Darn it, chew your food!

[Tobysmom]

Toby vomited today and almost all of it consisted of whole peices of his food! I couldn't believe it. He has food available to him much of the day so I don't see why he feels the need to gobble it down without chewing. I am thinking maybe we should switch him to canned food instead. I don't know, what do you guys think?

 

[Squidbert]

My girl Tiki is the same way.. she doesn't throw up very often but when she eats she swallows it all so fast.. you might hear a couple crunches.. and when I give her treats she hardly ever chews it much. I keep telling her to slow down.. tasting the food is the BEST part.. but she won't listen!

 

[RedyreRottweilers]

Dogs are not designed to chew food.

Look in their mouth.

No grinding molars. They have teeth designed for holding, ripping, and slicing meat and bones.

Eating kibble whole is normal for dogs.

 

[Herschel]

Put a tennis ball or an "indestructible Kong" ball in the bowl so it slows him down!

Dogs are not designed to chew food.

Yeah, but my puppy sure enjoys chewing his food.

 

[Leslie + Chessies]

I slow my dogs down while eating by feeding them on a cookie sheet. It makes it a lot harder to gulp the food. Chessies are prone to bloat, so that's why I do this.

 

[LabBreeder]

Mine are a combo of the two. Most of the time they chew (you can hear it breaking and see them working on it) but sometimes they just swallow the pieces whole.

 

[ihartgonzo]

I never feed kibble in a bowl, for that reason and for other reasons. I fill Fozzie's Kong with kibble that has soaked in broth or warm water for a few minutes, and I either freeze that or feed it as is. I also put his kibble in a treat ball so he has to work for it. Fozzie also eats kibble quickly, and I worry about choking or bloat. Hope that helps!

But, if you think his vomiting is due to inhailing kibble, or you're very worried, by all means switch to a canned food. High quality canned foods contain more meat and are generally better for your pup, anyway.