Who Should Be The First to Eat? You or Your Dog?

Like any dog training advice, there are always different views on when the dog should be fed—before or after the owner’s meal.

Owner Should Have His Meal First

Many dog training books advocate owners to have their meal first before attending to their dog’s needs. The principle behind this approach is to establish and/or reinforce your status as the Top Dog.

In the wild, the pack leader (Top Dog) enjoys the first taste of the kill and is able to choose the tastiest and nourishing portions of it. If a lesser dog manages to take food from a more dominant individual, he will rarely be challenged. What this translates to domesticate dog is that he sees himself as of equal status as you are. You will have a harder time to put forth your commands if your dog is consistently getting his meal before yours; either by begging from your dinner plate or be fed first.

The Dog Should Be Fed First

While there are other trainers encourage owners to feed their dogs before themselves. They believe that “A good farmer should always put his animals first.” From this perspective, if the farmer (owner) feeds his animals (dog) and then goes elsewhere to feed himself, he would be able to enjoy his meal in peace as it prevents the dog from begging at the table.

Needless to say, this is a conflicting advice from the above approach as this would encourage the dog to think he is the leader of the pack and it also encourages dominance.

The Better Approach

Personally, I don’t fully endorse one approach over the other. As a matter of fact, I use both methods at the same time which I think it makes more sense to me without having to compromise my status as the Alpha Dog.

From human perspective, my dogs are fed first. But from my dogs’ perspective, I’m the pack leader who enjoys the first taste of the “kill.”

How is this possible you might ask?

Rule #1. Always fill your dog’s bowl on the counter. Most owners who feed their dog commercial food i.e. kibbles, usually pour them into the bowl on the floor in front of the dog.

Rule #2. Nibble or delay his food. While your dog is watching his meal prepared at the counter, pretend to nibble at his food before you put it down to remind him of your status in his pack. If you don’t feel comfortable “acting out,” what you could do is to delay his meal just a little bit longer from a set time.

What I usually do is set their placemats after I’d prepared their meal. I’d then go clean up their bathroom so that they’ll have clean potty pads right after their meal. And then I’d place their bowls on their miniature table. Of course, do wash your hands thoroughly before you serve. =)

Rule #3. Allow him to catch his nap. Once your dog is through with his meal and potty, he is most likely to find his quite place to rest.

Only at this time, you will be able to enjoy your meal in peace. Of course, there’ll always be a few exceptional cases where some dogs are forever hungry no matter how much you’d fed him prior to. Gluttonous dogs, a topic that deserves its own post, which I will share in near future.

Anyway, whichever method you choose to follow, the most important detail is to establish a routine that suits both you and your dog and sticking to it for good.