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picasso05 · Jan 6, 2009, 07:13 AM

Our 20 month old Springer Spaniel - whom we homed 8 weeks ago is brilliant and loveable and she eats very well indeed except that she bolts it down with hardly a breath and we thought we might try and introduce a similar type food (complete dry dog food) but in larger pieces - any ideas please ? Many thanks indeed. Picasso :)

KISS · Jan 6, 2009, 08:20 AM

I had a Spaniel many many years ago and he had the same problem. I think the "pack leader" thing did it even though I knew nothing about the term.

So, I think a little bit of training is in order. I did get to the point where I could take his food away from him and he would not fight, growl or anything. I was clearly the pack leader.

Feeding sessions might take some time. Only put a small portion in his bowl and wait until she calms down before getting more. Praise the dog when it calms down,

You also need to make sure the dog doesn't try eating out of the bowl until it's on the ground. The dog should be trained to sit until his food is ready to eat.

ISneezeFunny · Jan 6, 2009, 08:25 AM

My chihuahua has the same problem. She'll inhale the food, then run around, and then throw up. It's really a fun process each morning.

I eventually went and got some large rocks (too big for her to eat) and placed them in the bowl.

Or, you could buy into the infomercial:

Brake-Fast Bowl

starbuck8 · Jan 6, 2009, 10:06 AM

You need to wait until she is completely calm and submissive before you put her food down. To give it to her if she is excited, or as "KISS" said, you are going to run into problems with her being protective over her food and maybe even bite you. She needs some training to establish your role as pack leader. Make her wait in another room, where she can see you put down the food. Make her stay where she is by blocking her with you body if she tries to move towards the food. Once she has laid down and is completely relaxed, then you move the food a little closer and have her wait if she gets excited again. Then calmly call her, but stand in front of the food, again blocking her. Only when you move away, is she allowed to eat. She should catch on fairly quickly, if you let her know who's in charge.

It will work best if you take her for a good run or walk to drain her energy before you do that. I would switch her to dry kibble appropriate to her size. Just make sure it is a quality food that doesn't have a lot of fillers. That will only fill her up, but it will not give her the proper nutrition.

Good luck! :)