What's the point of going without a bowl?
In nature, wild dogs, like other canids such as foxes, coyotes or even wolves, must look for the food they need to eat. He does not receive a bowl of kibbles at a fixed time swallowed in a few seconds.
It is estimated that the search for food requires 5 hours of daily activity for the wild canine. This research requires intellectual capacities to develop an effective hunting strategy, olfactory to sniff and track its prey, physical to catch it and masticatory to devour it.
The family dog is certainly no longer a wild canine, but its need for activity remains unchanged. Alas, our pet dogs are not as stimulated and active as they should be. Nowadays, they are offered at most 1 hour of activity per day through a simple walk and, sometimes, a little play. As for food activity, it is often reduced to a few minutes even a few seconds in the most voracious dogs, the time to swallow whole the few kibbles in the bottom of a bowl. We are a long way from 5 hours of daily activity!
This is all the more problematic since our family dogs are, for the most part, from breeds that have been specifically selected for work and who find themselves completely idle. The risk is then that the dog finds substitute activities to occupy himself (destruction, untimely barking, self-mutilation, etc.) which will be so many undesirable behaviors for his guardian. In addition to doing what we will consider "mischief" , these dogs, whose activity needs are not met, can develop anxiety disorders that will undermine their well-being.
Fortunately, it is possible to easily remedy this problem of lack of daily activity by taking inspiration from the "ditch the bowl" movement. It consists of doing without a bowl to feed your dog in order to take advantage of me altimes to stimulate him more and better meet his activity needs.
How to give up the bowl?
There are now many ways to do without a bowl because pet shops now offer more and more objects that allow dogs to be fed differently.
You can now distribute your dog's food:
- in a kibble dispenser, such as Pipolino ® (or in a cardboard cylinder or a plastic bottle with holes for a "homemade" version) or in a candy dispenser ball,
- in a "puzzle" type toy with hatches to open, lift or slide,
- by filling a Kong® (hollow cone-shaped toy made of very solid rubber) with mash or moistened and mixed kibble,
- in a digging mat or in other toys that push the dog to look for solutions to get his food.
You can also bet on "homemade solutions" by:
- scattering and hiding its food in your garden, in the lawn, under planters, etc,
- feeding his kibble in the bottom of a cardboard box or a basin filled with balls or objects,
- enclosing his croquettes in rolls of toilet paper like a "surprise bag" ,
- putting wet food in ice cube trays, cups or an anti-glutton bowl to place in the freezer for your dog to spend time licking it off,
- among other creative solutions!
During his meals without a bowl, it is important to watch your dog to make sure that he does not ingest pieces of plastic or cardboard and that he does not incur any risk during the activity. It is best to start with easy activities with dogs that are not used to them and gradually increase in difficulty. Vary the pleasures and offer your dog different activities every day.