My 2 furbabies, Ginger and ShyAnne, have always been free fed their dry food and fresh water 24/7. Ginger is almost 4yo and ShyAnne just turned 2yo in the Spring. I give them new water every morning and again at suppertime. Along with the dry food, I feed them wet food at 5:30pm everyday.
ShyAnne has the weirdest habit with her dry food! She grabs anywhere from 2 to 6 (or more) of her kibbles and carries them to the couch where she drops them and nibbles on them one at a time (after tossing one or more around for play). Does anyone else have a Yorkie that carries their food like this? Ginger never does this - she just eats, standing at her bowl. Very Ladylike!
We have been trying to get ShyAnne to take her food to her bed everytime we catch her on the couch. I pick up the kibbles and take them across the living room to her bed and say "Food! Bed!". They sleep with us but use their own beds during the day for resting.
Sometimes, ShyAnne does take her dry food to her bed for which she gets a Cheerio and lots of praise. I don't like her using the couch as her dinner table b/c those kibbles grind down to such itty-bitty crumbs. I have far better things to do with my time than haul out the dust-buster each time she eats.
Should I change their free feeding to scheduled times?? Am wondering if this would be a better way to keep control of ShyAnne's feeding place. I am a bit leary about doing this b/c they both eat off and on, all day long. Ginger doesn't eat after her wet supper food very often at all but ShyAnne always has a night-time snack of her kibbles. Oh what to do???
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.