totally obsessed with food.

[louiebeans mum]

Hi there COL'ers.  Wondered if anyone could give me some advice on my dogs recent obsession with food.  Now i know he is cocker but he seems to have started over the past week to have become totally obsessed and ruled by food.  He has started stealing food from my toddlers hand.  He jumps up to the work tops and grabs it from there when my backs turned and has started crying and whining while we are eating.  No change to his diet.  No more than before water consumption (a bowl a day) occasional accidents in the house but he is 12.  Wonder if anyone has any advice?  He is not showing any other symptoms so wondered why he has started doing this?

[8 Hairy Feet]

over active thyroid?

[lescef]

I would just say welcome to the world of a cocker!
All of the four cockers we have had would do the same -trifles, frozen pork joints, food from children's hands, workmens lunches.....!! I think the more human food they manage to eat, the more they want it. You have to work round it.  A good 'leave' command might help.

[Helen]

over active thyroid?

I'd get it checked 

[VeeBee]

Could be worth a trip to the vet, just to check out that it is nothing medical that is causing him to be hungry all the time.

[twiceover2]

I would get it checked out too as it is a sudden change in behaviour.

[louiebeans mum]

I think i will get him checked.  He is terrible, pushing past me and running to where food has been, whining if food has been left on plates even if he cant see it and eating everything inc non food items - my sons tiny plastic fish went missing, couldn't find it until I cleared up his poop!!!! Even ate a chilli I dropped the other day - still didn't stop him.  Cant give him a leave commend even though I do as he has gone deaf although I use hand signals which i have always done with every commend since he has been a puppy as my mums dog went deaf when she was young and i broke my heart to see her.  Although he has cataracts he can still see food dropping!!!!  I know he is an old man but i feel it has got almost  an obsession.  He is a lovable boy but a whirlwind but then aren't all cockers 

[lescef]

Sorry.... I missed that he is 12. Yes, get him checked. Hope you sort it.

[linda c]

Worth getting him checked out at 12. Sounds like he's hungry all the time and it could be something that's wrong with him causing his behaviour. May be something that's easy to sort out.