Q: Why does my dog always take her food far from her bowl before eating it?
Trini Abramowitz
New York, New York
Dear Ms. Abramowitz,
A:“Dogs can be funny, ritualistic creatures,” says the head of the
Tufts Animal Behavior Clinic, Stephanie Borns-Weil, DVM. One of those rituals can be taking food away from the bowl to eat it privately in another area of the house.
But some dogs might carry their food to a “far-away” place to make sure no one takes it. It is thought that a dog who sees herself as low in her social group might be more inclined to do that out of fear that some other dog could come and take her meal. It doesn’t matter that there may be no other dog in your home. Old genetically embedded habits die hard.
