How to Make a Dog Eat Slower

Eating fast in many dogs seems to be a bad habit but it is ultimately somehow correlated to the dog's past when he lived in the wild. Those were the ''dog days'' when food was very scarce and competition among dogs was often fierce, causing dogs to gobble up their food as fast as they could in order to survive during those harsh times. 

In a domestic setting,  where food is always available around the clock, some dogs may still feel compelled to eat fast especially when they share a dwelling with other dogs. This behavior comes natural to them as they enter in a competitive setting. There are several ways owners may slow down a fast eating dog, following are some helpful tips.

• Give Dogs Space

If you own a pack of dogs, it will greatly benefit each dog if they are fed far apart each other so to minimize any competitive behaviors. Most dogs do not do well, eating together in close quarters and this is often manifested through evil stares, teeth baring and menacing vocalizations. Allowing each dog its space and possibly feeding them in separate areas may help each other relax and perhaps resort to eating slower after some time.

• Feed Twice a Day

There are still many dog owners that resort to feeding their dog once a day. This often causes dogs to become excessively hungry and therefore devour their food when dinner time comes. Feeding twice a day helps 

• Invest in a Break-Fast Bowl

These are bowls specifically designed for dogs eating very fast. They come with some molded ''posts'' that obstruct the food bowl preventing dogs from wolfing down their meals. Dogs eating with these bowls therefore must slow down in order to eat and will learn how to eat their meals slower.

• Make Eating Difficult

An alternative to the Break-Fast bowl is adding to the dog's bowl some large items that will make it difficult for the dog to gulp down its meal in seconds. Smooth river rocks of a size that cannot be swallowed by the dog can be placed in the bowl, so the dog must eat around them and  therefore slow down.

Eating too fast may make dogs prone (especially those deep chested breeds out there) to dangerous and life threatening bloat or''twisted stomach''. In the least dramatic scenario, dogs may regurgitate their food when eaten too fast or suffer from excess gassinesssince fast eaters tend to swallow a lot of air. Not to mention the fact that fast eaters may choke and  tend not to chew their kibble causing them to miss the important scraping factor role dry kibble plays on their teeth. Resorting to strategies to make your dog eat slower is  therefore surely well worth the hassle.