Question:
Once a day, when we feed our two Maltese dogs, they each consume what's in their separate bowls and never bother each other. Later in the evening, however, when we give each a small rawhide chew bone with chicken jerky tucked inside, a curious pattern of behavior almost always emerges.The female will start in on her bone for about four minutes, then she'll watch the male, who has more powerful jaws and has reduced his bone to a softened state. She edges closer and lets him know that she wants his treat. He ignores her until he's satiated, then he'll drive her off with a good-natured snap. Sometimes, though, he'll leave her his treat and go get hers, and she's agreeable to that and happy at last with his treat.Is this typical behavior for the female? She'll even go to the back door, barking to go out, and when the male leaves his bone, she runs back after it. (The male has caught on to this ploy and usually gets back first.).
J.H., Springfield, Mo Oct 15, 2006
Answer:
First, I would advise feeding your dogs two small meals a day -- one in the morning and one in the early evening. Most dogs do better on this regimen rather than on a single daily meal.The rawhide-bone ritual that you describe is a game your dogs have developed, and it does indeed reveal the female's insightful and manipulative behavior. One of my dogs uses the bluff alarm bark to distract our other dogs so she can steal a toy or bone.A VERY GOOD READRarely do I get books to review that provide so much information on a particular subject, and enrich my understanding and appreciation of animals wild and domestic. Jonathan Balcombe has written such a book, titled "Pleasurable Kingdom: Animals and the Nature of Feeling Good." (MacMillan, 2006). For more information, go to www.pleasurablekingdom.com.
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