Eating To Fast?!

[Mertoodles]

We just got a new puppy (3 months) and when we feed her a meal she gets half a cup of food, she has thrown up three times in a month because she eats to fast...we have tried spreading food on the floor, or putting it on a cookie sheet, and feeding it to her ourselves. And even if we just have one small peice of food, she swallows it whole!! HELP!!

[Mertoodles]

[quote="Mertoodles"]We just got a new puppy (3 months) and when we feed her a meal she gets half a cup of food, she has thrown up three times in a month because she eats to fast...we have tried spreading food on the floor, or putting it on a cookie sheet, and feeding it to her ourselves. And even if we just have one small peice of food, she swallows it whole!! HELP!! we use food specifically for puppies and so when she grows out of that in 1-2 years then we will get her bigger food that she cant swallow whole...

[DogzRule1996]

Try putting it in a Kong or Busy Buddy. After some tips on how to slow my own puppy from eating too fast, we bought one and now he is slowing down, although still eating fairly fast because at once he gets most of the food out.

[maximoo]

How much does pup weigh? What kind of dog is it? He may be throwing up because you are giving too much food at once.

From the outset, soak the kibble for at least 20 minutes so it's easier going down. Also put a few rocks in the feeding bowl so pup has to eat around them (smaller spaces) There are bowls made with bumps in them (for slowing down purposes) but the rocks have the same effect.

The kong/busy buddy is also a good idea. Smear some peanut butter on top of Kong opening.

[Fundog]

Just a few minutes ago, I saw a clip on "Planet's Funniest Animals." Someone got their dog a gum ball dispenser, with kibble instead of bubble gum. The dog had to push down on the lever to release a mouthful of kibble. He would eat that, then push down again on the lever to get another bite, eat that, push down on the lever....

That looks like just the ticket for those dogs that like to inhale their food!

[Leigha]

We were out PetSmart yesterday and saw this big plastic ball (about the size of the balls in the old ball pits at McDonalds) that you stick in the dog's bowl so it covers up part of the food and they have to roll the ball around to get to the food and it's supposed to slow them down. We put our Beagle's food in a red Kong toy and he rolls that around the living room floor to get his food. The first day it took him quite a while to eat because he couldn't figure the thing out--he knew there was food in there but had no clue how to get it. But now he's gotten pretty good at it, so he's done in around 10 minutes or so. I enjoy watching him roll the toy around the floor, especially when he tries something that he knows is supposed to drop food but for whatever reason it doesn't. He'll look at it, paw at it, then pick it up and move to a different part of the room like the new spot will work better for him.

[nightofagypsimoon]

I had the same problem, my dog will swallow the food whole and then like 5 min later he will throw it up. I bought a plate with divisions like the one below and place a little tennis ball in the middle so the plate will divide into 4 portions, it slowed him down but not enough.

http://www.amazon.com/Skid-Stop-Slow-Fe ... d_sbs_hg_4

Then I bought him this bone. I love it, it was very hard for him at first so I had to cut the little hairs that are inside to make it easy for him to take the food out. Now he only eats out of this bone. It makes him work for his food, he has fun playing, and since the food takes its time to come out he makes sure he chews it because who knows when will he get another kibble! Now it takes him about 30 min to finish 1/4 cup of kibble.


http://www.amazon.com/Premier-Buddy-Pup ... 19&sr=1-20

[bichonhotel]

Further to the advice offered above.

One of our boys doesn't believe in chewing his food. Once a week we give him a frozen chicken wing. He is forced to chew!!!

[Stephy'sKingShepherd]

Have you tried mixing dry and wet food and freezing it inside the kong? My puppy loves this and it occupies him for hours. Since large dogs are prone to bloat I do everything I can to slow him down. I know you tried it but I also like spreading the food out on the floor. I have a very high energy 95 pound king shepherd who wears me out. Putting it on the floor along the walls from the kitchen to the bedroom not fulfills his foraging need, it gives him something to do. It works his brain as well as his body and keeps him from getting bored. Also if you feed him boiled chicken or hamburger (my vet and the king shepherd site I am on discuss home made meals vs commercial food) you can get a treat dispensing ball like I have and stuff a small portion of his meal in it. I make my pup sit and wait then I go out of the room and hide the ball. I make sure to walk around a lot so the sent trail confuses him, otherwise he finds it right away. He finds it then spends five mins trying to get everything out. Then we do it again. Do this until he has eaten all of his meal. Of course you may not have time to do this... Our favorite game is hide and seek the treat. You will probably have to start very easy at first...just putting it across the room in plain site.

[monib1969]

Hi,

Hopefully you found a solution. But if not I'll throw my 2 cents in....

One problem you may be seeing,is that if that puppy was the runt, he most likly had to fight for food and eat it quickly before his littermates stole it from him once they were on solids. This happens alot, especially if breeders do not take the runt out and feed him separately, because he will get bullied by his littermates. He has had to inhale his food out of neccessity, which is really a dangerous issue, as it can cause bloat later on, especially if she is going to be a large breed.

There are bowls out there that make the dog eat slower. They are called "litter bowls" and have a hump in the middle and a trough that runs around the edge. this prevents the dog or puppy from sticking his face in the bowl and inhaling the food in the center. He pretty much has to work around the bowl to eat. If you feed dry only, then moisten it and "spread" the food around the trough. You should be able to find it online. I'd try that.

If you have other dogs in the house, i would definitely separate the puppy and feed him alone or in a crate. This way he can relax while eating when he knows that no one can steal his food.

Good luck!!

[sherrymyra]

Also there are pet bowls designed to slow down how they eat the food.