I am a somewhat new dog owner. I have 2 small dogs, a Maltese and a Shih tzu. I feed them both at the same time and they both have their own bowls. The Shih tzu is like a horse, he will eat as much as you put in front of him. The Maltese eats like a thin person, he likes to eat it on and off throughout the day. The problem is that the Shih Tzu is pretty much eating both bowl as soon as they are put down. We encourage the Maltese to come and eat...an he will taking only a few licks...but then when he wants to come back it is gone. This is especially a problem when I am not home to supervise. (Neither dog is overweight or underweight as per the vet but I want to prevent this from occurring) What do I do? Thanks!!!
2007-02-08 08:10:28 · 10 answers · asked by Lissa 2 in Pets ➔ Dogs
Feeding them separately does not seem to work because the Maltese will not eat right away and it seems that the more that you command him to do so, the more stubborn he gets.
2007-02-09 02:22:13 · update #1
Dont leave the food out. You should feed them on a schedule. Leave the food down for each dog for 10-15mintues. Then pick the food up till the next feeding.
They both will eat what they are fed at that time of feeding. Stand over them and ensure she doesn't go to the other dog's bowl.
Patience and consistancy and they will get the hint
Good Luck
2007-02-08 08:16:51 · answer #1 · answered by sillybuttmunky 5 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Feed them in different places, at different times.
What has happened is the Shih tzu is the dominant dog of the group, and since he likes to eat, will tell the Maltese (who is the submissive) to go away because the ST is still eating. They may not growl at one another, it may be that it has already been worked out.
Does the ST take the toys of the Maltese, or do they 'share?' Does the ST react poorly if the Maltese is getting more attention? This is usually a sign of dominant behavior
2007-02-08 08:16:20 · answer #2 · answered by K 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Some years ago I had a dog like that, what I resorted to doing was switching from 'free feeding' to feeding all my dogs meals. The 'thief' was fed separately from the others and only allowed back in with them when they were finished eating. This does seem like a drastic move, but the others learned quickly enough to eat when their bowls were put down, and unlearned the 'free feeding' technique. An upside to feeding meals is you have a better idea of how much each dog is eating, so if one stops eating due to a health issue you are quicker to catch on and get them the vet attention they may require.
2007-02-08 08:21:20 · answer #3 · answered by jojuzach 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Keep them seperate during feeding times if the maltese dosent eat then take the food away and offer it to him again later away from the shih tzu.
2007-02-11 23:18:39 · answer #4 · answered by Flipgal 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
My dog has the same problem and it got so out of hand that we had to get it on a "diet" food. We actually got smaller bowls and I think that maybe you could take them into different rooms but then they may think that they are being punished or yelled at. We just put the bowls a little bit apart from the other. Kinda on the other side of the room. Whenever we left, we put the bowls up on the counter so our other dog, Rocky wouldn't eat Baileys food.
Good Luck!!!!
2007-02-08 09:42:15 · answer #5 · answered by puppyloverR 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
You need to separate the dogs at feeding time. It is best to train a dog to eat immediately when you feed it instead of throughout the day so that you can see easily if their eating pattern changes. Put the dogs in separate rooms with their food for 15 minutes, then remove any leftover food.
2007-02-08 08:21:33 · answer #6 · answered by Sparil_00 2 · 1⤊ 1⤋
I have three dogs outside and one inside dog. the three outside dogs we feed at the same time and place and we give them a time limit to eat and sit out there with them to make sure they don't start to eat out of each others bowls, and if one gets done before the others we hold them by their colar so they can't bother the other two that are still eating.
2007-02-08 08:46:48 · answer #7 · answered by Thomas Colten Eichler 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
I have the same problem with my cats. One gets distracted, doesn't finish her food and goes run around while the other finishes all the bowls she finds.
What I do is I fill the bowls as soon as I get up. I watch them eat, and as soon as the picky one stops eating, I put her bowl up on a shelf. Then I go do my routine, and just before leaving for work, I give the picky one the rest of her bowl, and she usually finishes it. It's a pain in the butt, but it works.
2007-02-08 08:20:46 · answer #8 · answered by petite_laeti 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Try feeding them in seperate rooms. That usually works.
2007-02-08 08:29:46 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
Feed them in different rooms. Mine have learned to eat it when its offered, or go without. My slower eater learned that really quickly.
2007-02-08 08:53:03 · answer #10 · answered by nokhada5 4 · 0⤊ 1⤋