[Savannah]

I really want to switch Flash back to raw, he just doesn't do as well on kibble. But the reason I took him off in the first place was the mess!

Does anyone have any good solutions for easy cleanup after meals? I can't feed him outside, and we only had limited success with kennel feeding (and we no longer own a kennel). I tried putting him in the kitchen, but I'm not fond of mopping twice a day. Any other suggestions? What do you do for your dogs?

 

[Savannah]

Also, how many meals per day do you feed? Do your dogs ever throw up bile? Any suggestions to help prevent throwing up between meals?

 

[KalaMama]

Also, how many meals per day do you feed? Do your dogs ever throw up bile? Any suggestions to help prevent throwing up between meals?

I don't really have a suggestion of where to feed because i feed mine outside. I know some people train to stay on a towel. The amount of meals you should feed is based on how old they are. Mine don't throw up bile, but maybe they aren't getting enough frequent meals. How old are your pups?

 

[Savannah]

I just have one Standard, he'll be two in April. He was younger when I first started raw feeding him (a little over a year, I think, and he was raw fed for several months). Could that be why he was throwing up? I fed him twice a day, but he sometimes refuses a meal or two and that was when we had the most problems.

I tried training him to eat on a towel but he got frustrated because it would stick to the meat. Then he would try to move it, and would refuse to eat if I didn't let him take it elsewhere. The only place where he would reliably eat is the middle of my living room rug. He was perfectly happy there. *sigh*

My problem is that he's not food-motivated at all. If the conditions aren't optimum, he simply doesn't eat. Is there any way to work around that?

 

[KalaMama]

I just have one Standard, he'll be two in April. He was younger when I first started raw feeding him (a little over a year, I think, and he was raw fed for several months). Could that be why he was throwing up? I fed him twice a day, but he sometimes refuses a meal or two and that was when we had the most problems.

I tried training him to eat on a towel but he got frustrated because it would stick to the meat. Then he would try to move it, and would refuse to eat if I didn't let him take it elsewhere. The only place where he would reliably eat is the middle of my living room rug. He was perfectly happy there. *sigh*

My problem is that he's not food-motivated at all. If the conditions aren't optimum, he simply doesn't eat. Is there any way to work around that?

Hmm that is a tough one. Kala use to leisurely eat her feed but ever since we got a new pup-she eats it immediately. I don't really know. Maybe feed him a few small meals a day. Maybe the portions would be small enough so he would it eat and not make a mess. Hopefully you will get better ideas....

 

[Fluffyspoos]

I feed mine on a big sheet, so where ever he goes hes still on it.

 

[spoofly]

I find it easy to feed Fly in her kennel. I just slide out the tray and disinfect it and put it back in, easy enough. She seriously LOVED the turkey drumstick for diner and I've never seen her use her feet to hold anything and just RIP the meat right off. It was interesting.

 

[partial2poodles]

I feed mine be hand sometimes. Nice and neat

 

[Rockporters]

I don't feed raw, but just started giving Jas frozen raw marrow bones. I've placed a shower mat/rug (the towel type) in his crate. Though that's making him a bit controlling over the bone so I'll have to figure out something else. Once in a while he does try to drag it out of the crate... yuck! I haven't found a good solution yet for when out of the crate.

 

[BFF]

I feed Zulee in her crate. Cdnjennga once suggested feeding in the bathtub.

 

[bigpoodleperson]

Im not much help as Ry eats outside. I would probably train to eat on a plastic lined table cloth type thing though to wash easily if i did inside.

Riley eats one time a day. He is a bilious vomiter anyways, and he gets a treat at bedtime for that. Eating once a day works out best for both of us and doesnt seem to cause any trouble with him.

 

[Savannah]

Thank for the ideas everyone! I'm going to try the bathtub, that would be the easiest cleanup ever! I also like the sheet idea, maybe the size would keep it from bothering him. I never really thought of hand feeding (silly me) so that's a great idea when he won't eat. If I make him do tricks for it and feed piece by piece, I might get him to eat a whole meal that way.

I'm really hoping the vomiting will slow down now that he's a bit older. He just isn't thriving on kibble, and I'd rather clean up his bile occassionally than watch him deteriorate from poor nutrition. He's just not one of those dogs that can eat kibble, I guess. We're going to the vet tomorrow, so hopefully he'll be able to help me a bit as well (although I don't have high hopes, I know vets are usually horrible about nutrition).

Thanks guys, and keep the info comin! If you've got more, I'd love to hear it!

 

[LEUllman]

Beau insists on carrying his icky chicken parts out of the tiled kitchen and into a room with a nice, comfy rug. There he drops it, then settles down to munch with gusto. He has a good eye for which rug is the most expensive one, too. I figure this kind of thing just comes with having a dog.

 

[flyingduster]

pretty sure it's AgilityIG (??) who grinds all her meat up so it's eaten easily from a bowl without any mess, so if you can get your hands on a grinder/mincer that'd be a good option!!!