# rest and play after eating



## PeanutsMommy (Dec 7, 2008)

how long should i have my dog rest after he eats a larger (1.7lb) half chicken meal? i do feed him 2 lbs a day because he is _that_ active for a medium dog.

nearly immediately after he eats he is ready to play. i try to keep him calm for around an hour but he gets so frustrated but i stand my ground to have him rest. i also have him really active a little while before he eats and rest him before time to feed him.

here is a photo of all the things he has brought be tonight after eating to get me to play with him


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## liquid (Dec 28, 2011)

If you havent already, try feeding your dog in his/her crate. :smile:
I feed my pup in her crate, and keep her in there for minimum half an hour after she's done eating, to keep her from running around and getting all crazy after mealtime.
At first she was antsy and ready to come out and play, but after a few days she understood that the order is food, rest, then play. Now after eating she'll lay down and relax until I let her out.


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## PeanutsMommy (Dec 7, 2008)

he doesn't do well in crates. i can crate him if i am willing to sit right in front of it the whole time like at dog events but if i walk away and someone else isn't right there he will break out or try to injuring himself. an aluminum crate would most likely work but i can't afford one. 

I try to force him to relax when i do not engage in play. he wants to play fetch so if i do not touch the toy he will think i don't want that toy so he gets another then another til i get a pile like in the picture. he eventually gives up and sleeps. not so much worried how to get him to not play as much as how long should i have him rest after he eats a meal like that before we can play again?
do you think an hour is sufficient?


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## DaneMama (Jun 27, 2008)

Play fetch with him before he eats. Feed right before you go to bed. That way he's forced to go to sleep right after eating.


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## liquid (Dec 28, 2011)

PeanutsMommy said:


> he doesn't do well in crates. i can crate him if i am willing to sit right in front of it the whole time like at dog events but if i walk away and someone else isn't right there he will break out or try to injuring himself. an aluminum crate would most likely work but i can't afford one.
> 
> I try to force him to relax when i do not engage in play. he wants to play fetch so if i do not touch the toy he will think i don't want that toy so he gets another then another til i get a pile like in the picture. he eventually gives up and sleeps. not so much worried how to get him to not play as much as how long should i have him rest after he eats a meal like that before we can play again?
> do you think an hour is sufficient?


I'd imagine an hour would be fine. Im guessing youre worried about bloat?


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## PeanutsMommy (Dec 7, 2008)

yes, i have an almost irrational fear of GDV since he really isn't much of a risk for it. that and i worry about possible indegested bones moving around.


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## luvMyBRT (Mar 8, 2010)

I've always waited a couple hours before playing. I have always had large breed dogs so I have always done this. Don't really know if it helps waiting that long for a dog not to bloat or get an upset stomach, but that's what I do to make me feel comfortable. :smile:

I like Natalie's suggestion too. If I know we are going to play hard I always do that before I feed.


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## jenv101 (Oct 13, 2010)

My two are the same way - I don't stop them from playing by themselves or with each other, but I do not do any formal exercise (fetch, walk etc) with them for at least an hour. If they want to wrestle or something I don't generally stop them and am not too concerned about it.


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## NewYorkDogue (Sep 27, 2011)

After eating his meal, my dog will usually pick up a stuffed toy, bring it to me and want to play. If I want to, I'll play a few minutes with him and then walk away. If not, I will ignore him and wait for him to settle himself. 

I am not worried about a few minutes of play right after eating (nothing rough or strenuous.) I liken it to feeling a bit of energy as a child after lunch/dinner before settling down...


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## PeanutsMommy (Dec 7, 2008)

okay i had a feeling that i was being more paranoid then anything else. i guess if he is feeling he can play he is good to go. it is just inside the house stuff like fetch for one of the toys in the picture. vigorous workouts are done earlier in the day before he has been fed a larger bone in meal. 

i just wasn't sure how the digestion happens with raw and if it was possible to get gdv or stomach upset after eating if he plays inside stuff.


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## Chocx2 (Nov 16, 2009)

I see you dock jump, lab? One of my labs is ready for fetching as soon as she is done eating, none stop. I try to stop her so she settles but doesn't happen. But, she has not vomited, or had bad thing happen to her after she eats because she played. And I mean she plays!!!


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## doggiedad (Jan 23, 2011)

i don't feed raw. if we're going out to exercise, play,
walk before a meal i wait 1 to 2 hours after we're
home before feeding. if i feed my dog before going out
for activities i wait 1 to 2 hours after he eats before going
out to be active.


