Although we all love our dogs, you can drive yourself crazy trying to figure out some of the odd things they do. One of the most confusing is when your puppy won’t eat out of their food bowl, but instead chooses to do something you can’t explain.
Perhaps your pup:
- Grabs a mouth full of food and takes it to another part of the room?
- Won’t eat out of his new bowl?
- Sniffs the bowl but won’t eat?
- Doesn’t eat his food unless you’re nearby?
- Won’t eat from his bowl but will from your hand?
- Only eats if you hold the bowl?
Is any of this normal or do you just have a strange pooch? Let’s answer that before we dive into why they do these things, what you can do about them, and give you some training tips to get them back to the bowl!
Is It Unusual That My Puppy Won’t Eat From His Bowl?
It is actually quite common behavior for puppies to decide they’d rather not eat out of their bowl, as confusing as that might be for us dog owners.
It’s even more baffling when you consider the fact that we take great pride in providing our pooches a dinner service that provides a perfectly clean and comfortable location for them to enjoy their meal.
And, even worse than them not appreciating the clean place that we provide, they leave behind crumbs and bits and pieces of food on the carpet. I’ve tried to get my dog to go behind himself to clean up his mess, but he still doesn’t do it. Sigh… what can we do?
We’re going to look at some of the reasons that may explain why your dog is being weird about eating from his bowl, but first let’s go over some important information.
What You Should Do First – Important!
Consult with your veterinarian. Do this before attempting to “cure” your dog of his behavior problem. They should be able to recommend the perfect food for your dog by taking into account his individual nutrition needs, based on his breed, age, etc. They can also tell you how much you should be feeding him.
It is also possible that your dog could be suffering from a health problem that is causing him to not want to eat out of his bowl, and it’s best to have this ruled out before you do anything else.
If your dog has stopped eating altogether for more than 24 hours, you definitely need to take him to the vet.
Also consider the history of your pup before beginning to train him. He might have some kind of trauma now if he has ever had a bad food bowl experience.
Has he ever been scared by something while eating out of it? A loud noise, something falling over, or thunder, for example, may have startled him.
There is a possibility that something could have happened before he came to live with you.
As with anything in dog training, you’ll need to be patient and remember that your puppy’s behavior won’t always change instantly.
Top 6 Reasons as to Why Your Puppy Won’t Eat From His Bowl (Plus How To Get Him To!)
1. The Wrong Bowl
It could be that your furry friend does not like his bowl for the simple reason that it annoys him. Many times us humans are put into a position where the things around them annoy them for one reason or another. Dogs can be the same as well.
What could annoy him about a food bowl? I’m glad you asked. Here are some possibilities:
- It has a color that bothers him.
- It has a texture that he is sensitive to.
- There is a smell that he doesn’t like.
- The sound of his metal dog tags clanking against the side of the metal bowl bothers him, or the sound of kibble in the bowl.
- His bowl moves while he eats, or makes a scraping sound on the floor as it does.
- He’s previously had a bad experience while eating from a similar bowl.
Regardless of the reason or how suddenly it has come on, if he doesn’t like the bowl, then he doesn’t like the bowl. Your dog retains the right to be a fussy furball.
My dog has had bowls he wasn’t keen on, for reasons still unknown to me.
What Should I Do?
Replace his food bowl with a new one. If he doesn’t like how it looks, feels, or sounds he will refuse it until it is perfect. It really could be as simple as giving him a new bowl!
First of all, if he does have tags that are clanging against the bowl, try removing them while he eats to see if that makes a difference.
If that’s not it, get him a bowl that is completely different to the one he has now: one that is made from a different material and is a another color.
If the bowl moves around, try one with a rubber grip on the bottom to keep it in place.
Be aware that your puppy may have got into the habit of not eating from his bowl, so you might have to also try some of the tips and tricks further down to convince him to give it another go.
2. The Wrong Food
He eats it because he’s hungry, not because he likes it. Him grabbing a mouthful at a time and carrying it away is his way of protesting.
You may have changed his food recently and he doesn’t like what you changed it to.
If your dog won’t eat dry food from his bowl, but he will eat wet food, there’s a good chance he just doesn’t like dry food.
