How Dogs Eat

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Consuming food or as many refer to as eating, is something that all living things must do to survive. All animals have different ways of eating, and to some people the eating behavior of a guard dog, or any other dog for that matter may seem a little strange. However, to the dog this is the most comfortable way of getting the food into its stomach. "Bolting", it the term used to describe the normal swallowing pattern for a guard dog. There are certain steps that a dog goes through while bolting. First, the dog picks up a piece of food with its teeth, and then tosses the piece of food onto the top of its tongue with a short, quick thrust of its head. Next, without being chewed the piece of food is rolled to the back of its mouth. When the food reaches the base of the tongue, the food is upward and backward into the esophagus by a reflex of the tongue. After this, the piece of food is finally carried to the stomach.

If a piece of food is too large to be swallowed, the dog will then make it so that it is a swallowing size. The dog will hold the food with its paws and using its front teeth will tear it into smaller pieces. If it is too tough to be torn by using its paws, the dog will resort to another method. The dog will cut it into small enough pieces by using two specialized jaw teeth, called carnassial teeth. These teeth have large shearing surfaces that act like scissor blades, which can cut through practically anything. The can cut through tough surfaces like hide, gristle, muscle, and even bone. Although dogs have powerful jaw muscles that are useful for cutting food into swallowing size, they are use very little for chewing the pieces. This is because dogs have a small amount of teeth and they are not equipped for mastication.

Many guard dog owners believe that each breed should be fed differently. However this is not true because the eating behavior of a certain dog, is the eating behavior of the whole species. It is simply because all dogs eat the same. When feeding your Protection Dogs there are some general considerations that can be made. Dogs are not required to eat food like humans, because dogs do not have hands. Their jaws are suited for biting and cutting, not chewing. Dogs rarely gag because they have few gag reflex nerves at the back of their mouth. Dogs also have very few taste buds on their tongue, but have an amazing sense of smell. Overall when feeding your Personal Protection Dogs it is important to realize that they eat much differently from us and the way they eat is normal for them.