Eating Dilemma..... ideas needed please?

[Linda S]

So Sabre has always had a problem eating without me present. Basically if I'm not in the same room he won't eat his food. This has never really been a problem because I am almost always at his meals times. On the odd occassions I have been away for a couple of days he just won't eat, but as soon as I'm back he eats like he is ravenous! Like I say, it's not been a real problem in the past because I've either taken him away with me or only gone away for 2 days maximum.

So I'm planning a 3 day break at the end of the month and I really would like him to eat his meals regularly while I'm away...... so any ideas how I can acheive this? I know he would probably eat if he was really left to it for long enough, but would rather he learnt to eat when alone in the first place!

[Kerryowner]

Get another dog! We had a very fussy Cairn Terrier years ago and he would eat chicken but not normal dog food. As he was only small it didn't really matter much. However, as soon as we got a 2nd dog he would eat anything! After that I swore I would never pander to a fussy eater as dogs are not stupid-they won't starve themselves.

I know your problem is different but please try and make sure you get a break without worrying about your dog!

[Linda S]

Oh, I'd love to get another dog to cure this one!!!! Just not practical at the moment though

I know I should just go and not worry but if there is something I can do now to make things easier for him while I'm away then I'd like to; But regardless, once I'm gone I won't worry too much because it is only a few days.

[Shepiers]

Will he eat from a kong in another room?

We had an old GSD x boarding with us last year that would not eat at first and she became anxious away from her owners. I eventually got her eating by feeding her dinner in a kong - it seemed to help her relax.

[rune]

Move away gradfually from him while he eats---I have had a couple I have had to wean away.

I would imagine he won't eat for the first couple of days anyway. GSD's are often a bit stressy when they are left.

He'll be fine and he won't starve.

rune

[Linda S]

That miight be worth a try. Usually give Sabre his kong once or twice a week with something special in like chicken, but again I'm home with him at the time. So will try putting his breakfast in it tomorrow and leaving it with him.

Thinking about it we do seem to have some sort of obsessive compulsive routine around meal times. He has to be lying down with his bowl between his paws, and one paw bent under. If he is not in the right position he will circle the dish several times to try to find the right spot. If it doesn't work he's up again. Sometimes I have to wait for him to lie down and position the bowl in front of him. He will then put his nose in the dish but do nothing else until I sit down (which has to be directly opposite him, if not he'll move around until he can see me and is comfortable). Then he'll sniff at the food until I tell him to eat it. He eats very very slowly. And also if I get up and move around he'll stop eating and stand up. Then we have to go through the whole rountine again from the beginning. It can take up to half an hour to get through one meal.

Only just become consciously aware of all this by posting on here and thinking about it more! My god, I've been following this weird ritual for ages and not even realised just how strange it is!

I'll serve breakfast in the kong tomorrow as I'm leaving for work, and see what he makes of that.

[Linda S]

Originally Posted by rune

Move away gradfually from him while he eats---I have had a couple I have had to wean away.

I would imagine he won't eat for the first couple of days anyway. GSD's are often a bit stressy when they are left.

He'll be fine and he won't starve.

rune

At the moment I'm living in a caravan so it's not easy to move very far! He will stop eating if I stand up, he'll even pause if I reach for a book, then start re-eating once he knows I'm sitting comfortably!