# carrying food dish around



## treeclimber233 (Aug 16, 2013)

I have been having problems feeding Drift lately.  Since the weather has gotten hotter he is eating less and losing weight (normal for this time of year) so I have tried to feed him in the stall where it is darker so the chickens and turkeys don't eat his food.  I throw feed around for the chickens and turkeys and while they are busy and distracted I take his food into the stall.   Then I feed the goats their grain.  Then when I turn around there is Drift with his food bowl out in the pen.  Sometimes (if I am not fast enough) he will go into the feed room where his bucket is and carry it out into the pen and help himself. Does anyone else have a dog that does not want to eat alone?  Silly dog.....


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## terrilhb (Aug 17, 2013)

I am anxious to hear the answer to this. My dog Gallagher has just started doing this too. And in the process he dumps the food every where. I never know where I will find his bowl or his brothers. He will pick up his brothers bowl too.


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## Southern by choice (Aug 17, 2013)

I have the answer.............

are you ready????
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It is because the highly intelligent Livestock Guardian Dog MUST every once in a while do something to throw their loving masters off guard. It is their way of showing their superior intelligence .... you see they are laughing at us- watching us all scratch our head and desperately trying to read the psychological behaviors in our dogs..... you see they are testing us... trying to watch human behavior and reach a conclusion as to why we are so neurotic when they do this!     

Just kidding... I have no idea either... my Amy will often take her bowl and dump all the food and "bury it".  All of mine have "their" buckets too.   Females will do crazy things like this hen they are cycling ...but sure doesn't explain the boys!  Sometimes it can be a sign of stress but with LGD's... well they are their own "SPECIES" in my book.... I just roll with it!


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## terrilhb (Aug 17, 2013)

Oh darn Southern. I thought you had the answer.   I guess you are right. But can you tell me why mine after carrying it around all of a sudden decided to eat it? Seriously ate part of it. After a year of not doing it. LOL


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## secuono (Aug 17, 2013)

Yea, I would just use a bucket that can be clipped to the wall and move on. If the animal doesn't want to eat from the tied down bucket, it's not going to eat that day. I don't let any animal screw around with me about being fed.


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## purplequeenvt (Aug 18, 2013)

Mine used to dump her food on the ground and then eat it piece by piece. Now she eats all in one sitting because if she doesn't, the calf or sheep will steal it.


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## Robbin (Aug 19, 2013)

I bought a large dish from tractor supply that slopes up to the top and has a rubber ring around the bottom.  Toli can't pick it up, lord knows he tries....  All the other dishes get picked up and hauled off. 
The only one he doesn't try to haul off is the water bucket, but I think he has tried when it's full, and it was too heavy.   I also found that if I put fresh food out just before I go to bed, he will eat it while it's cool overnight.  If I put it out in the morning, it's absorbed too much moisture from the humidity and he won't eat it when it's finally cool enough to stimulate his appetite.

Toli will be 6.5  months when he goes to the vet Friday.  I'll post a pic (while he is clean) with a good weight from the vet.   He really is a beautiful Anatolian.


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## Baymule (Aug 19, 2013)

My GP dumps her food out and rolls the stainless steel pot around. I had a lighter weight stainless steel dog dish and she took it under the deck, have never seen it again.


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## Stubbornhillfarm (Aug 20, 2013)

My guess...and completely a guess:  You have a worker there.  He wants to be with his charges especially if they are in the process of eating and making all kinds of movement and such.  If he is in the stall, he can hear them, but can't see them (I assume).  My guess it he is really just doing his job.  

Could you put his bowl in the pen on top of something so that he could stand and eat and the chickens and turkeys wouldn't get to it so quickly?  Just a thought.

They are unique dogs aren't they?  Always keep us thinking!


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## treeclimber233 (Aug 20, 2013)

Well the problem is I can't get him to eat much at a time. He only eats "some" and wanders off.  That is when the chickens and turkeys start gobbling it up.  That is why I was trying to feed him in the stall where it was kinda dark and they could not see the food.  I guess I need to go back to feeding him after dark and the chickens and turkeys are roosting.


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