My dog is a 7lb. rat-cha, before my dog eats he will perform a ritual. he will take his snout and sort of sweep up and down towards the bowl as if there were pieces of food around the bowl he was trying to get in place around the bowl. The he puts his nose into one side of the bowl and pushes the food on the other side up...then he goes to the up side and pushes it down...what the heck is he doing?
2007-06-01 04:51:01 · 10 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pets ➔ Dogs
Looking for the best piece.
2007-06-01 04:57:54 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
News Flash... my maltese does the same thing so unless she's a chi in disguise, it's not just a chi "thing". She also scoops toward the bowl, around and around the bowl she goes, occasionally sticking her snout into the bowl to sniff? the food, eventually she's satisfied with herself and starts eating, though she usually takes it out of the bowl to eat. She's not much of a hunter though she does like to "dig to china" at the couch, the bed, the carpet when she's get all excited and happy.
2007-06-03 11:45:40 · answer #2 · answered by bootgirl 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
My Chihuahua does the same thing! I have a little bed for him that looks like a furry doughnut. When he is sweeping the food around with his snout, he is actually trying to hide it in the corners! As if he was trying to bury it or something. I used to think he didn't want the food and was trying to flip the bowl...
2007-06-01 05:04:43 · answer #3 · answered by Finance_Diva 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
He is looking for something specific. Maybe once there was something else in his bowl that he really liked. If you put his treats in the same bowl he may be looking for those.
Some dogs have instinctive behaviors like circling the bowl before eating. Could be a number of things, I wouldn't worry about it, maybe he just likes to play with his food.
2007-06-01 05:00:41 · answer #4 · answered by rescueman91 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I wonder if this is a chihuahua "thing". Mine does exactly the same thing! He finishes by hooking the food out of the bowl with his paw. He'll only eat it off the floor! My vet says he's treating the food as prey.
2007-06-01 04:58:04 · answer #5 · answered by 5gr8k9s 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Sounds like he's "air burying".
In the wild, canids will cache food. He is instinctively trying to bury it for later. Even if the bowl is empty, it still probably smells tasty and it triggers the instinct.
2007-06-01 05:00:54 · answer #6 · answered by Alfheim 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
my dog used to try to scratch and throw the pieces of dog food in the air. she was a hunting dog so we thought that she was trying to kill her food!!!
2007-06-01 05:01:42 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
your dog is just getting used to that food or making sure that the food is safe.
2007-06-01 04:54:41 · answer #8 · answered by so simple minded. 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
having fun!
2007-06-04 22:25:28 · answer #9 · answered by cheri h 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
eating...
2007-06-01 04:58:29 · answer #10 · answered by johndeereraider 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