Okay, I'm having a problem
My two year old son has started dumping Jasper's food into his water dish. It turns into a mush that Jasper will not eat. He's a snacker (eats a little at a time instead of a lot at once), so we free feed him. Brandon is a "spirited" 2 year old...meaning that he's high-needs. Along with that, he gets into EVERYTHING. He lives to defy baby-proofing products, lol, and he can get by them all. He climbs over just about every gate on the market (can you tell we've tried them all? LOL), so that's not an option. There's not really anywhere in the house that Brandon doesn't have access to. He even climbs into Jasper's kennel at times (we feed him in the kitchen). I'm not really sure how to handle this. He's at the age where he thinks punishment is funny, so they're not really working right now. For almost everything else, I tell him NO, why it's bad, and use redirection and get him involved in something else. That usuall works, but he dumps the food into the water dish so fast that he's usually running out of the kitchen before I can get to him. By then, he's found something else to do to get himself in trouble (gotta love the kid, lol). So...should I just keep up with Brandon and hope he'll end this phase soon, OR do I put Jasper on a feeding schedule. It's 13 weeks old on Saturday. I'm not sure he'd do good with a scheduled feeding for the first few days, but I'm sure he'd adjust. He won't starve himself, right? I just worry about that, because he's still a young puppy. I know he needs his food. So anyone have any experience and/or advice for this? Thanks so much! |
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| Explain to Brandon why he shouldn't do that, and if he does it again he won't get his meal, and warn once, then follow through.
Of course, this is just from watching Super Nanny....  |
| I thought I was reading one of my own posts...LOL Brandon sounds a lot like my 4 year old Joey. He has been "high needs" since he was born and it never changed...LOL
It sounds like Brandon wants to help. I would explain why he shouldn't put the food in the water dish and show him how to feed Jasper with a small cup so that he feels like he is helping. Then divert him to playing with something else. THEN, follow him because the moment you think he is going to find something good to play with, he will be doing something he shouldn't again. I know from experience....LOL I found time outs start working at around age 2, but you have to stay with them because they won't stay in a corner all by themselves. I am sending you hugs from one Mom to another! Good luck!
Stormi and co. |
| It sounds like your toddler is doing a classic two year old behavior called dump and sort. I once had a classroom of 16 two year olds and had quite a time getting this under control. I would first give him the job of feeding the puppy, toddlers love to feel like they have big guy jobs and this may make him feel like the guard of the food. Next give him something that he can dump and sort. Dry beans and buckets work great for this, find a big tub to hold the beans and give him different kinds of things to dump and scoop with. Yogurt containers, funnels, whatever you have around the house. If he uses the food instead of the beans remind him that we dump with the beans not the food the first time, the next time remove the beans. If he can understand the concepts of waiting and earning let him earn playing with the beans by not playing with the food, i.e., "If you stay away from his food until lunch time you can play with the beans until nap time. If all else fails experiment with dry yummy food and yucky mush food, popcorn works great for this, yummy dry, yucky when soggy. I hope this helps, toddlers can be frustrating but just wait until they are teenagers! |
| With all due respect to all, it sure sounds like he is testing mommy to see with what he can get away. He sees mommy get upset, hears her say "no" and does it anyway. It sounds to me like he is testing his/her limits.
If you don't want to limit his food as the consequence, I would definitely look to correct the misbehavior in some, as the problem has nothing to do with what he is doing wrong. If the punishment seems funny to him, then it certainly isn't a very effective one... I'm NOT advocating corporal punishment AT ALL, but seperation, isolation, whatever it is that he won't like. I Love Super Nanny. She makes it look SO easy! |
| Thanks everyone. He's definitely testing his limits (typical 2 yr old) and also in the dump & sort phase. He dumps & sorts everything from water/toys in his bath to all of his blocks when he's playing. I think I might have started this by letting him help me cook some.
I let him feed Jasper today, and so far, so good. We'll see how it goes. We've had a busy morning and haven't been home too much, so he hasn't had much chance to do anything. I just know I'm ready for the big 3 for him...hurry up December.  I know my oldest son turned into a completely different kid once he hit 3. |
| Well - since I have four children I thought I would pipe in
Have your son get very involved with "helping" to feed the dog. Dumping and sorting is HUGE fun at this age (our 13 month old daugther does this with the kitty food. Kitty food in water is a nasty mess - then she loves to splash in it  *blech!*
Let your son feed the dog each day. Then divert him to his OWN dishes (maybe set up on a porch or in the yard if you have spring weather like we do now). Get a cheap dish basin (like you wash dishes in - check the dollar stores) and fill it an inch thick with dirt cheap RICE. I prefer rice to sand. Much cleaner and no - his tummy wont bloat if he eats a few. Get him some measuring cups (dollar store), spoons (dollar store) - ladels (also dollar store - gosh I love that place!) and you can even create your own sifters or purchase cheap ones from ...... THE DOLLAR STORE. This should help curb his dumping and sorting drive. In the summer - replace the sand (when outside) with an inch of water. No more than an inch and keep him supervised. You are gonna have to show him how to "work" things, but he will catch on quick ! This spring you also might want to think about him starting his own garden. It can be a container garden inside - or a patch of dirt outside. Sunflowers are FAB when you are small. They grown quick and are really majical to look up and see. Get him his own cheap "tools"...... you guesed it - try the DOLLAR STORE  He will love to dig through the dirt - show him how to put a seed in then get him a cheap watering can (avoid the hose - kids and hoses lead to drowned plants..... and mom....lol) Then have him water. I have found that plants that love water do best (2 year olds love to water - and water and water and water and water and water........)
HTH ! Dawn |
| When my daughter was 2 she would put her own cheerios into the dogs' water bowl and eat it...yuck..... she grew out of it thank goodness, but the dog rather missed wet cheerios for a snack...lol |
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