Food is fundamental to our lives. I learnt this by living in Zimbabwe and Zambia for ten years! I think many British people only learnt this in March 2020. Remember the worry you felt when you did not know where your next meal might come from….and the evidence of many people panic buying in the supermarkets.
This is how our dogs feel all the time unless they trust us.
They do not know where their food comes from because they are not in control to go out and find it. They do not understand our world of just going to the shops to buy it. The only reason they want to go on a walk is because they might be able to find food, hence noses to the ground, following smells, rushing off on a hunt, or running away from your home.
Humans have been known to use food to test dogs. There is a test often used on rescue dogs to see if they are gentle or not. Food is put down for them and then half way through eating the bowl is taken away, if the dog reacts angrily it is deemed a bad dog….how would you feel if you were starving, in a strange place surrounded by strange people and very hungry?
As a dog listener we ask that you gain your dogs trust in your ability to always supply food and then when you do feed them you do so quickly and quietly. We don’t ask them to beg or sit or wait for their food. They can only live if they eat; put the bowl down and walk away far enough so they can eat in peace.
Giving a dog food inside a puzzle to ‘entertain’ them is also not kind. Food is fundamental to a dog to survive they are not human. Each dog has its own rate of eating, some eat naturally slowly and some wolf their food down. Trust your dog to know how fast it should eat don’t buy a bowl that makes it harder for them to eat. Remember the frustration you felt when you first used chopsticks!
Keep your dog calm and happy
For your dogs mental health feed them two square meals a day of nutritious tasty food, in a normal bowl to help them stay calm and relaxed. Once they have finished eating, pick up the bowl, even if they have left a bit, clean it and leave up ready for the next meal. A dog will never starve itself unless it is ill.
If you are still having problems with getting your dog to immediately eat all its food then do contact me via email. This is the simplest thing to fix and takes away your worry that they aren’t eating enough. I will send you a detailed pdf on how feed your dog.
0 Comments