Dog doesn't like to eat out of food bowls

[Roman]

My Mr Bailey, has finally started to eat after bringing him home last week. He doesn't eat as much as i think he should be nonetheless, Im happy with his progress. I have several concerns however, since he barely ate in the beginning we leave his food and water out all day. (Which only complicates potty training because it's harder to determine when he has to go potty) I aslo noticed he likes to find his food on the floor, instead of eating out of the bowl.

I was wondering, will he ever get used to eating out of the bowl or should I find another way to encourage eating. I also, would like some suggestions on whether I should start putting his food and water out only at feeding times, so that I can regulate his bowl movements

[cdawnfine]

I have always free fed Milo as he dose not tend to over eat. I feed him out of this
JW Pet Amaze-A-Ball Treat Ball for Dogs at PETCO

Milo loves it I put his meal in there and he plays away. This also helps with excess energy, I was first introduced to it from a dog trainer. The only downside is Milo will no longer eat from a bowl or plate. If we go somewhere that he cant have the ball I either have to put his kibble on the floor or to get him to eat off of the plate I must mix some cottage cheese in with it.

[bellagirlsmomma]

I know i thought the same thing when we got Bella.. she wouldnt eat out of the cool bowls we got her.. so we ended up putting it on a small plate.. and she will pretty much fling the hard food all over and "find" it herself.. we have finally switched her water dish to something other than our bowls... but i guess as long as they eat i dont care what they eat out of... hehe it all takes time...

[megooego]

Personally, I don't believe in withholding water from a puppy. These little ones can get dehydrated quickly. But with the food, I guess it depends if Bailey gets enough to eat at one sitting. Most yorkies do not have problems with over-eating, but if he does, then you decide to only feed at certain times. I free-feed my boy, so kibble is out all day for him to munch on. That way, if I am gone, I don't have to worry about him getting hungry.

As for the eating on the floor thing.. My boy Jimi does it, and even my cat does it! If I put the food in a bowl they will take their paw and scoop it out onto the floor.. I have just come to the point of accepting it, lol.

[TeresaM]

It's odd how they have individual likes and dislikes about what they eat out of. But you can try different materials, metal, ceramic, plastic, etc and different colors too. But I'd try some plates maybe too. It could be he doesn't like to reach over the edge of a bowl to get his food. I had a dog that would only eat/drink out of plastic bowls. And had a horse that would only drink out of blue buckets. Sometimes there's just no telling...

[bjh]

Originally Posted by Roman

My Mr Bailey, has finally started to eat after bringing him home last week. He doesn't eat as much as i think he should be nonetheless, Im happy with his progress. I have several concerns however, since he barely ate in the beginning we leave his food and water out all day. (Which only complicates potty training because it's harder to determine when he has to go potty) I aslo noticed he likes to find his food on the floor, instead of eating out of the bowl.

I was wondering, will he ever get used to eating out of the bowl or should I find another way to encourage eating. I also, would like some suggestions on whether I should start putting his food and water out only at feeding times, so that I can regulate his bowl movements

Since your puppy is only 8 weeks old I feel he should have food and water available at all times. Some puppies are just nibblers and they like to eat throughout the day. Mine prefer eating out of plates once they are weaned. I add a tiny bit of canned food to the dry food, just enough to make the dry food a little moist. What are you feeding him?

[RoxyLuv]

Some people find that plates work better than bowls. In the beginning, Roxy would only eat a few bites of kibble at a time allll through the day. It seems to be quite normal for a lot of them. It was hard to figure out the potty routine though. I did find she would usually go poop morning & evening... sometimes in afternoon. She ate like this for several months. I figured I'd rather have her have access to food at all times while so young & make sure her sugar stayed balanced. After several months we switched to 2 feedings a day. She's doing very well.

[Lee B]

I have 4 dishes of kibble and one BIG dish of water out for the dogs at all times. Some of them will stand over the bowl and eat. But Bella will grab a piece or two, run to the living room, drop it on the floor, then eat it and run back for more. It must be the way she keeps her girlish figure: she runs off whatever she eats!

I have theorized that pups that eat off the floor were smaller than their siblings. The bigger pups crowded around the dish at mealtime and ate like little demons, pushing food here and there. The smaller pups got to eat the "overflow", what got pushed out of the dish. So they're more comfortable eating off the floor than from a dish ... something they didn't get much experience with .

Me? I've always been kinda permissive: as long as they ate, I didn't much care how they did it.

[zekie's mom]

When Zeke was a puppy, he liked me to throw one piece of food on the floor at a time for him to chase down and eat. Maybe because my scent was on it, he liked it better. I would personally do whatever it takes to get them to eat. If he is very small, he will probably just graze as their little stomachs are pretty small.

[tangoluv]

I noticed Tango doing the same thing! We noticed that if we put the kibble in a clear storage container lid, he started eating better. Of course at first, we had to coax him by putting some kibble on our fingers and as he started eating, we praised him gently and slowly removed our hands. Once he did well w/ the lid...I put the food back in a bowl and placed it on the lid. He does well now. I find that he likes to eat when someone's there w/ him. Also, sometimes he takes a kibble piece over to his crate or bed or sometimes alternates between the crate and the bed! Funny! Now, if I could only get him to be potty trained!!!

[jeanm1963]

I noticed Laci did the same thing , she would NOT eat out of her bowls, not ever having a puppy I couldnt figure this out, however since her breeder had dogs of her own plus the puppies she fed them all on paper plates, probally easier to dish out to so many dogs, as soon as I put her food on a paper plate she ate it right up...I also use a treat ball for her dry food, similar to that one, she likes it alot too

[Ringo1]

Lucy won't eat out of her pretty pink bowl either since I brought her home. (She's five months). In the morning, I take a handful and throw it on the floor; she likes that and will eat the scattered pieces . . . but there has to be a better way!

If we are going out and she has to be crated, I scoop up a handful and lay it at the front of her crate. She eats that. If I put her bowl in there, she will NOT eat it.

Now, if she finds food in my Westie's bigger bowl, she'll eat out of that immediatey. Maybe I should buy her a bowl just like his??

[alriver]

When my second one came along, she wouldn't eat out of anything but the "big" bowl that is up off the floor. Both of mine share.

[chachi]

one of my cats will only eat off a plate

[1956snowflake]

HazelNut will fill her mouth up with food from the bowl, and carry it to s soft spot to eat, sometimes my lap, maybe her bed, or the carpet in the living room. I had a previous Yorkie who did this also.