My lab is ruining her own little life :(

[Narwhalelife]

Hi all,

We currently have 2, 1 year old labradors, chocolate boy (accident baby after we took him on when a friend couldn’t care for him anymore) and our black girl.

These are labradors 3 & 4 for us so we are pretty hot on all things lab.

Thing is, our girl is obsessed with food (not unusual) but it ruins her life. She spends all day waiting for her next food. So from about 2pm she is asking (loudly) for dinner due at 6pm! Every time we move she runs to the kitchen, she stares at us, cries and is just sad for hours every day waiting for dinner.

Her ‘brother’ loves his grub and will hover around the kitchen about 5pm but she is obsessed.

She is well exercised - we live in the countryside, massive garden, swimming a couple of times a week, down the stables etc, she is very well trained (including a couple of little clever tricks), she is really smart, loves to learn and was by far the easiest lab we have ever trained!

She was spayed in March 2022 and didn’t change this at all.

I work from home 3 days a week so they are rarely left alone (so we haven’t ever forgotten to feed her 🙄)

I honestly have never heard or seen anything like this!

We don’t want her wasting her life stressing about dinner - how can we help her?

What about a king with some banana or yoghurt in? Does she have antlers/horns to chew ?

Wow, thank you for all the responses, I can’t respond to all of them as we are off on holiday this morning with the dogs!! 🥰 camping in Shropshire we can’t wait! I’m hoping the break may break her routine a bit 😬 as it’s her first (of many) holidays.

But I will definitely try the large Kong with dried fruit/ treats in it and the frozen lick mats! They did have lick mats, but I made the mistake of giving them one each when I popped out and they both chewed them to tiny tiny bits 🤦‍♀️🤣

she has breakfast at 7am, frozen chicken wing (but going to increase to drumstick) at 12pm then dinner at 6pm, bed time biscuit at about 10pm. She also gets treats after a walk and after her tricks bless her.

i also really like the idea of hiding treats in the garden for her to find she would love that!!

Once she is 2 we are going to start agility (my other girl lab did this) and it will mean she can have a bit more food due to the training required so that might please her.

it is a Labrador’s thing to be food obsessed, but hoping these tips will help her settle down.

should also say, that she doesn’t raid the bins, doesn’t even look at them - she is far too respectable to bin raid 🤣my boy is not 🤣🤣

Join Canine enrichment on FB. There are lots of slow feeder ideas on there.

Honestly as vet nurse most of the raw fed patients I see are underweight and underfed and ravenously hungry, many have serious health issues due to nutritional deficiencies.
Also one or 2 meals a day in a bowl is completely unnatural for dogs. I would feed all your dog's food to her using puzzle feeders/mats, scatter feeding etc, but I would also switch to a decent propriety dog food. If you're feeding your own homemade raw diet it is highly likely to be nutritionally balanced.

*Unbalanced!

I have a non food obsessed lab, but actually lot of the things suggested to keep a hungry lab busy and occupied are the same things I use to encourage mine to eat - she was never a fan of eating from a bowl.

Kong wobbler didn't work for us, but various Nina Ottoson puzzle toys and a Gnawt-a-Rock were a big success.

Yes there’s a huge difference between DIY homemade raw diets and nutritionally
compete raw diets from places like Paleo, Naturaw, etc.

😂😂😂

I see no reason at all why cheese and raisins in a wobble Kong could not become a toddler trend 🙌🙌🙌

Don't give dried raisins, sultanas etc.

Our vet advised slow release complex carbs to try to make our lab feel fuller longer - and less protein. He’s a typical lab appetite wise but now on steroids every month his appetite is off the charts. Permanently begging & crying. Rabid for food. We also feed smaller x 3 a day. You say your lab is so switched on - could she have something over stimulating her appetite? Although you say health wise she’s perfect. V frustrating & heartbreaking too watching them suffer because of their appetites. Could she have an endocrine or hormonal issue affecting her appetite??

@Anonaymoose hello, they are on a complete raw diet, bit homemade but I do add bits and bobs like chicken legs/wings, fruit, veg, etc I have 2 labs and neither are under weight. Both are weighed at the vet every 3 months for their worming tablets (as I have the prescription ones for lung worm too).

I am pleased to say that since we have returned from holiday 2 days ago , she seems to have really settled down! It has reset her routine I think, and she started to ask for her dinner about 5pm last night which is much more acceptable. I do/did wonder whether my strict work from home routine had fried her brain a bit and she just became obsessed with what was coming next be that food, a walk, obedience training etc.

We went away with 2 pointers so she (and her brother) have had the best time swimming, running, playing etc and she seems (pleasantly) surprised everytime the food/ treats came out bless her as she was distracted pretty much the whole time with new friends and freedom.

She is also starting beginner agility next week, so with the increase in exercise I will increase her food a touch to accommodate.

Thank you all for your replies and suggestions though, like kids each dog is different no matter how many you have and every day is a school day! 🥰

@Anonaymoose * that’s should say not homemade

This sounds great, do you have a link please?

I had that exact thought before reading your comment Maybe one for chocolate buttons and one with a straw attached for wine!

My lot get frozen kongs, I make them hard, chunks of carrots wedged in, plus a handful of decent kibble strewn across the lawn, they spend ages snuffling round for that. It may be that she's just attention seeking. Hopefully she will continue as she is now, sounds like she's re-set herself.