![]() ![]() We recognize our test dog’s standard approach to a bowl of food doesn’t necessarily qualify as “speed eating” – many of you may have even faster chow hounds – but he’s in no way a “picky eater.” He dives into the bowl, eats with enthusiasm, and doesn’t leave the bowl until the food is gone.īeyond timing how long it took to empty each bowl, we also considered cost, materials, ease of use, and how easy each product is to clean. Each timed trial was compared to his baseline of 2:00 to eat a meal consisting of two cups of kibble with a small amount of water (to dissolve a powdered supplement) from a regular stainless steel dog bowl. We timed how long it took our test dog, Saber, an 8-year-old Golden Retriever, to navigate each bowl. We selected five commercially available products that are marketed as able to slow a fast eater. Rather, I’m leveraging their daily caloric intake in an effort to generously reinforce desired behaviors – especially when working with them as young puppies.ĭon’t be afraid to ditch the dog bowl in favor of more creating feeding strategies that support your training goals and the development of a harmonious household! You can even offer a wide-spread kibble scatter out in the yard as if you’re feeding chickens! (Admittedly, these last two techniques work better with kibble than with home-prepared or raw diets, but these work well in Kongs and Toppls.)Īnd of course, there’s training time! On busy training days, my dogs have always eaten very little from a bowl. Snuffle mats allow dogs to fully engage their sense of smell as they poke around the fabric strips in search of kibbles. There’s no rule that says dogs must eat meals at set times, and from a bowl! Often, high-energy dogs benefit from a “sit quietly and color” activity such as extracting part of a meal from a well-stuffed, frozen Kong or a Toppl toy, and it’s easy to split a dog’s daily ration of kibble into three or more puzzle toys to be offered at different times throughout the day. While slow-feel bowls are helpful, another approach to slowing a speed-eater is to ditch the bowl all together in favor of stuffed food puzzles, planned scavenging opportunities, or even hand-feeding via training. However, if the dog inhales the contents of the bowl before you can approach, this is difficult to accomplish! For example, when working with a dog who tends to guard his food, it’s helpful if he’s eating slowly enough to give us time to implement some behavioral interventions.Ī common positive-reinforcement approach to working with a dog who guards his food is to pass by the dog as he eats and drop a food item considered “better” than what’s in his bowl this helps to counter-condition how the dog feels about a human approaching his food. The ability to slow a dog’s eating is also critically important to the success of certain training protocols. Mental exercise is just as important as physical exercise in creating a well-rounded canine companion. This engages his brain more than when simply diving face first into an open bowl of food. When using a slow feeder, your dog can tap into his problem-solving abilities as he maneuvers the device. Slow-feed bowls and other tools also can help turn mealtime into an opportunity for enrichment. ![]() This excess air can interfere with digestion, cause gas, and even lead to gastric dilation and volvulus, commonly known as “bloat,” a potentially fatal condition where the stomach fills with excess gas and flips on itself, restricting blood flow and requiring life-saving emergency surgery. ![]() If any of these scenarios sound familiar, it’s wise to check out one of many commercially available slow feeders or experiment with creating one yourself to help your dog dial down her speed-eating ways.Įating too fast can lead to gagging and choking – plus, speed eaters tend to gulp air as they execute their deep-dive into the food bowl. Can your dog make an entire bowl of food disappear faster than you can say, “Bon appétit?” Has he ever inhaled a bowl of food so fast he vomited it back up a few minutes later? Does her seemingly frantic consumption lead to gagging or choking?
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