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FAST eater!


Jessica H

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Sadie eats every meal as if it is her last, she eats every treat as if she has never seen food. Believe me she gets fed plenty but she is obsessed with food! Scooter could care less, the only reason he eats is because if he doesn't she will eat it within seconds. Her amount of food is fine, in fact she could stand to maybe lose a pound.

I make her sit before I feed her and the entire time I am holding the dish she is literally shaking and whining. When she eats she does not chew the food at all, not even one little crunch. She finishes her dinner in about a minute, it takes Scooter about 7-8 minute because he takes small bites and chews his food. When she is done eating she burps because she has just INHALED her food along with a lot of air. I have tried pitting a smaller bowl upside down in her food dish so she has an obstacle, that didn't work, she flipped the bowl over. I have tried to hold the dish and let her take a bite but she still inhales it, no chewing. I tried to hand feed her a few pieces at a time, that didn't work either.

She has been to the vet and she is very healthy so it is not a health issue. I think it is a psychological issue. My breeder said she was the runt and she used to get pushed out of the way a lot so I think it goes back to that. Maybe she thinks if she doesn't hurry she will miss out on the food. The vet thinks that is possible. Regardless she has been like this since I got her (3 years) and I really want to stop it. She swallows treats whole. Right now she is licking Scooter's bowl to the point I think she may lick the finish right off of it.

Any ideas on how to slow her down and make her CHEW her food?

Jess, Scooter, Sadie and Dozer

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I know that they make bowls with obstructions (plastic posts) in them. The posts stick up and the dog has to work his way around them to get at the food. I don't know how well they work, but you can look at one and read about it at :

www.gizmag.com/go/5717. I haven't seen them in stores, but then I haven't been looking for one either. Good Luck.

Jim, Connie, Bailey & Sophie

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Do you feed her and Scooter side by side? I would try feeding them in different rooms. Even if he doesn't care about her food she may be worried about him stealing it.

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if she can eat in a room by herself, maybe you can use those toys (kong and variations) where the food is stuffed inside and she has to work it out. as determined as she sounds, it would probably not hinder her by more than five or ten minutes, but it might help. be good for her jaws and teeth, too.

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Scotty does they same thing...he loves food he would eat till he was two feet wide if I let him...he wasn't with the runt....when we got him at 5 month he was 13 lbs so apparently he had been eating all the food lol I give only like 1/3-1/2 cup of food twice a day I make him be calm and sit and I give him about 1/2 of food and wait a few mins after hes done and give him the rest other wise the foods gone in about 2 secs I usually have to put him in his crate afterwards b/c he ll start on angels food

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this was the day he came home as you can see how much bigger he was than Angel she is 3 months older

he nows weighs 17 lbs at 1yr and Angel is only 12 lbs

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Dogs' lives are too short. Their only fault, really." - Carlotta Monterey O'Neill

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Do you feed her and Scooter side by side? I would try feeding them in different rooms. Even if he doesn't care about her food she may be worried about him stealing it.

They already eat in separate rooms, I like that dish that jimnconnie posted, I found it on Amazon.com so I think I am going to order that. I have a kong activity ball so I am going to try to put some food in that also.

Thanks for the advice...

Jess, Scooter, Sadie and Dozer

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Ellie eats like that too, drives me nuts. DH calls her the food whore. Dori has to sniff everything before she eats then she just nibbles it. Sometimes she sits around her bowl with all the food in it just so it drives ellie nuts. I could could have a full bowl just sitting there all day if Dor was alone. My vet assist. told me to put large stones in her bowl, it would slow her down. Frankly, I'm afraid she's suck those up too....and we dont need that!!! I just let her gobble and stand back!!!! I feed mine in their crates and then in the motor home, one on the floor and one on the sofa. usually dori on the high area.

Terry, mom of Dori and Ellie Mae

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my girls eat seperate in their crates.

Tabitha is my fast eater and Teona piddles around with her food. I usually just push the doors closed behind them so when they are done they can come out. Tabitha is always out first within minutes. Teona sometimes has to be told to go finish her food and she will. After Teona exits, Tabitha will ALWAYS go lick her bowl looking for crumbs.

