NDR Dog eats too fast

Kevin Harrington

Kevin Harrington

Well-known member
My dog likes to eat her food fast. She sometimes throws up afterward. When I feed her I can tell her to slow down. I'm not always there to feed her. Any suggestions on slowing her down. Putting something in the bowl for her to work around? Thanks for any help, Kevin
 
I've seen bowls with three pegs sticking up from the bottom to make them slow down.
Putting something in the bowl may work but make sure it's not small enough to swallow!!
Another idea would be to feed smaller amounts several times a day.
Good luck, John
 
Put enough water in it so that the food floats. Pete is a gulper, takes a huge mouthful of dry food and swallows it - wincing as he chokes it down. He can clear a bowl of 2 cups of food in 5 or 6 gulps. Putting just enough water in to float the food slows him down nicely. We have been feeding him that way since he was 6 months and he is 6 now.
 
Have you tried putting the dog food in 3 or 4 ice cube trays? The kibbles will be more work to get out of the individual slots. After a few weeks some food can be placed in a bowl and some still in the trays. Your dog may never be a casual eater but this should get them to slow down and stop wolfing their food.
 
Kevin
I Have a question for you, do you feed your dog Dry food or food out of a tin, if the awnser is Dry food you can put water in the bowl at the same time,
this means that they have got to eat and drink at the same time and this they will find very hard to do and that should slow her down, also a very good thing to note is, if you are going out hunting and you want to feed the dog a few hours before you go with Dry food its also a good idear to put water in the food to stop them getting deidrated.
Take care and God Bless
Eddie and Amber
Its all about Building that Bond.
 
I had the same problem up until about two months ago. I combined the two suggestions you have been given here and the dog has stopped throwing up for the most part. My wife found something called a 'Slow Feed Bowl' - It has a hump in the middle and narrow channel for the dog to eat out of. Since my dog ate so fast that he did not really chew his food, I started soaking the food in water until it was soft before I gave it to him. These two steps seem to have improved the situation greatly. Good luck!
 
Feed in moderation, don't leave the bowl down with food in it. Dogs aren't like people, they don't need three meals a day on a schedule. Feed in the morning, one cup of food. If he eats that too fast, make it two servings of half a cup. Feed again when you get home, same way. Two cups a day is fine three max. Its also a good idea to feed like this to reinforce your role as alpha. I feed my golden twice a day, and never leave food in her bowl. She gets one cup in the morning and two at dinner time.
 
So glad I am not the only one with the problem.

I simply feed him is 2 cups in small portions and spread them out every 5 minutes or so. Takes about 20 minutes to feed him but its better than cleaning up after every meal
 
So glad I am not the only one with the problem.

I simply feed him is 2 cups in small portions and spread them out every 5 minutes or so. Takes about 20 minutes to feed him but its better than cleaning up after every meal
Click to expand...

Try the water if you haven't.
 
The water is the way to go for sure.... at one time I had 5 labs, all feeding at the same time.. you want to see some inhaling! Float the dry food like your morning cereal. Slows them down, though makes a bigger mess! I swear, I could put sawdust in my dog's bowls and they would fight for it, eat it and ask for more!
 
If you have a wide based food bowl with the bowl in the middle flip it over pour the food in the bottom. Chris
 
Kevin,
Adding water to the food and feeding twice daily works for us. Is this a multiple dog household, if so, competition could be a cause. We have a three dog household, and there are times when two are out while the third is eating alone big difference.
Charlie
 
Be careful not to add too much water to the food. Most dogs will also drink after ingesting the food/water mixture. Drinking large amounts of water right after eating can be a contributing factor to bloat.

Brian
 
Be careful not to add too much water to the food. Most dogs will also drink after ingesting the food/water mixture. Drinking large amounts of water right after eating can be a contributing factor to bloat.

Brian
Click to expand...


Good point, don't use kerosene or turpentine either as they are toxic.
 
