Why does my dog want to be spoon fed? What to Know

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7 Reasons Why Your Dog Wants To Be Hand Fed:

Your dog probably wants to be hand-fed for the following reasons.

Why Dogs Want to Be Hand Fed

Separation anxiety is one possible clue as to why your dog wants to be hand fed, and that condition has many contributing factors. If your pup is a rescue, for instance, and certain triggers upset them, they might want to be hand fed as a form of comfort. Or your pooch doesnt like being home alone, and seeks more of your direct attention before you leave for work or when you return.

“We have a few dogs that board with us that will only eat if theyre hand fed,” says Sara Redding Ochoa, DVM, of Whitehouse Veterinary Hospital. “They may be unsure of their surroundings and not happy being left, and this is the only way we can get them to eat when they stay with us.”

Here are other potential reasons your pup might prefer nibbles from your palm:

  • Sickness: Sometimes when theyre under the weather, nurturing them with teaspoons of a bland diet assures they get some sustenance.
  • Multiple dogs: Many hungry pups at feeding time might cause chaos, resulting in some not getting enough to eat from the dog bowls.
  • Human conditioning: Your dog might be eating out of hand because of conditioned behavior created when they were sick or acting picky, during a switch in dog food, or they came from another situation—such as a shelter, foster family, previous owner, or breeder—where hand feeding was the norm.
  • Trauma: A negative event happened near the food bowl and now they associate eating out of a bowl with it. Likewise, if something scared them during feeding, like another dog or a loud noise, this fear may stick with them.
  • Too distracted: Dogs who are vigilant about monitoring their surroundings might be too preoccupied to take time away to eat from their bowl.

    • You’ve Reinforced The Behaviour

    Some dogs are people pleasers so when you feed them with your hands and praise them they associate it as good behaviour. The next thing you know is your dog won’t eat anything unless you feed them. They just really want to hear you call them a ‘good boy’ or a ‘good girl’.

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    Contrary to what you may believe or have heard, hand feeding your dog can actually be a good thing.

    Here’s a few reasons why you should consider hand feeding a few meals to your dog each week.

    1. Relationship and trust building. Hand feeding your dog teaches him that when you reach toward him good things happen, like he gets to eat! It also teaches focus since your dog is getting fed when he pays attention to you.

    2. Resource Guarding. Hand feeding can help a dog who is already a resource guarder and help prevent a dog from resource guarding. By only feeding your dog from your hand, you show her that you are the gateway to valuable things and when you reach into her space it means food.

    3. Impulse Control. Close hand feeding is accomplished by simply keeping your hand closed until your dog stops mugging you for the food. As soon as your dog backs away, looks away, or just stops pawing/licking at your hand, open your hand and feed him some food. Soon he’ll realize the quicker he shows self-control, the quicker he gets to eat.

    4. Inhalers. Feeding by hand will definitely help dogs who eat too fast. And it’s a bonus opportunity for you to get some training in at the same time. Practice some basic obedience skills between feeding your dog small handfuls of her meal.

    5. Shy or Fearful Canines. Dogs who are nervous around people benefit greatly from hand feeding, especially if you get other members of the family, and eventually friends and neighbors to hand feed your nervous dog too. Don’t rush this process, Start wherever your dog is most comfortable and gradually work up to more contact.

    For more tips and training advice, enroll in the AKC GoodDog! Helpline – a seven-day-a-week telephone support service staffed by experienced dog trainers: https://www.akc.org/wp-admin/admin-ajax.php Get Your Free AKC eBook