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I don't know what the deal is with Skipper, it looks like he is trying to hide his bowl. Skipper will push his bowl with his nose to the point that his kibble will spill out, then it looks like he is pushing imaginery dirt over it apparently trying to hide it, after this ritual he will leave it for a while, come back eat the spilled food. then a little later will eat the remaining in the bowl. Wet food, canned etc. he will consume right away.

It is very amusing to watch him do the hide, then come back and consume. You gotta wonder what is going on in thier mind with this ritual.

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Try putting in a length of med to heavy gage chain in the bottom of the bowl (Maybe only 10 links or so). Not too large. ..but hefty enough so that she has to nose it around to get all the kibble out. This will slow her down.

I got this tip from a friend with Great Danes. She is very concerned about fast eaters, as in the larger breeds this can lead to bloat or torsion which the giant dogs are prone to.

Raise your expectations for what your Cairn can do....and try very hard to meet your Cairn's expectations of you.
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omg, dori does that air burying thing, it's so weird when she does it. Usually only with one specific bowl in FL...suposedly a non tip kind....yeah right. I cant imagine what she's thinking when she does it. Like Teri said, i have to make her eat.

Terry, mom of Dori and Ellie Mae

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That "air burying" thing is one of the most interesting things dogs do. It seems very primal.

Tabitha did this when she was an only dog. She would bury pieces of dog food between the wall and carpet line. She took much time getting the air all packed around the food with her nose. The entire house had pieces of dog food lined up around the walls.

We always laughed that she was distributing food around the house incase we forgot to come home one day.

Since Teona has been here she no longer does this.

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Liddy is a fast eater, too. We put a ball in her bowl when she eats. At first she would pick the ball up and put it next to her dish and then gobble her food. We put a bigger ball in and now she eats around it.

She is not at all food aggressive, just likes to eat and run. Busy life, I guess. Can't wait to curl up for a post dinner nap.

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A no cost option that my vet suggested when my guy was chowing down like he'd never see food again was to feed him from a muffin tin. just distribute the food into all 12 cup and it adds a challenge like the specially designed bowls, only it is free!

My sister trained her dog to "stop" and "go" mid meal, also. It is hilarious to watch. NOT a cairn though....

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A no cost option that my vet suggested when my guy was chowing down like he'd never see food again was to feed him from a muffin tin. just distribute the food into all 12 cup and it adds a challenge like the specially designed bowls, only it is free!

You are a genius! I tried the muffin tin tonight and Scooter actually finished his food BEFORE Sadie, and he is a slow eater! That has not happened in 4 years! She was in a sort of "state of panic" but it worked. She even took a break between mouth fills. She didn't chew the food but she was BREATHING while she ate! Best part is the muffin tin is free, I have about 5 all different sizes, I used a 6 muffin one but I found the 12 muffin one and I am going to use that in the morning. Thanks so much!

Jess, Scooter, Sadie and Dozer

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Both of my dogs also eat like they have never eaten before. I have them sit and wait until I say ok, and they shake and then eat so fast. When we are at dog training you would think we never feed them they are so crazy for treats. I will try the muffin pan. Thanks.

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I saw an advertisement in dogfancy for these bowls that make your dog slow down called brake fast www.brake-fast.net

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Dogs' lives are too short. Their only fault, really." - Carlotta Monterey O'Neill

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We have a speed gobbler here too. As long as it's kibble I don't care if she eats it fast. My daughter just handed be half a bar of tooth marked soap from her bathroom she took from Cassie. At the bus stop Thursday Cassie dug a cat turd out of the bark chips and gulped it down before I could stop her. It's a constant battle of reaction time and she is an eating machine.

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I have the same problem, she doesn't even smell it to see what it is before she sucks it down. If I am cooking and I drop something on the floor its a race to it and I usually lose to her. Sometimes when she eats something bitter I wait for her reaction but she swallows it whole so she does not taste it.

WIth the kibble I just hate how she gets so much air in her belly, seems like she gets bloated and when I touch he belly she tenses up, and she burps alot. I want her to slow down so she does not ingest too much air. I love the muffin tin still.

Jess, Scooter, Sadie and Dozer

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