it sort of a lost cause?

GailB · Posted: Sun Dec 02, 2007 4:51 pm Post subject:

That's cute,only cause I'm not the one cleaning it up.My boy does the carry around thing with the water bowl,sometimes half full.Now that's a mess to clean. Wink

wildlifecr13 · Posted: Sun Dec 02, 2007 5:13 pm Post subject:

zoe does this.
she will use her nose to
(1) push food out of the bowl
(2) level out the food in the bowl
or
(3) she will carry a blanket over, put it on top of her bowl, then use her nose to push it around, spilling food all over and looking like a crazy old lady trying to hide her cookies.
i could get video of it... its kinda wierd and i dont get it either.

Bethany0016 · Posted: Sun Dec 02, 2007 5:30 pm Post subject:

LOL! You just described almost every meal with Jake. The worst is when I miss a piece that was stuck to his bed and I throw it in the washing machine. Its so odd to me that one piece of kibble can make the washing machine that stinky!

I guess I really do just have to get used to it. Nothing wrong with that! Just wanted to make sure it's not some sort of doggie eating disorder or something. For a long time I thought maybe he wasn't eating it cuz it seemed like what wasn't left in the bowl was all over the floor but then I watched him vacuum it up as he ran by a few times (at full speed) so I know he is eating!

anne · Posted: Sun Dec 02, 2007 5:49 pm Post subject:

I won't let my dogs carry food around to other places in the house, especially because I feed raw. Don't want to find a raw chicken back in bed! YUCK. I also feed outside a lot.
In any case, sometimes dogs bury food if they are uncomfortable eating somewhere.
Also for free feeding dogs, I think they tend to "bury" more, the blanket thing sounds like burying to me. You know, save it for a rainy day type of thing. They are domesticated of course and will always be fed but I think it harkens back to wild dog type behavior.

Bethany0016 · Posted: Sun Dec 02, 2007 5:56 pm Post subject:

That makes a lot of sense! He does it more in his crate than out of it but he also eats more in there. Figured that was it, but I know he doesn't particularly LOVE his crate, so maybe he just doesn't like eating in there!

I was thinking about trying the "raw" thing, but I can only find one dog butcher and it is, literally, 1 1/2 hours away. I don't think I can do that on a weekly basis!