I have never had this problem with any other dog. This little dog, a mixed Bichon-Poodle, who is perfect in every way for us....is nicknamed Miss Piggy. Because she is the messiest eater ever. No matter what size bowl I give her, he food ends up in pieces all over the floor and floating in her water bowl. This messy eating habit has gone from amusing to we're done with this, please grow up. I thought it was a doggie toddler phase of sorts, but she is now 4 years old.
I have trimmed her face. I have given her larger bowls. I have separated the water from the bowl. She gets only dry food, with less than a tablespoon of what's cooking in the kitchen. Every day it's part of the standard clean up. But on the days I don't get to it, it's not something I'm fond of in my living space.
What are your recommendations? I'm thinking of sacrificing one my baking pans to her eating 'place'.
Lucky, forgot to mention, I do have her bowls on a large vinyl place mat, and it's not large enough. And her bowls are separated, meaning, water on one end of place mat, food on the other. Do you think the elevated bowls would work?
Heather - you're funny! That was cute!
Teeth are all good, healthy and strong...my Vet loves her and said he'd take her home as he's never met a healthy dog than his own until mine. Maybe he says that to everyone?
I'm going to try the Costco lid idea...and the mini muffin tin....and "clean up your mess" command....
Amanda, that's a wise recommendation for me in particular....because I have turned my funny "You're a Miss Piggy" into an exasperated tone..and she stays away from me when I talk to her like that...so I think I have contributed to the problem..Gosh you gals are good!!
I think that you should force her to keep a napkin on her lap at meal times. Her bad table manners are unacceptable.
I don't know if this would help, but I used this trick with a dog that ate too quickly. I used a mini muffin tin for her food dish. The food is scattered throughout the tin, forcing the dog to eat more slowly.
I also suggest getting a bowl like Aunt Mel Mel recommended. As far as the water, get a water bottle (like what a hamster drinks from but bigger) and attach it to a wall. My in-laws have one for their shih tzu. When we got our bichon, they bought us one. Absolutely no mess from the water.
I had a dog that would get food all over. Smart mutt... I taught him the command "clean up your mess."
I would pick the bowl up while he was in the middle of happily eating away and tell him "clean up your mess." Since he wanted to keep eating, he cleaned up everything on the floor. I'd put the bowl back down and repeat.
He got so good with it I could tell him the command while he was walking away from the bowl and he'd turn around and vaccum his food from the floor before heading on to do whatever it was he wanted to do.
Now, my other dogs have not been this smart, but I know poodles are super smart - might be worth a try.
With my current set, I pick up the bowl and put it out of reach until the mess is cleaned up. Then they get the bowl back, whether that's a few minutes or a couple of hours.
Oh! and about your SWH - elevated bowls, while they sell them everywhere, can be a huge problem from some breeds. They can help lead to bloat and intestinal torsion - where the belly fills up with air and then twists in their bodies. It can be deadly within minutes. Check to make sure your breeds aren't prone to bloat before you get any elevated bowl system.
I had my parents stop using a wire rack we were both using because they have a boxer and they're prone to bloat.
My first thought is that she has teeth problems or misaligned teeth, or possibly that the size or shape of the food bits are wrong for her teeth/shape of her mouth. A vet can tell you if her teeth or jaw are the problem.
Completely separate the water & food bowls, by at least 3 or 4 feed. It won't stop the food pieces from falling out of her mouth, but it prevent food floaties in the water bowl.
My malitpom (maltese pom mix) looks like a bichon eats in our lab's crate ... he was also given a small dog bowl with a dog food ball in it. This slows down their eating ability and makes it much less messy in my experience.
Oh and have your dog's teeth checked by the vet, they may be weak and the dog may need moist food.
put bowls in kitty litter box so that you can pick it up and just clean the box instead of all over the floor........?
Contain the mess with a shallow tubtrug.
These things are great, and also a good size in case you ever need to soak your feet.
They are washable, flexible, come in many cute colors and are practically indestructible.
People around here use them to feed horses or put water outside for their dogs.
http://www.amazon.com/Tubtrugs-SP35BL-9-Gallon-Storage-Sh...
I don;t know if this is an option, my parents have taken to using cardboard boxes lids, the type you get at costco. The food and water bowls both go in there. it seems to catch the spills, and they discard the box lids every week or so.
I put a tray under our dog's food/water bowls.
If she's getting food into her water, try 2 small trays (1 for her food & a separate one for her dog good next to it.
I would get a plastic tray instead of sacrificing your cookies sheet (1. most dogs don't like metal/aluminum & 2. you can find a cheap plastic one @ Wal-mart or the Dollar Store).
A little separation helps w/the co-minglin. ;)
The tray saved us. :)
There is a bowl out there that looks like a regular circle bowl, in the instead it has 2-3 "columns" in it. It is for "fast" eaters (our Leena would just scarf down food and make a mess) this helped her a lot. I think we found it at PetSmart.
Looked similar to this one:
http://www.petsolutions.com/C/Slow-Feed-Dog-Bowls/I/Skid-...
Could you feed her outside? That way the water should stay clean also. I'm a big animal lover and mine eat inside but if the messy habits bothered me, I'd put them out to eat and then bring them back inside. Just a suggestion.
Have her eat first then put water in her water bowl. They make dual food and water bowls that are elevated. That may help. Put a place mat or any type of vinyl covering under the bowls on the floor so if anything spills it might be easier to wipe up. Feed her in small quantities or more frequently in smaller quantities. I have a 170 lb dog and for us he eats and drinks outside :)
Yes I think the elevated bowl might help :)
