Dinner is Served

Not that long ago, if a Veterinarian or Dog Trainer would have asked “what method do you use to feed your dog? We would have scratched our heads in confusion. However, now there are a few different ways of feeding our furry companions, but how do we know which is the right one? Let’s have a look at the options there are to choose from.

Free Choice:
With this option, your dog can eat however much they want, whenever they want. Some dogs do well with this, they never over eat and maintain a healthy weight without human intervention. Others either over eat and become obese or don’t eat enough and are under weight.

One of the difficulties with this method is you don’t really know how much food your dog is eating. The amount of food your dog regularly consumes can help determine if your dog is feeling well or not. Additionally, if they are under any stress (boarding, hospitalized, a pet sitter is visiting while you are away, etc.) a dog that gets to eat whatever, whenever is much more likely to refuse to eat for several days. This becomes a chain reaction of problems that can quickly lead to health issues for your buddy.

Measured, Free Choice:
With this option, the amount your pup consumes during the day is measured out into the food bowl for consuming during the 24 hour time frame.

If you are training your dog (really, we are always training our dogs), studies have found that dog’s learn best when food is used as a reward. Dogs that graze on their food are much less interested in food, making your dog much less motivated to work for the yummy reward in your hand.

Automatic Feeder:
These feeders can be very helpful! They are set to dispense an exact amount of food to your dog at a specific time. This helps to control how much your dog eats as well as ensure that they get their meals on time if you have a schedule that can change last minute.

The drawback with them is that they only work with kibble, some dogs learn how to take the lid off and serve themselves a buffet. Meal times are a great time to reinforce good behavior and manners with your dog. Have her practice sits, downs, stays all before she gets her food.

Strict Meals:
With this option, you control everything about the meal. If your pet gets supplements or medication at meal times, those can easily be added. If your dog is a bit finicky about food, this can defiantly help improve their desire to eat because they have a short window of time to eat their food. You can also easily tell if your dog is feeling under the weather because they will either not be interested, eat slowly or walk in to investigate and then walk away. Noticing these things can help you spot issues with your dog’s health early.

Typically, when dogs are fed at strict meal times, they are hungry and ready to eat no matter where they are or what is going on. If they do seem picky at first, you know it won’t last long! These guys are often quite easy to reward with treats.

Slow Feeder Bowls/Toys:
If your dog is a fast eater or gets board quickly during the day, slow feeder dishes or puzzle toys can be a great option to keep your dog busy longer, add in some mental stimulation and slow down your dog’s pace of eating to a healthier speed.

Some dogs with resource guarding issues may become frustrated with the use of slow feeder bowls or puzzle toys, so use caution in those situations. Be sure that your dog can figure out how to access the food before using it as the only method of meal delivery.

Canine Behaviorist Ian Dunbar highly recommends the use of Kong type toys for feeding all dogs rather than using bowls as this helps reduce bad behavior due to boredom, teach them to use chew toys and provides mental stimulation. I have not implemented this method with my dogs yet but plan to do so with my chihuahuas as they are both fast eaters and eat their meals in their crates. I will post an update when I implement this with them.

Unfortunately, it’s not quite as easy as tossing a dish of food down for Toby and walking away. Yes, you can still do that, but when there are options that may be better for him, why not give them a try? Discuss the options with your Veterinarian, see what he or she recommends. Choose one, try it for a few weeks and see how it goes! Animals aren’t often fond of change to their feeding habits so give it some time for them to adjust to the new routine before deciding of you should try different one.