shore

There's only one of my dogs who takes more than about 30
seconds to polish off a meal (most of them get about 1 cup
per meal). One of the big, big advantages of having
structured meals of limited duration is that it discourages
picky eaters. Karen Ramstead has said that the first time a
dog skips a meal it's his idea, and the second time it's
hers, and consequently she doesn't have fussy eaters (me,
either). The food goes down at the same time every day,
they have a limited time to eat it, and if any food is left
in the bowl the bowl is picked up. If they outright skip a
meal and are otherwise acting healthy, they don't get the
next one. In theory - I haven't had to do that for over a
year, probably closer to two.

I think it's also useful to help recognize when there's a
health issue going on - if mealtimes are routine it's easier
to tell when the routine is disrupted.
--
Melinda Shore - Software longa, hardware brevis - shore@panix.com

Prouder than ever to be a member of the reality-based community