Dog Dropping Food On The Floor

You need to rule out pain and discomfort so check his teeth are in good condition and that he isn t having difficulty bending or leaning into the bowl.

Dog dropping food on the floor.

Some dogs particularly those in multi dog households may carry their food away as a way to keep it to themselves. Use within six weeks of opening the food bag. Adrienne farricelli is a certified dog trainer and behavior consultant. If food touches the floor odds are your dog is going to make a move for it.

She can spend hours polishing off a couple of cups of dry dog food. While this seems counter intuitive to preventing floor mess it may have the opposite effect focusing his mind at meal times so that he can eat in one place and doesn t miss eating any of his food. Toss bad dog food out. Keep your dog food in the original bag and place it inside an airtight food bin to keep it fresh.

Your dog wants to protect or hide the food. That s the average time from when i drop food on the floor until the dog has finished eating it there is not a swarm of bacteria lying on the ground waiting to pounce on any food that comes. It reminds me of the way chickadees eat from birdfeeders taking one item from the feeder and flying to a nearby. Give your dog treats directly never by dropping them on the floor.

Their way of communicating once they learn they can drop food it isn t long before they realize that they can throw food off their high. She takes a few pieces of kibble from her bowl carries it a few feet away drops it on the floor and then eats it piece by piece with painstaking slowness. Physically divide your dog s chow into a few piles which he can hunt down. If your dog previously ate from his bowl then it sounds as though he has made a negative association that has put him off doing so now.

Behaviourist claire arrowsmith says. She is also a former veterinarian assistant and author of the popular online dog training course brain training for dogs her work has appeared in several print and online publications including e how usa today every dog magazine daily puppy and connecticut dog magazine. If the food is moldy or rancid your dog will not want to eat it and may leave it on the floor. Gertie has an unusual eating behavior.

Tip 6 make sure the food hasn t gone bad. Julie albright keck dvm ma dacvb an assistant professor of veterinary behavior at the university of. Don t let her though or else she ll associate the floor with food which only encourages her to keep up her odd little habit. The answer to this propensity lies in two words.

Why will my dog eat his food off the floor but not from a bowl. It may be even more exciting if there s a dog there to eat it up. Before dogs were domesticated they often ran in packs. The more subordinate pack members would carry food away to hide it from other members of the pack.

They are actually learning that they can make something happen.