He could also have had enough of eating the same meal everyday, and is craving something different.
What Should I Do?
First of all make sure you’re giving him the right food.
A puppy should have puppy food. Puppy foods will normally be higher in protein and fat, and lower in carbohydrates, than adult dog food. They also have more ingredients that are appealing to a puppy’s sense of taste and smell. Of course, as your dog grows up he will need to switch to regular food.
If it is just dry food your pup won’t eat, add some warm water to make it softer for him.
It is possible he may have gotten bored with the flavor, so you could add some chicken broth, beef stock, or a little extra gravy to give it a flavor boost and change things up for him.
3. The Wrong Place
For whatever reason, he simply doesn’t like the environment where his bowl is placed, and would prefer to eat somewhere else.
What Should I Do?
If possible, move his bowl to a different location. If not, try to figure out what might bother him about that environment:
- Are there noises?
- Is something touching him while he eats?
- Is it hot or cold?
- Anything else distracting?
- There could also be a smell he doesn’t like, one you’re not aware of with your average nose!
After you’ve eliminated anything he might not be happy with, try some of the tips & tricks below.
Note: if you’ve trained your dog to eat in a certain place and you move his bowl, you may need to let him know it’s OK for him to eat at the new location. I moved my dog’s bowl once and he sat patiently waiting at the usual spot until I called him over to the new place and praised him – such a good boy!
4. Natural Instinct
Perhaps your dog is simply doing what his instincts tell him to do. Dogs are animals that are heavily influenced by their instincts. In the wild, dogs typically have to drag anything they want to eat away because if they don’t then others in the pack will try to eat it or steal it away.
What Should I Do?
If it’s simply instinct making him take his food elsewhere, he will likely grow out of it withing a few weeks or months as he realises there is no threat.
Be sure to give him space to eat – especially from other dogs who might actually steal his food given the opportunity!
You could also try limiting how far he can actually take the food; he may well decide it’s not worth the effort moving it just a short distance away.
5. Unwanted Attention
He may have become a bit self-conscious. He has decided that he would like a bit of privacy while he eats his dinner instead of dining in front of everyone.
It is easy to get distracted when everyone is watching the puppy eat. He may become very concerned with what everyone is doing, or he will become overly protective of his food and try to carry it away.
If he’s taking the food to a more secluded spot, this may well be the problem.
What Should I Do?
You could move his bowl to a more private area so that he will only be concerned with food.
If he likes to be alone while he eats, respect that.
6. Protection
He feels protected with you there. If your dog doesn’t eat his food unless you’re looking at him or standing near him, this is likely the case.
He’s more off guard while he’s eating, so he wants you to be around while he does it because he trusts you and knows you’ve got his back.
So if he’s following you with a mouthful of food, now you know why!
Your puppy only eating from your hand, or only eating if you hold the bowl, are also likely caused by this. You can find solutions to these specific problems under the FAQs at the bottom of the page.
What Should I Do?
If your puppy wants you to stay and watch over him while he’s enjoying his meal, do that. He may well look round now and again to check you’re still there.
Over time you can gradually start to move further and further away until he no longer needs you there at all.
If he actually needs you looking at him, get him used to you not doing so first. Only watch him until he starts or resumes eating, then look away again. He’ll eventually get over it.
Tips & Tricks
If none of the above is helping, here are some additional things you can try:
Giving him some special treats
It won’t take more than a few tasty treats in his bowl for him to give in and return to using it. Put some in his bowl every other night.
Smear some peanut butter in the bowl
Dogs love peanut butter and he’s going to have to lick the bowl if he wants it! Make sure it is natural/organic and, importantly, does not contain Xylitol: a sugar-free sweetener that is great for humans, but extremely toxic to dogs, even in small amounts.
Don’t feed him peanut butter too often: it should be used as an occasional treat.
Limit the time he has to eat
Put his bowl of food down for a short period of time. About 10 – 15 minutes is good. Then take it away and don’t put it back down again until the next meal time: be that several hours or the next day.
Scarcity is a very motivating factor. In the wild, dogs eat whenever food is available as they don’t know when the next meal will come. If there is always food out for him to eat, he will lose this natural instinct.
