Understanding and Using Elevated Dog Feeders

Using an elevated feeder for your dog can help promote hygiene and reduce stress and tension in the neck muscles dogs use when they have to bend all the way down to eat. Elevated dog feeders differ in their style, shape and over all sturdiness. To use an elevated feeders for your dog, you'll need to measure the height of your dog, pick the type you prefer and then set it out for your dog.

Before You Buy
Stand your dog on all four legs and hold your dog's chin straight out so it is parallel to the floor. Measure with a tape measure or ruler from the bottom of your dog's chin to the floor. Subtract two inches from the measurement you made. For example, if your measurement is 15 inches, then you want look for an elevated feeder that is about 13 to 14 inches in height. Elevated feeders come in fixed heights along with ones that allow you to adjust the height of the food and water bowls. Each type takes different sizes of bowls.

Picking the Elevated Feeder
Pick out an elevated dog feeder from your pet store or veterinarian's office using the measurement you wrote down. Some elevated feeders are conveniently labeled to indicate which breeds that particular feeder is best suited for. If you are not sure what type of breed your dog, ask your veterinarian.

Feeding Your Dog
Set the elevated feeder out for your dog in the place where it normally eats. Put water in one bowl. Bring your dog over to the new feeder to show it where the water is. Place your dog's food in the other bowl at the appropriate feeding time. If your dog will not warm up to the elevated dog feeder, then attempt to introduce it slowly. First, by placing it near where the dog eats and every few days moving it closer to where the dog actually eats. Second, place one bowl, but not the other, into the food dish and then after a couple of days put the other dish in as well.

Considerations
If you have more than one dog, consider getting an elevated feeder for each one so each will have access to both food and water at leisure. Some elevated feeders come with bowls already in them and others do not. If you have any doubts if your dog's bowl will fit one without, take your dog's food dishes to the store with you and try them out. If you notice your dog changes its eating behavior or patterns when you start using an elevated dog feeder, remove the bowls of food and water from it and remove the feeder from the area. If your dog does not resume its normal eating habits, have your dog seen by a qualified veterinarian to rule out any medical causes.