Linda Carter, Professional Dog Trainer

Boo-Boo Inc

Linda Carter - Professional Dog Trainer - Sarasota, Florida, USA

Building a Better Bond through training. Train your dog or your dog will train you!

Pet Dog Trainer, Dog Training, Dog Obedience Training, Service Dog Training,

Assistance Service Dog, Service Dog Trainer, Service Dog Group

Articles Classes/Privates Links Meet Linda Positive Training Service Dogs Shopping

Meals vs. Free Feeding

Good reasons to feed your dog meals instead of free feeding (having food available to your dog all the time):

A dog's digestive system is designed to gorge not graze.
You can monitor your dog's intake and know the instant your dog goes off its feed, which is often the first sign that your dog is not feeling well.
Your dog will have no opportunity to learn to guard its food.
You can use your dog's meal time for short training sessions. Think of feeding your dog its meals as an opportunity to practice your WAIT training. Work on SIT/WAIT and DOWN/WAIT before giving your dog its meal.
By feeding your dog meals, you can reinforce your role as leader and promote a healthy relationship with your dog. "All good things come from you!"
You can control your dog's weight.
Feeding Meals vs. Free Feeding will help spark your dog's appetite.

Feed your dog from stainless steel bowls, as they won’t leach chemicals into the food like some plastic bowls will.

Give your dog 5-10 minutes to finish its meal. Then pick up the bowl whether your dog has finished its meal or not. Don’t feed your dog again until its next mealtime.

Feed your adult dog 2 meals a day and try to feed at the same time each day.

Articles Classes/Privates Links Meet Linda Positive Training Service Dogs Shopping