I have 1 year old male labrador retriever that has a bad habit of tipping over his water/food dish after consuming its content. I don't think this is a normal behaviour. Or is it?

Our 6 month old GR has a habit of clawing at her water bowl when it is empty and she wants more, it occaisionally tips over.  Is it simply that your dog is trying to get more out of an empty bowl?

I would understand the empty food bowl but the waterbowl (sorry I didn't mention bowl has still water in it) he makes a lot of mess.

Is it clean water in it?  Ours is very fussy about water in her bowl if it has anything in it eg a bit of food she's dropped from her food bowl or even drool she won't drink it and will try and get the offending article out.  If we are on a walk she will of course quite happily drink the dirtiest water she can find :rolleyes:

Mine does this also, he likes fresh water - with no bits of food in.

Perfectly "normal" if irritating.

You could put a bucket in a tyre, this often works, put the water outside, or just live with it........ :D

I put the water bowl inside a plastic container ...it catches all the spills and drips from thier mouths and stops them from picking it up and tippin it over.I had a rough Collie who used to have great fun doing this !

No good for us GR owners, they just walk away from the bowl with it dripping from their jowls :)

Oh my! Plastic is no no too! He chew a lot, anyway thnx STARYEYES.

Totally irritating not just making a mess he makes a lot of noise too because it made out of stainless...oh well i guess i just live with it he is my joy! Thnx

http://froogle.google.co.uk/froogle?q=stainless+steel+dog+bowls&hl=en&lr=&sa=N&tab=ff&oi=froogler

on here is bowls designed so dogs can't tip them over, if you can't get on the website from this then i could e.mail it to you if you want HTH :)

I have a Newfie so water bowl tipping is a real problem :D I now have the indoor water bowl in a raised feeder. This has been very successful so far. Outside, water is stored in large basins which, when full, are heavy and difficult to tip over (but perfect for paddling in :rolleyes: :D )

Thanks Jacki I will try to get on this website.

I got a plastic non-tip dog bowl from my local pet shop - massive thing it is, heavy and has sloping sides with rubber grips underneath - £4.29 but you can get cheaper.  A heavy straight sided ceramic bowl might be better if the dog chews.  I put bowls in a dog mat but that only catches the splashes, not the dripping!  Another alternative is a Store n Feed which has two metal bowls at a raised level, counter sunk into a plastic unit, the top of which lifts off so you can store stuff in the bottom.  You can get different sizes and adjust to different heights. Petsmart do them and www.petplanet.co.uk. Hope this helps.

I had the largest size ceramic water bowl.

At 10 weeks my GSD puppy carried through the sitting room emptying the water.

I put in a brick to stop him doing it, he still carried it with the  brick in and the water but then dropped it after a few yards.

Hence the bucket in a tyre........

I had a dog that would do this.  If she was having a drink and was first in the queue the selfish little madam would tip the bowl over afterwards so no one else could have a drink.  If she was last she wouldn't bother :rolleyes:
I ended up having to put the water bowl in a metal bracket so she couldn't do it.

THis is normal. One of mine used to pick them up and carry or throw them. He also 'digs' in them given a chance. We have solved the problem with a nice big heavy ceramic bowl. Not cheep but they dont show teeth marks :)  OOh forgot to say that he still takes a mouthfull of water to put over the floor and lie in when it is hot :D

'Tis Normal!  Sorry!!

Perfectly normal,
My GSD will not drink out of a shallow dish at all, he likes to dip his whole nose in to it, so he has a bucket outside, it also has to be fresh with no bits in it.
Although his favourite drink is a puddle !!

Have to agree.

My Lakeland dog  Biff used to do it all the time- mostly when he thought things were a bit dull !!

When he went into kennels when we were on holiday abroad the same thing used to happen. Eventually they used to tie a bucket to the mesh in his run -until he chewed through the rope....

Heh, our pup worked out the "lift and carry the bowl" routine (even his water, resulting in it ending up everywhere but in the bowl) when he was just 10 weeks old. He now has bowls that clip on to his crate, and has yet to dislodge them!;)

Very fortunately, I have dogs with perfect manners :D :D :D

Daisy

:) Daisy!

I always thought one of the best things about having a dog was the way you can excuse the mess! And thus the boring housework!!!

Saw on TV (Dr Harry if you are in OZ), Get a 9L (2gal?) metal bucket and nail it with two nails to a post sunk in the ground (put the nails near the top so the water doesnt leak! 2 nails stop it from swinging.). The large volume and depth of water should keep them happy and be almost impossible to uproot or chew... or will at least keep them busy for a while... A low stone bird-bath top should also provide a suitable challenge to move...