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Does your BC eat laying down?


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I have Two Border Collies and they eat laying down. ALot of people see this and think it is so funny. I have heard from other people who say their Border Collies eat laying down too. I was wondering if anybody elses did.

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That's the only way my BC will eat. She has to get comfortable before she will dig in. My BC is the only dog out of all the dogs I've had (about 12 breeds) that eat laying down. I think it's cute. She will lay there with one leg on each side of the bowl so when she moves the bowl too far away with her head she will pull it right back with her legs. I'll have to get a pic of that.

 

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Angela R. Garofano

Frisco, TX

 

 

 

 

[This message has been edited by DustyDog (edited 08-01-2000).]

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My BC does both, standing and laying, i have noticed with my 3 that they prefer to lay down when they got bigger, my two 3 month olds stand more but i think its so they can reach, my 6 month old lays. I laugh at him, but that is what makes us love him more. He is soooooo different.

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Both of my Border Collies lay down and eat it is so funny. And the puppy with sleep with her head in the food bowl. I think It might have something to do with the BC structure that is is uncomfortable to stand and have their necks bent down like that

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  • 19 years later...
  • 3 months later...
  • 6 months later...
On 1/10/2020 at 2:45 PM, Kuulei said:

I heard that it is an inborn trait to keep an eye on the herd or flock

I find that pretty hard to give much credence to, especially because not all border collies do it.

Of all the collies I've had or fostered, I've never had one do it consistently. Once in a while, especially with a long lasting bone or big hunk of raw food that took some time, sure. But with food in a bowl, not as a regular thing.

(Interesting to see a 20 year old thread revived. ;))

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Years ago, my male GSD laid down to eat -- always -- his whole life!  His sons also laid down to eat -- but not his daughters.  So I would say that with him, it was a genetic trait that he passed on to males. 

When I adopted Rusty (BC) from a shelter, he had been found running with another BC (blue merle) and a blue heeler.  All three were puppies/young dogs, and were loose in Amish country.  My guess is that they escaped from a puppy mill.  When I brought him home, I noticed that he also laid down to eat.  I told my husband - oh look, he has the lay-down-to-eat gene;  lol.    HOWEVER, after a few months at our house, he stood to eat and never laid down again.  I have no proof, but I believe he was probably raised/kept in a small crate/cage and had to lay down to eat - which became a habit.  Once he was not confined, he stood to eat for the rest of his life. 

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  • 11 months later...

My dog is similar to a lot of people above, she does both. But she started out only eating standing up. I believe in my case it's a symptom of the dog eating slower. I've been actively using bowls that encourage slower eating because of the risk associated with eating too fast (turning of stomach which could lead to death), my BC used to eat a bowl of food in less than 30 seconds, switching to a specially designed bowl that challenges them and forces them to eat slower helped that a lot. She now takes around 4 minutes to eat her food. She doesn't tend to stand up too long as the bowl is near her bed in her den, because of how long it takes she is quite happy to just lay comfy and eat it. 

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