How to slow down a super fast eating Lab??

[marc515]

Our 3 year old Yellow Lab is a super fast eater; I was hoping he would outgrow it, but he still eats as fast as always.

So, I either need to get a kibble that is larger than the Fromm 4 Star we have been feeding him, which is a little over 1/4", or get him some type of slow feed bowl.

Looking to you guys for some insight.

Thank you!

[SunDance]

Raising the bowl and adding some water worked for us.

[smartrock]

As my 10 year old got older his eating slowed down but not until he was older than 3. I think I've read it's not necessarily a problem for them to eat fast but I'd have to look that up, I can't state it with any authority. I don't think my 3 year old ever ate as fast as the 10 year old but she finishes in about half the time it takes him now. I did not find that the larger kibble, say of ProPlan large breed really made a difference in how fast he ate, compared to the tiny kibble of Annamaet.

I've heard some people use rimmed sheet pans to feed their pups rather than putting their food into a bowl or put something large and heavy into the bowl with the food that they have to eat around. My technique was to feed about half the meal in the bowl and the other half in a food dispensing ball. The ball made the meal last longer, kept him busy and gave him a bit of a challenge. The ones I used most often were:

Omega Paw Tricky Treat Ball Dog Toy, Large - Chewy.com

KONG Wobbler Dog Toy, Large - Chewy.com

Planet Dog Orbee-Tuff Snoop Dog Toy, Blue - Chewy.com

I ave a few others of other types that I don't immediately see on chewy. Amazon has these and others as well. My dogs love all types of those treat balls and we've gotten a number of them over the years.

[kaialeena]

My cousin has a lab that eats way too fast, so she puts all the food in puzzles. One simple puzzle that she made at home: She took a muffin tin and bunch of tennis balls. She put some of the kibble in each tin and covered it with a tennis ball. Her lab then had to lift each ball one by one to get his kibble.

[Labradorks]

All good ideas so far, and things I have done and do. Also, I have found Snuffle Mats to slow them down and allow me some peace and quiet!

[TuMicks]

My cousin has a lab that eats way too fast, so she puts all the food in puzzles. One simple puzzle that she made at home: She took a muffin tin and bunch of tennis balls. She put some of the kibble in each tin and covered it with a tennis ball. Her lab then had to lift each ball one by one to get his kibble.

...LIFT EACH BALL ONE BY ONE...??? Are you kidding me??? How about come tearing into the kitchen, slamming on the breaks, skidding into the muffin tins, tennis balls and kibble exploding across the floor and onto the counters. And if she did it by accident the first time... after that it would be utter mayhem on purpose.

[smartrock]

...LIFT EACH BALL ONE BY ONE...??? Are you kidding me??? How about come tearing into the kitchen, slamming on the breaks, skidding into the muffin tins, tennis balls and kibble exploding across the floor and onto the counters. And if she did it by accident the first time... after that it would be utter mayhem on purpose.

Well, hey, that would slow them down, too! They'd have to go around snarfing up all the kibble from all over the floor! So yeah, that's another option!

[NoVA Lab Mama]

I feed almost all of our 1yr old Lab's food in stuffed and frozen Kongs, or in a variety of food dispensing puzzles and toys. Good for her brain to work for it, and it keeps her from finishing her food in 9 seconds and spending the rest of the day looking as if we're starving her! I measure out her daily food every morning and then make 1 breakfast kong, plus one food puzzle, and then two dinner kongs and one food puzzle. It's great! Lots of extra effort but keeps her busy for a long time.

[NoVA Lab Mama]

Amazon.com : KONG Wobbler Treat Dispensing Dog Toy, Large : Pet Chew Toys : Pet Supplies

Amazon.com : Nina Ottoson Treat Maze Interactive Game for Small Dogs : Pet Toy Balls : Pet Supplies

Pet Supplies : Pet Toy Balls : Kruuse Buster Soft Cube Feeder, Blue : Amazon.com

Pet Supplies : Outward Hound Fun Feeder Dog Bowl Slow Feeder Stop Bloat for Dogs, Large, Blue : Pet Feeding Stations : Amazon.com

These are three of the ones we use.

[kaialeena]

lol We need to see the video of that!

...LIFT EACH BALL ONE BY ONE...??? Are you kidding me??? How about come tearing into the kitchen, slamming on the breaks, skidding into the muffin tins, tennis balls and kibble exploding across the floor and onto the counters. And if she did it by accident the first time... after that it would be utter mayhem on purpose.