Re: [pyrnet] Help- I've just rescued a Pyr Pup

["Tracy" <espinay@bigpond.com>]

<< I was wondering if anyone else has experienced their Pyr "killing" their
food? Cody will pounce at his milk bones and biscuits and jump back as if it
bit him. >>  Christine

This 'killing the food' is very natural canid behaviour and often seen in
young animals as they learn to hunt.  Sometimes adults will play just for
supposed 'fun' of it but it is more prevalent in young animals and tends to
fade as they mature and begin to hunt for real.

Domestic dogs, which on the whole tend to remain more 'juvenile' than their
wild relatives from a behavioural perspective will often display this type
of behaviour throughout their life.  Of course most of our dogs do not get
the opportuntiy to develop their skills beyond this 'mock hunt/kill' phase.

One of the thing that modern diets has thaken away from our dogs is the
ability to use their body and their brain when catching and eating their
food.  Instead of getting exercise through chasing/hunting, using their
problem solving skills in deciding the best approach to capturing their prey
and then using the muscles in their whole body as they rip, tear and crunch
their food, they gobble down a sationary bowl of mush and dry pebbles.  How
much fun is that.

There is a lot of benefit to be had in making a dog work a little for its
food both mentally and physically.  Even zoos recognise the value and
importance of 'enrichment' for animals and we can take many of those ideas
and apply them to our own domestic carnivores.  Dogs that are 'ho-hum' about
food may find enjoyment in food that arrives in interesting ways and dogs
that eat fast and look for more may be more satisfied with the extra effort
it takes to eat as opposed to sucking it up quickly from a bowl.  Here are a
few ideas I have extracted directly from an article of mine:

The Egg Hunt.  Hide a few tasty treats in different places around the yard
for your dog to find during the day.  Whole raw eggs are a popular treat for
my dogs and they love to seek them out from under bushes, in depressions or
holes in the ground or from behind on in the crevices of rocks.  Make it an
extra special game for Easter by painting the eggs with natural food dyes!
Don't confine yourself to eggs for this game though.  All sorts of treats
and objects can be hidden for your dog to find.

What's in the Box.  Most households have a few boxes lying around at one
time or another.  Use that cereal box, pizza box or egg carton, or even a
larger size packing box, to give your dog some fun.  Place a few tasty
treats and/or a favourite toy in the box and close or tape it up.  Your dog
can enjoy spending time ripping up the box to get to the reward.  Paper or
hessian bags also make good alternatives to boxes.  This is a big  favourite
with even my most picky eaters.

Totally Stuffed.  A partially hollowed out pumpkin, watermelon or other hard
skinned fruit or vegetable with goodies inside is a great alternative to the
cardboard box.  Try carving a Jack 'O' Lantern for a Halloween treat.

King Kong.  A Kong toy can be a great way to keep your dog busy and
stuffings can range from the ever popular peanut butter to more complex
creations.  Check out the many great ideas on how to use your Kong on the
Kong Company website:  www.kongcompany.com

Ice Ice Baby.  A great way to entertain your dog and cool him down in summer
is a block of ice!  Freeze water in an ice cream container to create a nice
large block.  Dropping a few treats in the water before you freeze can add
extra interest.  Try pieces of fruit, dried liver, some bits of sausage or
anything else you happen to have handy that your dog may like.  Simply pop
the block out of the container when it is frozen for your dogs knawing and
licking pleasure.

Dem Bones.  A nice raw meaty bone can keep your dog entertained and
satisfied as well as providing excellent exercise and teeth cleaning.  A few
tips for choosing bones for recreational chewing.  Large pieces of meat and
bone are best.  Things like kangaroo tails and whole lamb or beef necks are
great.  Avoid bones that have been cut up into smaller pieces with lots of
sharp artificial edges.  The bigger the piece, the better.  If your dog is a
heavy chewer however, it may be wise to limit the time they have access to
hard 'weight bearing' recreational bones like beef leg bones, as these can
cause tooth damage (remember, they have to be strong enough to hold up a
cow!).  NEVER feed cooked bones.  Cooking makes the bones dry and brittle so
they are more likely to splinter and cause problems in your dogs digestive
tract.  Don't forget to take meaty bones into account in your dogs overall
diet.  You don't want a fat dog!

Have fun

Tracy Bassett
Murrumbateman, Australia
espinay@bigpond.com