Tips To Help Your Dog Eat More Slowly

Dogs are real gluttons, but you can’t let their appetites lead to some health problems. It is best to take a series of precautions when feeding, especially to help your dog eat more slowly.

In fact, having your dog eat willingly is a great sign, as the most worrying symptom in pets is lack of appetite.

However, if your dog devours his plate within seconds of serving him, it can become a problematic situation, since swallowing so fast he also ingests a lot of air, which can cause a bloating.

Stomach distention in dogs has different degrees of severity, as the stomach becomes excessively inflamed and the trapped air causes the dog a lot of pain.

This is an aspect that you should especially take care of in large dogs, as they tend to suffer from gastric torsion, which occurs when the stomach twists, causing strangulation of the blood vessels and organs that are involved in the torsion.

This is one of the most delicate veterinary emergencies, as it can cause the death of the dog in a matter of hours or days.

Although the causes of gastric torsion are not known for sure, it is known that an incident factor is the excessive presence of air in the digestive tract, so we give you some ideas on how to prevent your dog from eating food too quickly.

Small portions are the best

Instead of feeding your dog a large portion once a day , the best thing you can do is give him smaller rations of food several times a day. This will keep your dog feeling full throughout the day.

This will greatly benefit your digestion and prevent you from spending many hours on an empty stomach. The main reason why dogs attack your food bowl is because they spend too much time without eating anything, therefore at the time of serving the food they are hungry.

It is advisable to feed the dog between two and three times a day. However, you should keep in mind that you should not have food available to him all day, as this will not be beneficial for him either.

Buy the necessary accessories

In the market you will find a wide variety of products designed to correct this type of behavior. It is recommended to buy  dishes for dogs that eat fast, which are specialized dishes that, in a way, prevent immediate access to food, making them necessarily have to eat slower.

Another way to slow your dog down is to buy a stuffing toy. Unlike plates, these toys are used to fill with food, presenting a certain level of challenge for the dog, who must figure out the proper way to obtain the contents of the toy. You can even design your own homemade toys.

Avoid drinking excess water

As with excess food, excess water, especially after eating, can cause the stomach to become saturated, generating different discomforts, including regurgitation.

The best thing is that you serve him only a little, after each meal, and that after drinking you remove it for a couple of hours. After having rested you can give it the normal amount of water.

If you have several dogs

The competition between them makes them develop some habits that are not very healthy, therefore it is best if you have more than one dog, feed them separately. In this way they will eat calmly, without having to worry that the other dog will steal their food.

Tall plate for large dogs

This won’t help you eat more slowly, but it  will prevent you from consuming too much air and gas from building up in your stomach.

Therefore, for large or giant dogs it is advisable not to leave the dish directly on the floor. It is better to place them on a base or on a table so that the food is more within reach.