Best slow feeder bowl for Shih Tzu on carpet

Dogs that eat too fast are at increased risk of bloat — which can be life-threatening in large breeds but is still a real concern in smaller dogs — as well as vomiting and general digestive discomfort, and a well-chosen slow feeder can genuinely halve eating speed. You're looking for something that works in a rented flat on carpet, which is a specific challenge since many bowls skid around on soft surfaces. To point you to exactly the right thing: how fast is your Shih Tzu getting through meals, and have you noticed any vomiting or gulping afterwards?

That vomiting frequency tells me the eating speed is genuinely causing a problem, not just something to monitor. Thirty seconds for a full meal is very fast even for a small dog, and regurgitating that often isn't something to leave unchecked. One more thing — does she eat off the floor or from a raised bowl, and roughly how much kibble per meal?

Perfect, that gives me everything I need. I'd go with the LickiMat Wobble for her. It's a dome-shaped rubber feeder — you spread or press the kibble into the textured surface and she has to work around the ridges to get it out, which easily stretches a 30-second meal to four or five minutes. The rubber base sits really firmly on carpet without sliding at all, which solves your rented-flat problem neatly — no scratching hard floors, no bowl skating across the room. It's also low to the ground and wide, which suits a flat-faced breed like a Shih Tzu well since they don't have to strain their neck or push food against steep sides. The one thing to note: it works best if you slightly dampen the kibble or mix in a small amount of wet food so it presses into the texture — dry kibble on its own can just fall off a dome. It's around £12-14 on Amazon UK and it's genuinely one of the better-made options at that price.

For most dogs, slowing the eating speed down this significantly does stop the regurgitation — it's usually the speed and air ingestion causing it rather than a food intolerance. If she's still bringing food up once a week or more after two weeks on the slow feeder, it's worth a vet check to rule out something like a hiatal issue, which Shih Tzus can be prone to. But start with the feeder — there's a good chance it resolves it completely.

Good luck — most dogs take to it within a couple of meals once they realise the food is in there. If the kibble keeps falling off in the first few tries, just dampen it slightly before feeding and that usually fixes it straight away.