You’ve just put dog food into your pup’s bowl, and before you have had a chance to put the bag of food away, your Frenchie’s bowl is empty. Of all dog breeds, Frenchies are probably the fastest eaters. We could even dare to say they are not eating but inhaling the food.
Unfortunately, the superpower of making food disappear almost instantly can be the reason for many health issues, like stomach aches, burping, gassiness, and even vomiting or choking. Eating too quickly is a common problem in dogs, and you need to stop that.
Why do dogs eat so fast?
As the wilderness used to be fierce and ruthless, and dog society was highly competitive, dogs evolved to eat fast. To stay alive, dogs had to eat before other canines or stronger predators stole their meal.
Although thousands of years passed since wild canine societies existed, and dogs have gone through dramatic physical differences due to the artificial breeding that humans forced upon them, they haven’t changed as much in nature. Dogs still feel this urge to gobble.
It is a harmful habit of dogs, but you can teach your Frenchie how to eat like a proper lady or gentleman.
Why is it bad for your dog to eat fast?
The main problem is obvious: the faster your dog eats, the less he chews. It leads to issues with digestion and learning to chew properly.
While the puppy races through their food, he also takes a large amount of air. It results in burping too much and in releasing gasses that I believe we are all familiar with.
If you notice bloating or stomach ache, you can trace it back to the lack of proper chewing.
Sometimes it seems like your baby is going to choke, which is also one of the reasons for having stomach pains and flatulence.
6 tips on how to stop your French Bulldog from eating so fast
Use a slow feeder dog bowl for your French Bulldog
1. You have to make it physically impossible for your Frenchie to gobble their food by using a slow-feed bowl like the ones on Amazon. It will slow down the eating procedure by more than seven times!
2. If you cannot buy a slow feeder dog bowl, just put a toy ball in the food. That can help him slow down as he cannot take big bites of food, but he has to bypass the ball.
3. Never use a deep feeding bowl with a Frenchie. If you use a shallow bowl, he is not able to take a big mouth full of food because of their flat faces.
Feed your dog bit by bit
4. Feed your dog multiple times a day and always give small portions. Refill a minute or two after he finishes. It may take mealtime longer, but it is best for your dog.
5. Always choose large-grain dog food. It is too easy to swallow the smaller grains without chewing, and it is also dangerous as they can cause drowning. On the other hand, your dog has to chew the larger grains, which takes time.
6. Since these guys seem to be always hungry, you can give him/her some healthy snacks during the day: some carrots, millet balls, or even a large chew bone that s/he cannot eat, only chew.
After feeding…
And the golden rule: do not train the dog right after eating. So, postpone the playtime or walk for at least 30 minutes to avoid vomiting. You wouldn’t go for a jog after your lunch, so why would your Frenchie?
Here you can read the advices from other TomKings Family Members in our Tomkings Frenchie Family Facebook Group (please join if you haven’t joined yet).
The article was written based on the experience of the TomKings Puppies Team. TomKings Puppies have been breeding French Bulldogs for 12 years on their farm. All the pictures in the post belong to them and show a puppy from their breed. Check their available puppies here, or if you have any questions or comments let us know below the article.
