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Posted by KDiamondDavis on February 22, 2003 at 12:29:42:

In Reply to: Won\'t eat from bowl posted by Minuet on February 22, 2003 at 10:16:15:

:I have a 9 year old greyhound that has had several health problems in the past. She's had to have 1 1/2 toes removed and has kidney problems. She had to stay at the vet yesterday to have her teeth cleaned. After each vet visit where she has been required to stay for a day, she comes home more clingy than usual, crying, and won't eat from her bowl. She will eat if I hand feed her, or if I dump her food onto the floor or on top the lid where her food is kept. I can understand the clingy and crying, but any one have any idea why she won't eat out of her bowl? It is a plastic bowl that she has eaten out of for 7 years.

:Min>>>>

I avoid plastic bowls with dogs, and use stainless steel instead. They're not expensive (especially considering that the last forever), dogs can't chew them up, and they're extremely durable. Some dogs are allergic to plastic dishes.

Since she will eat from two other surfaces at these times, perhaps there is a smell to the bowl that makes her nauseous. Or the shape of the bowl is more difficult for her to get the food out. Or, the bowl doesn't stay firmly in place on the floor, and at these times she doesn't feel like dealing with that.

You might try a plate--but not a plastic plate. At my house, because of my arthritis and resulting tendency to drop things, our plates are Corelle. They seldom break if dropped, unless they happen to hit right on the rim, from a height, onto a very hard floor. You can buy these plates individually now in some stores. They can go right into the dishwasher (as can the stainless steel bowls). If you run your dishwasher all the way through the hot-air dry cycle, there's no fear about "dog germs" with the people dishes.

If you decide to try a stainless steel dish, she'd probably do best either with an elevated dish that has a stand to hold it stable, or at least the type with the heavy sides that make it less likely to slide around on the floor. If you then placed that type of stainless steel dish on a rubberized surface to prevent it from sliding, she'd likely be comfortable eating from it. Get one that is wide rather than deep. That will give it more weight, and will more ressemble the surfaces she seems to prefer.

Kathy Diamond Davis, author, "Therapy Dogs: Training Your Dog to Reach Others," 2nd edition, and the free Canine Behavior Series at www.veterinarypartner.com

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