Guest Whippet Posted April 24, 2010 Share Posted April 24, 2010 Hi, My whippet, Whippet, is completely obsessed with food. He is really starting to get on my nerves. It's getting worse too. I have 5 dogs, two greys, a boston terrier and a shi-tzu. Astro, a grey, is not a dominant dog so when Whippet goes to his bowl, Astro says nothing and Whippet gobs as much food as he can before I push him away. Maya, the Boston, does a good job at protecting her bowl and Janis' (the **zu) bowl too but two bowls are too many and sometimes, Whippet succeeds in pushing Janis away and gobs her food at light speed. When we are eating a snack, he jumps on us, when we eat at the table, he begs and whines even though he NEVER got food at the table. And he litterally jumps to try to reach the counter top to see if there is anything to eat and he has succeeded a few times at grabbing things and throwing them to the floor to eat them... I don't know what to do to stop that behavior. Can anyone help? Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Batmom Posted April 24, 2010 Share Posted April 24, 2010 Put a baby gate or a door or a crate between him and the other dogs' food until they're done eating. Put a baby gate between him and the dinner table. Snacks -- well, you may have to just be vigilant. Our late whippet Rocco was a lifelong food hound, lightning fast and persistent. He had no fear and no shame where food was concerned. He didn't whine for things, just watched for his chance and took it if he could. Quote Star aka Starz Ovation (Ronco x Oneco Maggie*, litter #48538), Coco aka Low Key (Kiowa Mon Manny x Party Hardy, litter # 59881), and mom in IllinoisWe miss Reko Batman (Trouper Zeke x Marque Louisiana), 11/15/95-6/29/06, Rocco the thistledown whippet, 04/29/93-10/14/08, Reko Zema (Mo Kick x Reko Princess), 8/16/98-4/18/10, the most beautiful girl in the whole USA, my good egg Joseph aka Won by a Nose (Oneco Cufflink x Buy Back), 09/22/2003-03/01/2013, and our gentle sweet Gidget (Digitizer, Dodgem by Design x Sobe Mulberry), 1/29/2006-11/22/2014, gone much too soon. Never forgetting CJC's Buckshot, 1/2/07-10/25/10. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest karma98104 Posted April 24, 2010 Share Posted April 24, 2010 I laughed out loud when I read your post. When I first "met" you, you JUST had Whippet Out of the three of my whippets, the only one who actually guards his food bowl is Riley, and not very well, either. If I let them it would be musical bowls until someone got their eye poked out. I've trained them to sit and wait until I tell them to eat, and I stand guard until everyone's finished. In the beginning Lex would go after Lark's food when he finished his, but I gave him hell when he went for it and he knows better now. I think it's really helped in a lot of other areas of too. I DO feed them from my plate all the time, bad, I know! I put up with a certain amount of begging and consider that completely my fault. But there are times when I don't want them around.. like when guests are over. I trained them to go "lie down" Which, admittedly, only partially works and I usually have to yell at them so they know I mean it before they actually do. I think if I were you, I'd do the baby gate thing Batmom suggested and make a no dogs in the kitchen rule. As far as counter surfing goes, I've got nothing. Lex is a terrible counter surfer. He knows he'll get yelled at if he does it while I'm home, but I have to muzzle him when I leave- he'll steal anything, including pill bottles and the brita filter. I could leave my dinner plate at dog eye level and go to the bathroom and they won't touch it-- but god forbid I leave him alone with my bottle of vitamins on the kitchen counter. Go figure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Whippet Posted May 1, 2010 Share Posted May 1, 2010 (edited) The gate idea is a good one but it can't work here! My house is small but all open space! I'd have to send him to a whole other floor! And knowing him, he'd tear down the gate anyway! We have been trying to make him sit and wait while the other slow eaters finish their bowl but I'm not the only one feeding him and not everyone's not necessarily as patient as I am or sometimes, we just don't have time to wait until the shi-tzu for example, who eats bit by bit and carefully chews each one sloooowly, finally finishes her meal... I have actually put Janis (the shi-tzu) on the kitchen island with her bowl so I could do other things because I was kind of in a hurry! I wish I knew what his obsession with food is... He gets plenty so it's not like he has ever been deprived. Edited May 1, 2010 by Whippet Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ragsysmum Posted May 1, 2010 Share Posted May 1, 2010 Could you clip him on a short lead and fasten it to something so he can only reach his own food bowl until all the others have finished? We often do this with paired kennelled greys so they cannot interfere with each other whilst eating especially if one is slower to finish. Quote Sue from England Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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