When?

Most veterinarians will recommend feeding your dog twice a day, once in the morning and once in the evening. This doesn’t apply to puppies that may need to be fed several times a day.

In most cases your dog will eat right away when you lay out the food in the dog bowl, but you may find that your pet is a picky eater. If your pet is picky when it comes to eating there is a simple solution to get your pet eating on schedule. When you lay your pet’s food out give him/her 20 minutes to finish eating until you take the food away. Continue doing this and you will find your picky eater will be eating as soon as you put the food down.

This scheduled feeding schedule with a time limit is advantageous for several reasons. It puts your dog on a regular feeding schedule and your dog will know he/she needs to eat when food is put out. This will also help your dog keep a regular poop schedule as well, and if for any reason your dog doesn’t poop regularly after being put on a regular feeding schedule, you will be more likely to notice your dog may be sick and can take him or her to the vet as soon as possible. Lastly, leaving a bowl of food out all day can cause a mess as well as attract ants, and other unwanted bugs.

Where?

One of the most important roles a pet owner has is making sure he/she spends enough time with their beloved dog. Although you may think that putting a bowl in the middle of kitchen during dinner time is a good way of spending time with your pet, it is not the best option for your dog’s health.

Dogs are primarily social pack animals but that doesn’t mean they like to eat in an area where there are people or in an area where there is a lot of activity going on such as someone cooking or going to the fridge for a drink. Don’t put your dog’s food bowl in the middle of the kitchen, otherwise your dog will feel rushed to eat and this may cause digestive problems.

Instead put your dog’s food bowl in a corner of the kitchen and on a floor that is not carpeted to make clean up easier. This way your dog has some privacy to eat in peace uninterrupted, and won’t devour food too quickly.