Not a Pet story...a pet query

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Not a Pet story...a pet query

Postby admin » Tue Mar 27, 2012 12:34 am

I have a lurcher (don't ask why I have, in my 60s, after years without a pet, a flaming 30 inches at the shoulder lurcher, and not a yorkie or another wee doggie..or no animals at all.....just put it down to a drunken whim.)

His food and water bowls currently reside on the floor (though he mostly drinks out of the toilet bowl)..and he inhales his food as if there is a whole pack of dogs at his shoulder just waiting for him to lift his head and take a breath to get in there and finish his meal for him. When he was a pup, before I got him, he did live with two other dogs, and they had to be separated at feeding times, because the slowest eater never got to finish his own food allocation. Whether his current propensity is because of his early upbringing, i don't know, but he has always been food obsessed...and, as far as I can see never chews, to the extent that I now cut up everything into small pieces for him.

This did, to some extent reduce the vomiting, but not enough for the health of my carpets, so I'm searching for a method of improving his eating habits and thus his digestion, because his vomiting bouts have increased over the last few weeks, and I can't see anything food-wise he gets now that he has not always had. I am torn between getting raised bowls, which are meant to reduce air gulping in large (and older) dogs, or those bowls which are advertised as anti-gulping and have sticky up bits which appear to work in that they will stop him just gobbling the whole bowl down in seconds because he can't just stick his face in and access every part of it without lifting his head and thinking how best to get at it all.

Has anybody ever tried either of the options..and if so, how did they work for your dog? I do intend, at least in the short/medium term to cut him back to dog food only without treats and leftovers, to see if that helps...but when I am sitting in the living room with him sprawled on his spine on the couch with legs in the air, and his stomach is roiling audibly more than mine is,(and i do have definite digestive problems though I know why and what triggers them) it seems to me that I am doing something wrong...but I don't know what.
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Re: Not a Pet story...a pet query

Postby Monsy » Tue Mar 27, 2012 7:11 am

It must be a well known problem if someone has actually made bowls to deal with it.

Don't know what to suggest, perhaps smaller meals more often?

P.S. Bob Martin make a spray to deal with pets and their disregard for carpets, it is really good. I get it in Tesco.
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Re: Not a Pet story...a pet query

Postby dejavou » Tue Mar 27, 2012 8:01 am

It's not a problem I've come across either Oddie, however I think you could be right about his early experiences, as my little dog eats as and when he feels like it, rather than gobbling his food up immediately it's put down EXCEPT if we have any visitors, at which point he almost chokes himself trying to polish it off.

Like Mons, I suggest little and often, may help the problem, but the bowls sound like a good idea too.
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Re: Not a Pet story...a pet query

Postby dita » Tue Mar 27, 2012 8:13 pm

Oddie what sort of food does he have? The reason I ask because alot of dogs stomachs have changed since all these new foods have been marketed.
Dry foods have been introduced and some are not able to take soft food because of this any more.
My little Papillon was a classic example of this and I discussed it with various breeders of different dogs, this came up many times.
I dont know if it will help your dog though. Just thought it worth a mention.
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Re: Not a Pet story...a pet query

Postby ciderman_nz » Tue Mar 27, 2012 8:54 pm

The deceased lovely boy who still graces my avatar, taught me that gobbling is good! Nothing ever came up again and it didn't waste time which could be otherwise spent teararsing about with the other pet denizen , the Foxy called Minnie. Since the passing of good old Peppy (the Ridgeback) we have aquired another giant and Minnie is training him to be similar.
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Re: Not a Pet story...a pet query

Postby Skeptik » Fri Mar 30, 2012 5:30 pm

I've had dogs that ett the whole bowl in one go too. Each dog takes a different tack in dealing with the problem.

Give the lad dry food if you can for day or so Odds and put out a whole days worth in one go.. taking the bowl away after some scoffing and telling hime to go lie down. Put the bowl back and tell him to leave it till you let him at it again. Then repeat ad infinitum.

The dry food is easier to get off the carpet too after it's reappearance.

There will come a point where he realises he's full yet there's still food there and the fact he doesn't have to eat the lot will sink in.

I've dealt with sighthounds all my bliddy puff and they really are a breed apart.. and they need work of myriad kinds.

Good luck..



Do the usual treat 'leave/take' thing too as often as you can. Not an easy problem to deal with but can be done.
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Re: Not a Pet story...a pet query

Postby admin » Sun Apr 01, 2012 3:09 am

dita wrote:Oddie what sort of food does he have? The reason I ask because alot of dogs stomachs have changed since all these new foods have been marketed.
Dry foods have been introduced and some are not able to take soft food because of this any more.
My little Papillon was a classic example of this and I discussed it with various breeders of different dogs, this came up many times.
I dont know if it will help your dog though. Just thought it worth a mention.


He gets half a chub in the morning between his first thing in the morning pee and his after eating poop. Then he gets dried food in his dish....I've tried a few kinds, but no one seems any better than the others, tbh. That sits there hardly looked at until he thinks it's about time I was making my own tea (and sharing it with him). From about 5.30pm, he prowls back and forth, wanders into the kitchen and extremely loudly and ostentatiously crunches each individual bit of food to make me aware that he is waiting for me to get cooking. Usually by bedtime, the dish is empty....but I never hear any more crunching! :roll:

I do think it's a not-chewing thing. In the past I have lifted a whole sausage and a whole rasher of bacon untouched by teeth off the carpet...which is why I cut everything into stir fry size chunks before he gets it now. Bugger is he will happily crunch those wee marrowbone biscuit things and doggie treats and lick up the crumbs...but doesn't do that with his food.
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Re: Not a Pet story...a pet query

Postby dita » Mon Apr 02, 2012 4:11 pm

Mines a much smaller dog than yours Oddie, I stopped giving her soft food at first, then put her on Hi-life complete semi-moist stuff, it is the same size as mince, she seems to digest that oka. She has a very delicate stomach, I then started giving her a fish finger, or small bit of chicken at tea times. I now leave the Hi-life down and she has a bit throughout the day as & when.
Your dog sounds as if it has had to fight for its food and gulp it before anything else has chance to get it. Dolly was the same, she lived with other Papillons and she was the runt and finished up starving till we took her. Of course your dog has the best of both worlds now, but bad habits or survival is a hard one to combat. Are'nt we bluddy gluttons :roflmao: for punishment. Good Luck hun xx

I have never given her tinned food. :choklit:
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Re: Not a Pet story...a pet query

Postby daffyd » Mon Jun 25, 2012 4:33 pm

Hmmm! How about you, the lurcher and the problem taking a walk down to the VET and asking if he has any ideas? It could be an upset stomach, it could be a gum or tooth problem, and as you say it could be a habit picked up when it was younger. I always left plenty of water for my dogs, but only fed them once a day. They could gulp it down and have to wait 24 hours or, they could pace themselves and have a little now and then. Overtime they learned to pace themselves. Another strange fact, two dogs fed at the same time out of their own bowls and neither would, during the course of the day, eat the other's food. They never got scraps from the table, or left overs. Just dogfood and the occasional treat of a marrowbone chew.

:sunglasses: Good Luck
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