You cannot train your dog to eat from his bowl unless he is hungry.
Obviously make sure he knows it’s there! Choose a command such as “Let’s eat!” or “Time for dinner!” to use. To avoid confusion, you should always place his food dish in the same place each time.
Final Thoughts
You want to teach your dog that:
- A bowl is the only place from which he should be eating.
- When his food is placed in front of him he should eat it straight away.
During the first few weeks of life, your dog got all of his nutrition from his mommy dog’s milk, but there comes a time when he should start eating from his bowl. This will not only make your life a lot easier, but you will also be able to keep a much closer eye on how much and how often he eats.
They say you can’t teach an old dog new tricks, but it really isn’t very difficult to teach a dog of any age to eat from a bowl.
Be sure you’ve checked with your vet which food he should be eating and how much, and ruled out any health problems.
Remember that though it may seem odd to us for your dog or puppy to carry his food away, it is a behavior that is very common and is also very normal.
Your dog or your puppy has a mind of his own, and he has a very distinct personality. Many times your dog is going to do things that you don’t understand, but that does not mean that he doesn’t know what he is doing.
As long as he is eating his food, then maybe it is not something that you should be too concerned about, at least while he’s only a few months old. Let him be a puppy.
Puppy Food Bowl FAQs
Why won't my puppy eat from his bowl but will from my hand?
If your puppy will only eat if hand fed, he most likely doesn't like the bowl or feels protected when you feed him.
Try changing the bowl, but if that doesn't help then follow these steps:
1. Start hand feeding him over his bowl, in the place where it will usually be.
2. Have the food on one side of the bowl with a space for your hand on the other.
3. With every handful of food you give him, move your hand a little lower into the bowl, until your hand is flat on the bottom.
4. Once he's finished the food in your hand, he should naturally continue eating the rest from the bowl.
5. If he doesn't, slide your hand under the food in the bowl so it's harder for him to tell the difference.
6. Once he's eating from the bowl, give it a few seconds and you can just slowly slip your hand out.
He may stop eating the first few times you remove your hand: just put it back in until he continues eating. Keep at it and he will eventually get the idea.
My dog only eats if I hold the bowl - why?
If your dog only eats if you hold the bowl, this is likely because he feels safe while you're feeding him.
Try the following to get him used to eating on his own:
1. Make sure you are in the place you would like him to go to eat.
2. Hold the bowl and start feeding him from it.
3. Gradually lower it to the ground while he eats.
4. Very slowly release the bowl until you have only fingertips on it.
5. Remove one hand then the over - again, slowly.
6. If he stops eating at any point, do these actions in reverse until he resumes, then try again from that point.
Be patient and keep going: eventually you'll get there.
Why is my dog not eating his food but will eat treats?
If your dog won't eat his food but will wolf down treats, this is simply because he prefers the taste of treats and you give him enough that he doesn't need to eat his food!
Unfortunately, the same as with people, it is not healthy for dogs to survive on treats alone. Much as we may like to, we can't live on a diet of just chocolate or ice cream - and dogs are no different.
The best way to reverse this dependency is just to stop giving the treats until he's eating his food again.
It will also help if you make his food a little tastier: for example, try adding some chicken broth to his meal and watch him gobble it up!
My dog sniffs the bowl but won't eat - what's that about?
A dog sniffing his bowl but not eating is probably down to one of two things:
1. He doesn't like the food (or he's bored of it)
Your dog will have his own preferences for food, so if you've switched it recently he may not like the new one you've got him.
Alternatively, if he's been eating the same meal day in, day out for a while, he may have got fed up of it: even if you had your favourite dish everyday, wouldn't you still crave something different after a while?
Try a different food or add some beef stock or chicken broth to make it more appealing.
2. The bowl smells funny to him
We all have things that we just find off-putting for no particular reason, and so will your dog. The smell of his bowl may be one of these things, and it will be especially bad with his hyper-sensitive nose!
Get him a new bowl, ideally made from a different material: he may simply not like the smell of metal or plastic or whatever his bowl is made from.
Feature image by Kacper Chrzanowski
