he's not the only dog i've seen do this....why?

Question

why does my aunts dog insist on picking up a mouthful of food (which is in a bowl on a tile floor) and dropping it all on the carpet across the room and eating it a piece at a time?...why doesnt he just eat it out of the bowl?...anybody know why dogs do this?

Answer 1

I don't know, but my dad always called it "dining out"!

Answer 2

some dogs dont like the sound of their tags hitting the side of the bowl, some just like to be in the same room as you, some just like to make messes. my dads dog will take one piece of kibble, play with it all over the house, then finally eat it and then eat the rest normally. my spaniel takes a mouthful then walks across the kitchen letting it drop out of her mouth the whole way (but she never picks up the pieces). my former dog would eat at her dish, then go to the rug and wipe her face on it. my new pup eats at her bowl until you leave the room, then she's done eating until we come back.

animals are weird.

Answer 3

My dog does it too, but she drops it right outside her bowl, eats from the bowl then finishes the stuff she put on the floor. Sometimes I give her treats, hot dog pieces, pieces of meat, cheese, dogie cookies (not her regular food) and she buries them all over the house in couches, under bed pillows, corners, is she saving it for later? Who knows? She buried little piece of steak once and I didn't find it for a couple of weeks in the couch and I was surprised it didn't smell or have any rot on it. Maybe, some how they can preserve it for later.

Answer 4

I've seen a lot of dogs do this. Ours will often pick up a few pieces, bring them to the carpet and eat them there. Our previous dog did the same identical thing. I got the impression they just like eating on the rug better.

Answer 5

I have one that will get a mouth full and take it to the other dogs.


If there is another dog in the house they do this a lot to avoid any issues at the food bowl.

Answer 6

I don't know why they do this. My dog does it too. The only thing I can think is they don't like the tile. Try moving his bowl onto the carpet and see if he still does it.

Answer 7

My Husky does the exact same thing. It drives me crazy, because I'm constantly having to vacume up her crums. I am baffeled by her behaivor as well, the only thing I can think of is that she likes something soft to stand on while she eats, or maybe her dry food bouces to much when she drops it on the hard wood..... but I'm really not sure. My other two dogs eat out of their bowl and don't have this issue.....

Answer 8

He either doesnt like the bowl or the area the bowl is in, he just may be more comfortable eating away from people as well.

Answer 9

It's very normal. We have to remember that domestic dogs have wild ancesotors and still a lot of their behavior is in their genes.
Basically your aunt's dog wants to make sure that it is going to get his fair share. He takes his food from the food bowl (carcass) he's ensuring himself he can can eat in peace. It also gives him a better chance to guard it as his wild ancestors would have done.

Answer 10

My MinPin did it. I got a carpeted pet mat to go under his bowls & now he won't leave the bowl until the food is gone. He can get the two front paws on the mat.

I think that sometimes they want to be next to their people when they eat.

Answer 11

my dog did this in the presense of another puppy. but after i separated the two, taking away the threat of someone eating the others food, she stopped and ate straight from the bowl.
if you dont have 2 dogs, your dog is probably just feeling threatened by something or someone else