For about the first year of his life, Dougie, our (almost) two-year old tri-color Collie simply didn't follow the order of the pack. We tried feeding him when the other dogs ate, which is first thing in the morning...heaven forbid we take even an extra nano second in preparing & throwing the food down on the floor for these three Shelties where they proceed to devour it in a matter of seconds! But Dougie really never showed any interest in eating in the morning.

Here's a picture of Dougie by the fence in our yard, performing what he construes as his "guard duties" by furiously barking at innocent passers-by:

Sure, he might decide to take a drink of fresh water, which then promptly cascades out of his elongated mouth & all over the kitchen floor. But other than that, Dougie wouldn't show any interest in food until late in the afternoon when he might pick through his meal from the morning. That is, until recently.

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Lately, Dougie wants to eat with the other dogs. It started in the early moring about a week or two ago when my bride was preparing breakfast for the Shelties. She looked up and there was Dougie, who had joined the rest of the pack in the kitchen after he somehow opened the door to his crate where he sleeps at night. Rather than put him back in the crate & feed him hours later as was the norm, she decided to see if he wanted to eat at the same time as the other dogs. And, as they say, the rest is history.

He's shown a real interest in his food, eating it all and then going out to do his business with the others. Somehow the light has gone on in Dougie's head and he really wants to be part of the pack.