Jump to content
BC Boards

Bordie Collie eating habits


Recommended Posts

My dogs down their food in just minutes - the slow eater takes five or so and the others are done in just a couple. Most dogs eat fast, and it doesn't sound like your dog is eating too fast at all. Most folks don't leave food in front of their dog for any longer than it takes yours to eat.

 

Best wishes!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have one question though about her eating habits. When i feed her she eats everything right then, in about 10-20 min

 

10 - 20 minutes?? Is she using a fork and knife?? :rolleyes: Sorry, I couldn't resist. Around here, food is hoovered up in 30 seconds or less by two of my dogs. Quinn takes a minute or so, but he gets a lot of food. My dogs also get two meals, so their portions aren't huge.

 

I would go by how your dog looks, feels (can you easily feel her ribs, backbone and hipbones) and acts. Is she still a puppy? I've fed what I considered sadly small portions to some dogs and ridiculously large portions to others. It depends on their age, metabolism, level of activity and of course the food.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

We always comment that Fergie doesn't ever take enough time to enjoy her breakfast or dinner. But that was true of our previous dog - a lab-shepherd mix. I have always assumed that dogs "wolf" down their meals.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm pretty sure that mine clean their bowls in under a minute! :rolleyes: I feed them twice a day and they scarf it right down. I've heard of this weird thing called a "picky eater", but I don't have one! Seriously, if she finishes it in 10-20 minutes I wouldn't worry about it. Most everyone I know doesn't free feed, so they put the food down and give the dog a set amount of time to finish, then they pick it back up.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Missy eats her food (1/4 cup dry, 1/2 cup mixed moist) in about 10 minutes, all the while being encouraged and gently cajoled; then again, she is going on 14 years old, and seems to enjoy taking her time. Annie, on the other had, finishes her food (3/4 cup of dry, 1/4 cup of moist) in 5 minutes or less (usually less), after first sniffing it to ensure that it meets with her approval; she also eats very daintily, which I guess helps her digestion. In 10 to 20 minutes, Annie has already eaten, been out to relieve herself, played a round of "outball" (having the ball thrown to her with a lacrosse stick in the backyard), and started her after-meal ritual of driving DW crazy. If we give them occasional leftovers from the table (as approved by our vet, e.g., baked chicken), or if they are getting their treat of steak when I cook on the grill, the food disappears magically in less time than a stopwatch can measure. (Who says my dogs are spoiled?)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

We actually timed ours - 28 seconds for a cup of kibble. It's kinds of scary to watch her. We tried to put tennis balls in the dish to slow her down, but that did not stop her. Sometimes I put her food in her everlasting fun ball (has a couple of small holes in it). That works, but is a pain to stuff it in and it kind of confuses her (dinner and breakfast are supposed to come in a dish, not a ball, acc to our dog) ... so your doggie does not sound like a fast eater at all.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Dazzle (when she used to get just a kibble in a bowl) would gobble down a cup or so in about 7 seconds. I tried putting a ball in the dish to slow her down - what did she do? She took the ball out of course! Now when she gets kibble it is always either one by one or in my homemade kong-like toys (working to get the food out).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I feed both our dogs in the morning and evening. If they eat it fine, if they don't then the fat downstairs cat will try to eat it. After Ruger chases her off a few times he will finally finish his food.

 

Sometimes I will feed Ruger three times if he brings his bowl back over to me. He is in awesome shape so I don't worry about it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

She takes one kibble out, walks to the rug, eats it, walks back to her bowl, and the process begins again. She's such a lady.

I know a dainty little white GSD that does that too! It does indeed look very lady-like. :rolleyes:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Lacee takes forever!! She's very gentle when mouthing things and that includes her food. She takes one kibble out, walks to the rug, eats it, walks back to her bowl, and the process begins again. She's such a lady. :rolleyes:

 

Whew! I'm SOOOO glad I'm not the only one who has this type of eater. Rudi has been eating this way since she was a puppy. And she eats (kibble) in a straight line so I know how much she has eaten at any time. Of couse she doesn't eat all of it at once - she likes to "eat a row", leave it and munch later when she wants - sometimes I'll hear her at midnight crunching. But she's always taking a kibble or two and walking over to the end of the couch to look out the window while she's eating.

