She wants to eat, eat, and then eat some more!

[pumpkinbutt]

I have a 3-4 year old chocolate lab named Sadie. She was rescued from the pound 2 years ago. Ever since I brought her home she has gone nuts over food. She gobbles her food up in less than 2 minutes! The "ultra long lasting chews" make it maybe 4-5 minutes before meeting their demise, and the extra-large dog biscuits never touch the floor. The cat food has to be put on a high shelf where she can't reach, and she has to go outside or to a separate room when the puppy eats.

She has had a physical exam and there is no medical reason behind it. I thought the behavior would go away once she realized she was cared for and wasn't going to starve, but no such luck.

Any suggestions?

Jen

[rutylr]

Maybe she was not allowed alot of food where she was before.
Some times dogs who have been fed just enough to keep them a live.Will quick eat the food before it is taken away from them.

[dogforever]

Agreed with rutylr ... may be she wasn't allowed a lot of foods ....

[Tulip]

Poor Sadie, it sounds like that could be the reason. Perhaps you should try things like small amounts more often so that she knows it's a regular thing and doesn't excel all her energy in one go.

[StarfishSaving]

The reason is this:

"I have a 3-4 year old chocolate lab."

lol Joking but at the same time, this is a breed of dog known for their love of food. Seriously, just google "Labs love to eat" and you'll get tons of pages even with that obscure phrase.

I wouldn't be worried. You'll just have to manage her. You can try feeding her in small meals throughout the day, and even mix some veggies (green beans are great empty calories) as filler so she's less hungry. But chances are, she's just going to always want to eat. I've only met a handful of labs that didn't eat like hogs, and they were usually ones with other problems (fearful or shy, etc.)

Beagles are another top breed when it comes to chow-hounds. Like labs, they seem to not care what it is they're eating and how much they've had, they just want more. I got the best of both worlds in Buddy, my beagle/lab mix!

[canadianfreespirit]

I was watching a dog training show this morning, called At The End Of My Leash. it features a guy named Brad Pattison, who is abrasive, and really in your face, but he has excellent knowledge of both canine and human psychology. the dog this morning was a beagle who was something in the area of 25lbs overweight. this dog was a champion pig. it jumped right up onto the table, opened the cupboard door and ate the trash, it was into everything. but, by the end of the show (which I think was 4-6 weeks real time), he was down in weight, and was getting regular exercise. he had also been taught to only eat his dog food.
Brad is not for the faint of heart-he can be rather frightening, but a lot of what he says works for me. although I know other people who disagree on that.