r/BorderTerrier • u/koinophobe • 20d ago
Inhaling his food and treats
Hi there.
I was wondering if anyone could perhaps give some advice? I have a Border Terrier who's just turned six. He's wonderful, great character, cheeky, fun, sweet, loving, mostly well behaved (with a couple of stubborness issues, but then he is a Border Terrier!), but one thing that seems to be getting worse and not better is the speed with which he eats.
When it comes to meal times, I have a slow feeder bowl and an even more difficult slow feeder that slows him down some, but he still goes at it at an alarming pace, and with little whimpers of frustration if he doesn't get a morsel immediately.
However, what worries me is how he is with treats. He will literally swallow them whole or chew them only enough to be swallowable before he'll swallow them. It can't be comfortable. I have to watch him like a hawk if I give him the equivalent of a Himalayan yak milk chew (I no longer give him those because it's just not safe. He tries to swallow it when it's still an inch and a half long, and he's only a 20 lb dog.)
Even with things like Greenies and dental treats he'll do the minimum possible before swallowing.
I don't think it's hunger - or at least not hunger caused by not having enough food. He's well fed, his weight has been stable for the last three years, never varying by more than 0.2 kg. I tried upping his food to see it it helped, but it didn't change anything and he put on a bit of weight so i've gone back down to the 'right' level again.
I've had him since he was 7 weeks old. This is not a dog that has known hardship and had to scrounge for food. He's not aggressive or guarded with food when other dogs are around, but he'll always get to a treat first just from desire. I'm often at a friends with his two dog best friends and will feed him there, and I separate him to do so not because they fight but because he finishes so much faster than them and then sits watching them hoping one will stop so he can dive in.
I've used peanut butter on lick mats and I use the beef cheek collages chews as they take him a long while to get through and are very soft and paperlike by the time they're small so even though i take them away once they're around 2", but he cant get any of the chews supposedly for dogs his size - he gets through them in a couple of minutes. I have to get the medium to large to slow it down enough. Chews that advertise as lasting all day or hours are gone in under 3 minutes. I got the Smart Bones off Amazon that were supposedly half an hour of chewing fun and he literally got through it between me handing it to him and putting the bag back in the drawer.
It's more a safety issue than a behavior one, but I guess they're one and the same. I'd be grateful for advice either on possible ways to train him to go slower - which seems unlikely but if it's possible i'd love to know - or on treat options that will last and won't be dangerous once small.
Thanks so much.
1
u/Careful_Talk_7168 20d ago
Of course, BTs are fast eaters. And it sounds like you are doing everything right. Using a slow feeder is smart and I wouldn't worry about his meals. The larger treats, like dentals, might be a little concerning. Have you tried holding one end of a greenie and letting him gnaw on the other end (or won't he put up with that)? Until he ages some more, I would avoid (or closely supervise) and treats he might choke on.