We had a horrible time with Sprout when he first came home as well. Twelve years ago we were pretty clueless in regard to pet ownership though, and weren't aware of all these nifty bowls and such.
What I did was...I fed Sprout by hand. It only took him about a week? (if memory serves) to learn that he needed to chew his food to avoid getting discomfort by gagging on it.
If you're interested in trying this, here's what I did:
Hold a piece of kibble between your thumb and index finger (pointer finger/forefinger). Half the kibble piece between your fingers, and half sticking out. Let Tut come up and munch on it, but don't let him take the whole thing. He should (during the course of trying to eat it) turn his head or maneuver his body so that his back teeth grasp the food. As soon as he does this...praise him profusely but don't let go of the food. He'll learn quickly that you like it when he bites on his kibble with his back teeth. After he's munched the half gone that was sticking out...grab another piece (don't give him the second half of that piece because he still doesn't know yet not to swallow it whole, just set it aside).
Continue doing this for a couple of days. When you think he pretty much has it down...let him try the second half of a piece of kibble that he munched from your fingers. If he successfully crunchmunches it (chews it before swallowing)....try laying a whole piece in his food bowl (don't have any more kibble in the bowl than 1 piece though). If he successfully chews the whole piece up and swallows it you can add more kibble, and watch. If he starts scarfing it down again...start over.
Not only did this teach Sprout how to properly chew his kibble...it also taught him how to properly take a treat from our hands, gently.
Some people will tell you that this isn't a good idea, because the dog might require handfeeding forever if you get them started that way. Sorry...but Sprout had no issues at all switching from my hand to the bowl. |