Article Title: How Your Dog Eats
Author: Kelly Marshall
Have you ever watched a dog eat its food? It's actually quite
entertaining, since it's so different from how a human being
eats. A dog can't eat the same way a person can. After all, a
dog has no hands; its jaws are suited for biting and cutting
vs. chewing; the dog doesn't have very many gag reflex nerves
in the back of its mouth (humans have many); and a dog has
fewer taste buds on its tongue yet a considerably keener sense
of smell.
The mechanics of a dog's mouth cause all dogs to eat the same
way. Sometimes an owner mistakes the dog's necessary means of
eating for the dog's apparent excitement for the attention and
the meal itself. It doesn't matter what breed of dog it is,
since all dogs eat the same way. By knowing and understanding
these mechanics, a dog owner will be better equipped to make
good decisions on what to feed their dog.
Have you ever watched a dog swallow its food? This normal
process is called "bolting." The dog will pick up a piece of
food with its front teeth. Then with a sudden, quick movement
of its head, the dog will toss that piece of food back onto the
top of its tongue. The piece of food is then rolled to the back
of the mouth, still without being chewed. As the food gets to
the base of the tongue, a reflex causes the back of the tongue
to push the food back and upward into the esophagus. The food
is carried directly into the stomach. Quite a process! This is
the most innately comfortable and satisfactory way of a dog
getting its food from its bowl into its stomach.
Sometimes the food given to (or found by) a dog is too big to
be swallowed; thus bolting does not work. When a piece of food
large, the dog holds the food with its paws and uses its front
teeth to tear off smaller pieces that can be swallowed. If the
food is too tough to be torn apart by their teeth, the dog will
cut it into pieces small enough to be swallowed, using two
specialized jaw teeth.
A dog has carnassial teeth that act like scissor blades which
can cut through such tough substances as muscle, hide, gristle,
and even bone. While the powerful jaw muscles of a dog are
useful for cutting chunks of food into smaller sized pieces
that can be swallowed, these muscles are used very little for
actually chewing those pieces.
Dog food companies take into account how a dog eats, making its
food the right size for the breed of dog. It's no surprise that
a Chihuahua would want to be fed smaller sized dog food pellets
than a German Shepherd! However, each of these dogs has adequate
teeth to be able to cut through the tough materials that dogs
used to have to eat when they were without commercial-grade dog
food, fed to them by their owners.
About The Author: One way to help your dog eat more efficiently
is to use a raised dog feeder. Elevated above the floor, they
aid digestion by reducing the amount of air intake, which can
reduce the chance of bloat. Find some nice designs at:
http://www.ohmydogs
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