Be careful not to add too much water to the food. Most dogs will also drink after ingesting the food/water mixture. Drinking large amounts of water right after eating can be a contributing factor to bloat.

Brian
Click to expand...


Good point, don't use kerosene or turpentine either as they are toxic.
Click to expand...


Hilarious :)
 
[font=Verdana,Arial,Helvetica]
"Good point, don't use kerosene or turpentine either as they are toxic."

If you do use flammable liquids, no sparks, strike anywhere matches, or bic flicks

On a more serious note:
I assume most of the gulping dogs labs, is that correct? The problem I have had with labs - they eat anything and everything. One young pup we owned "ate" two feet of sisal rope with out us knowing; he darn near died before having emergency surgery to remove the rope. A few thousand dollars later he was as good as new.
[/font]
 
Another great contribution to the site Ted. This is such a great website, and I am not sure why you seem hell bent on stirring the pot every chance you get. That is usually the beginning of the end on great websites.

If you add water to a dogs food they will ingest all of it no matter how large of amount you put in the bowl. Then out of habit (you ever notice dogs are creatures of habit?), they will go ahead and drink more water as they always do after eating.

Ever see a dog die of bloat? Not a pretty sight and can occur as fast as 20 to 30 minutes after the stomach twists. But, what do I know I have only been training dogs full time for over 12 years Ted.

Ted, quite frankly I would be a little concerned if I were you. That little neurotransmission that occurs with most people to stop them posting something stupid on the net, seems to not work very well with you. You may want to seek professional psychiatric help.

Have a great day!
 
Last edited:
When taking a look at slowing down a quick eating dog we have to keep in mind that certain "fixes" can potentially be more detrimental to the dog in the long run. Bloat also known as twisted stomach and torsion generally occurs in deeper chested breeds. According to Purdue Veterinary School some of the causes of bloat are:

Eating habits, especially...
cyprbu2.gif
[font=Arial, Helvetica]Elevated food bowls[/font]
cyprbu2.gif
[font=Arial, Helvetica]Rapid eating[/font]
cyprbu2.gif
[font=Arial, Helvetica]Eating dry foods that contain citric acid as a preservative (the risk is even worse if the owner moistens the food)[/font]
cyprbu2.gif
[font=Arial, Helvetica]Eating dry foods that contain fat among the first four ingredients[/font]
cyprbu2.gif
[font=Arial, Helvetica]Insufficient pancreatic enzymes, such as Trypsin (a pancreatic enzyme present in meat)
Dogs with untreated Exocrine Pancreatic Insufficiency (EPI) and/or Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth (SIBO) generally produce more gas and thus are at greater risk New[/font]
cyprbu2.gif
[font=Arial, Helvetica]Dilution of gastric juices necessary for complete digestion by drinking too much water before or after eating[/font]
cyprbu2.gif
[font=Arial, Helvetica]Eating gas-producing foods (especially soybean products, brewer's yeast, and alfalfa) [/font]
cyprbu2.gif
[font=Arial, Helvetica]Drinking too much water too quickly (can cause gulping of air)[/font]

With that said slowing down the dogs eating of dry kibble would be my recommendation based on my experience with retrievers, and the research. I would not add water to the dry kibble. Adding water to kibble will slow the dog down and prevent vomitiing, but why would you risk bloat? Yes, many people do add water to their food with no harmful results this day, this week, this month, or with this particular dog. Play the odds long enough and with enough dogs and I can promise you a dog will come up with bloat. Is that worth the risk when you can just get a different bowel in order to slow the dog down?

Here is more information from Purdue if you are interested.

http://www.globalspan.net/bloat.htm
 
Last edited:
First off, thank you all for the responses. Quick update, dog bowl already elevated. I tied 2 kongs together and put them in the bowl after the food. Dry food with water added. I did see someone suggest to limit the water after eating, which I did. The kongs seem to slow her down a little, and with limited water afterwards She's 2 for 2. Thanks again for all the options suggested. If this doesnt work I'll try one of the other suggestions. Kevin
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top