Sheltie Foraging

[Sheltiez4evr]

My Whisper, left on her own devices for half an hour this afternoon, managed to 'forage' our cat's food bowl not once, but twice.

There's a half door with a cat flap to protect kitty's area. We fallible humans have left it open a time or two, and Whisper, apparently, has developed a taste for Hills Indoor Cat Senior Formula Most unhealthy. But, apparently, delicious.

Camera is up and we're trying to capture a vid of how she's getting in.

Now, we know that Shelties are, historically, foragers.

So, do your dogs forage in the house as Whissy does? What's their favorite target?

 

[MissyGallant]

Clara has learned to climb the cat tree to get to their yummy food. And somehow, yesterday, Casey got a package of hot dog buns off the counter and helped himself. There was a very small rip in the package, so he must have really had to work to get them out, because there wasn't a crumb left inside.

 

[Watson's Mom]

I keep the cat food on what would normally be a window seat.. so, maybe 2 feet off the ground... All Watson would need to do is hop his front paws up on there and he would have a little cat chow buffet. I'm not sure if he's not smart enough to have tried, smart enough to know if it's not in his bowl it's not his, or if he doesn't care for cat food. But either way, I'm glad he hasn't tried it!

 

[JacqueZ]

Honey is all about foraging the cat food. We keep it on a filing cabinet next to my desk and so she's in my computer chair all the time. You can just see her little mind working, 'If I could just get this three inches to the right I'd be able to reach if I really stretched'

If the scooper for the cat food is ever left on my desk, it is quickly emptied.

She's foraged into my grocery bags once, and pulled herself out a loaf of bread. But other than that she's pretty good. So long as I tell her ahead of time that the food I'm putting on the coffee table is my food and she's not to take it she'll leave it alone and guard it from the cats.

We were over my brother in laws house though once and he put a sandwich for my husband on the arm of a couch and than left the room to let him know it was there. Honey quickly helped herself.

 

[SheepOfBlue]

Sca takes his food VERY serious. After he finishes he knows that he is not to bother Spitfire's bowl while he is there. So he comes and says hi to me. Then back into the kitchen to lick Spitfire's bowl clean (just in case). Oh and he gets a drink in between licks so he gets the most leftover crums. Then he snuffles around the kitchen looking for any just in cases.

Also I have to take him up and down the lane at flyball so he can find and crumbs prior to racing (or he will stop)

Nope no foraging at all

 

[Lunatic59]

All foodstuffs are kept out of reach and secured as are trash cans that might contain something tasty. But why do they need to forage in the house when they have a yard full of fresh rabbit poo?

 

[Hannah]

My two are forever trying to forage in my children's school bags ...there's always a good chance they'll find lunch remains, or at least crumbs. I don't know which is harder; training the dogs out of foraging, or training kids not to leave food in their bags, and their bags lying around!

 

[EJHUNTL]

We have kitty feeding & litter area gated - it's funny the gate is only 2 feet tall so we can step over it, Hanna could jump over it but she never has.

When she was little she would eat her poop if we didn't pick it up fast enough but she has, thankfully, outgrown that disgusting habit.

Miss Mulligan does Hanna's foraging for her - she will pick up anything that is long and thin ( pens, golf pencils & tees, toothbrushes...) play with them and then leave them for Hanna to find. I've found many chewed up remains. Hanna does not chew shoes or furniture or anything but these "gifts" from kitty. We have mostly learned to put things away.

 

[alonsoe]

They are able to eat everything.....the other day mine ate an hygienic towel of my daughter......

We go for a walk to a park and he is focussed all the time looking for things that drop from the children as pieces of sandwiches...and even the papers....

I wonder if they left that costume when they grow up

 

[Shelby's mom]

Shelby is also quite the forager. Anything that is in reach is gone the second you take your eyes off her. And she is so sneaky too. One Christmas she had a cookie. I figured someone dropped one on the floor. Then DH saw her..... She very sneakily got up on her back legs, walked over to the kitchen table where my MIL had the cookies. Shelby proceeded to gently reach her head over and steal a cookie! Never touched the table or disturbed a thing!