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## PeanutsMommy (Dec 7, 2008)

Chocx2 said:


> I see you dock jump, lab? One of my labs is ready for fetching as soon as she is done eating, none stop. I try to stop her so she settles but doesn't happen. But, she has not vomited, or had bad thing happen to her after she eats because she played. And I mean she plays!!!


yes we do dock jumping  though he is an APBT i know not that common but he thinks he is a water dog anyways. yeah Peanut no sooner then i have everything cleaned up from his food he is trying to get me to play fetch with him. he is crazy. though tonight after dinner i allowed him to play with his big rudolph reindeer stuff that he entertained himself with after he seen that bringing me things to throw (his football tonight) wasn't working. his play alone was not too bad with that. 

doggiedad- i too wait to feed him after exercise. i do like to wear him out and let him relax for awhile (while i am thawing out works really well) i just don't know where he gets his extra energy boost after he eats its insane wish i could do that lol.


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## CorgiPaws (Mar 31, 2009)

Six of our seven dogs are very prone to bloat. (5 Danes, 1 boxer) so it is something we take precautions for. 

I generally feed the pack when they start to settle down from playtime, and refuse to entertain their ploys for attention until an hour or more after. I've also found that feeding right before I leave the house, or before bedtime is convenient, too. 

If you are that concerned, you can always have a gastropexy performed.


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## PeanutsMommy (Dec 7, 2008)

i don't think i am too worried about it to have a procedure done since he really isn't a candiate for it but i just worry about him getting too rowdy so long after he eats. i think we should be okay if we wait an hour.
thank you for the advice though.


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## bridget246 (Oct 26, 2011)

Bridget had food bloat once. We pushed her through it without surgery. She was one of the really lucky ones. After that I've been extremely careful about bloat. I can easily avoid how she managed to get bloat that time. I'm just afraid she might get it again later so I take extra precautions. No play before and after eating. 30 minutes before and 30 minutes after since right now I have her eating lighter meals. No heavy play for about hour or two after and a hour before.


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## eternalstudent (Jul 22, 2010)

I had this problem with Becka when she was a little pup, after being fed a kibble meal she would literally bounce of the walls. On the occasions I tried to time her out in the crate I was very worried about the damage she could do herself in the crate when bouncing of the walls!!!

When I switched to raw I have found that she wants to do something after eating, mostly its not super active but she is awake and wanting to chew, train, something. So she gets something, then its off to bed and some sleep.


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## rannmiller (Jun 27, 2008)

I just wanted to agree with DaneMama about this, just play really hard with him before eating and feed him right before going to bed so he's forced to rest or else force him to rest regardless. I have a tiny 45 lbs lab/pit mix with a bit of a barrel chest and even I worry about her bloating. All of my dogs were taught eventually that they have to relax for at least an hour after eating, so you're doing great there!



PeanutsMommy said:


> okay i had a feeling that i was being more paranoid then anything else. i guess if he is feeling he can play he is good to go.


I don't think so. Dogs don't always know what's best for them. In your case, I'd still make him rest if you're even a little bit worried about bloat.


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## PeanutsMommy (Dec 7, 2008)

you know, i don't think he knows what is best for him. he has tried to feed himself a few times and he is not good at it..he one time knocked over a box of dog food and fed himself the entire contents about 10 lbs of food. then he has also fed himself a few times with people food even ate thru a can of tuna once. he doesn't know what is best for him.

just curious but if he is feeling playful after eating can i do a little obedience training with him? such as distance stays for a duration of time? maybe have him think himself tired rather then play himself tired?


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## Scarlett_O' (May 19, 2011)

I make it bed time right after feeding, for Brody's sake mostly...as he doesnt care about eating, playing like crazy puking a couple times and reeating....so ALL toys go away, beds come out, I get either a book out, watch tv or am on the computer.
But biggest thing for us is ALL toys get put away.

When he was little I use to have a couple good "ok Im going to lay here now and chew" bones that I would give him......but now after learning from Rhett that even those can be thrown/tugged/etc even they get put away!:wink:


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## PeanutsMommy (Dec 7, 2008)

tonight after i fed Peanut I did my workout (Insanity). He knows when i do that i need him out of the way because i need a workout space. That worked he went right to sleep. he is actually still asleep right now. That may be something that I do to encourage him to rest for an hour after he eats its okay.


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## bridget246 (Oct 26, 2011)

PeanutsMommy said:


> just curious but if he is feeling playful after eating can i do a little obedience training with him? such as distance stays for a duration of time? maybe have him think himself tired rather then play himself tired?


Obedience training should be fine.


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