 

Lili will eat her entire bowl of food in a short period of time only if Rudi is hovering around - and she's growling at Rudi while she's eating.

 

It's a weird kitchen at feeding time but it works!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Ruger does this as well. Throw the frisbee he grabs a small bite. Then he brings the frisbee over, another throw and another bite of food. Just face it, Border Collies are the ultimate in multitasking.

 

I love this video. Its about chow time with the Ruff Mutt Gang.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jiTjJj9AfG4

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I witnessed the Ruff Mutts chow time in person. It was awesome! It's no wonder Texi is such a good eater. (Thanks Debbie!)

 

Texi eats about a cup of food in under 30 seconds. He gets fed twice a day. He'd eat a bowl of rocks if I put it in front of him. :rolleyes: Georgia (big sigh...) is known as Miss Mollasses when it's time to eat. It takes her about 10-15 minutes to eat a cup of food three times a day. She won't eat much more than that (even if I give her meats) at any one sitting. But this is an improvement. It used to take her MUCH longer to eat.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

some dogs are grazers, some dogs aren't. not a big deal. 10-20 minutes is an eternity, IMO. 2 of our dogs average 10-20 seconds. You say you're feeding enough food, but I wonder if maybe it's too much? and since nobody else has asked, what brand are you feeding, and how much per serving?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

She takes one kibble out, walks to the rug, eats it, walks back to her bowl, and the process begins again.

 

I have struggled with this behaviour too. Senneca would randomly walk over to the carpet and drop some kibble; eat them, then go back to the bowl and repeat. Kibble is (kinda) OK, but she would do it with messier things too. Now I make sure that i place her bowl where she can't see the carpet. Not a perfect solution, but a big improvement.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

She takes one kibble out, walks to the rug, eats it, walks back to her bowl, and the process begins again.

 

This is my dog as well. Playing seems to be much higher on Ceana's priority list than eating. I only give her a cup &1/2 - 2 cups of kibble once per day and if she is played with all night she will not touch it. Ceana has to be told "eat" everyonce and a while. She knows the command well - I can usually just let her eat from 5pm-10pm (and then we go to bed) but everyonce and a while she will eat 1/2 cup of kibble in a two day period. That is when I have to tell her to eat. I have a feeling this may change however if we add a 2nd dog. :rolleyes:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

my daughter and i both have bc's and here is a strange behavior we have seen. we have other dogs as well. the bcs will hang back until the other dogs finish eating then they go eat.

 

lucy eats as though her mouth doesn't work exactly right . she's slow eating. seems that to her there are more fun things to do.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

:D Timed my two this morning just for fun. Breakfast - ( just over 1/3 cup kibble and a large spoonful of yoghurt) - gone in 25 seconds. :rolleyes:

 

In the evening, when they normally jsut have kibble - about 1/2 cup - I usually put some warm water in with it to stop them inhaling - my girl Kirra especially.

 

They slow down a bit for things like whole carrots - which they get for a treat sometimes.

 

I do think it usually makes a difference having 2 or more dogs - or maybe it's just that all my dogs have been chow-hounds.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Even when my boy is hungry (such as after a good long swim or run at the dog park), it takes him at least 1 minute to clean up his bowl of 1/2 cup of kibble with shredded cheese on top. If he's not hungry, the same 1/2 from breakfast doesn't get touched until dinner, and could be eaten in two sessions.

 

A regular size napkin however can be spotted, stollen, chewed and swallowed in less than 20 seconds, all while running in the house and dodging stupid humans who try to confiscate such priceless treats :rolleyes:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

 Share

×
×
  • Create New...