self feeders

odie · Post by **odie** » Mon Nov 27, 2006 9:50 pm

I have heard of some people having thier dogs on self feeders. Question is, when is it safe to do this? Is there an age that is too soon?

Post by **Ayres** » Tue Nov 28, 2006 9:04 am

It depends on the dog and the type of self feeder. If you get a self feeder that holds a lot of food (what's the point otherwise, right?) and the dog doesn't seem to self-regulate, then you could end up with a situation where the dog eats more than it should in a given time and become obese. If, on the other hand, your dog eats only as much as it needs in a given period, then you could probably use a self feeder with no problems.

It's probably a safe bet that most dogs don't self-regulate. Meaning, they will eat everything you put down for them. In that common case, a self feeder is probably not a good idea. Timed or portion feeding would probably be the way to go. (Portion feeding being my choice).

Donnerhund GWP · Post by **Donnerhund GWP** » Wed Nov 29, 2006 1:47 am

A Guy in our local NAVHDA chapter is said to have filled a feeder for one of his wirehairs. 3 weeks worth of food was gone the next day! He was so mad he made the dog fend for himself for 3 weeks before he fed him again.
I cannot confirm the accuracy of this story, but knowing Val.....Hmmmm! I wouldn't be suprised.

GsPJustin · Post by **GsPJustin** » Wed Nov 29, 2006 2:04 am

They have timed feeders that you can put a lot of food in, and it will only put out so much and one time.

Post by **ezzy333** » Wed Nov 29, 2006 8:26 am

Self feeders work well but I just don't like to feed a dog like that. A fdew dogs will over eat and get fat but many do just fine on them. Any dog will overeat the first day if he is hungry but will be ok afterwards.

My problem is I want to know if my dogs are eating every day and how much. I can tell more about how a dog is feeling at feeding time than any other time. Guess it is just a carry over of my days feeding hogs, cattle, sheep, and turkeys.

Ezzy

dog dr · Post by **dog dr** » Wed Nov 29, 2006 1:57 pm

i have 4 dogs on a self feeder and they all do great. they eat what they want when they want and none of them have ever gorged themselves.

Haile · Post by **Haile** » Mon Dec 04, 2006 8:29 am

I personally like to see how much my Dogs are eating and in what time frame it is eaten. I have always thought that self feeders were for the Lazy Dog Owner that didn't want/have time to feed their dog.

That being said, I am not casting stones on those that choose to use the self feeders, they have there purpose, just not for me.

Makes me wonder if there isn't time to feed the dog, is there time to clean the kennel?

gr_elliott · Post by **gr_elliott** » Mon Dec 04, 2006 9:29 am

I don't think it has anything to do with being lazy, I self feed my dog. It has been my experience that he knows how much food he needs a little more then I do.

that is a pretty big generalization to say that people that self feed their dogs are lazy and don't take good care of the dogs.

Haile · Post by **Haile** » Mon Dec 04, 2006 9:54 am

Haile wrote: That being said, I am not casting stones on those that choose to use the self feeders, they have there purpose, just not for me.

gr_elliott said:
that is a pretty big generalization to say that people that self feed their dogs are lazy and don't take good care of the dogs.

GR...as I stated, I am not casting stones at those who use Self Feeders, I just prefer to feed mine on a daily basis. On top of that, I feed 45 dogs a day so I know what a time saver Self Feeders would be but I choose not to use them at my Kennel.

Wagonmaster · Post by **Wagonmaster** » Mon Dec 04, 2006 12:54 pm

My two bits is that if you kennel dogs, you should not self-feed. I did not self-feed when I used to have a kennel full. If you feed them every day, it makes you go out there every day and pay attention to them, and check to make sure nothing is going wrong. If you keep em in the house where you can see them all the time, then go ahead and self-feed.

My experience with self-feeding is as ezzy describes, most dogs do just fine. They may overeat for a few days if they are not used to it, but it does not take long before they learn to moderate.