Bone Appétit

Barley, a dog, enjoys her dinner at her designated feeding station, complete with multiple layers of splash protection.

For several years now, at the advice of my vet, Barley has received her meals with water. The trouble, it seems, is that she’s not especially fluid-motivated, and so often seems to forget to drink enough water, and we can ensure she stays hydrated by making lapping up a bunch of water a prerequisite to collecting every last morsel of food in her dish. Given this approach, however, steps need to be taken to establish a splash zone, because she’s not going to eat her food any more calmly just because it’s floating in water!