MinPin gobbles food

Question
I have a rescue Min Pin that is at least 12 yrs old, but we are not sure.  Anyway, I have had her for a couple of years and this issue seems to be getting worse.  She gobbles her food so fast without chewing.  Twice she has choked on it to the point where I had to stick my fingers down her throat to dislodge the food because she was passing out.  Obviously I don't free feed and stay in the room with her while she eats, although at a distance.  A couple of times a week she will choke and cough on it.  I make sure she is isolated from the other dog so she doesn't feel she has to eat so quickly.  The other dog has never challenged her for her food and actually steps away and lets her have his if she manages to get in the other room before he is finished.  I don't know anything about her life before I got her other than she was one of five dogs brought in and all had heartworms.  I have tried just feeding her the smallest dry food I could find, but now she just gobbles it faster.  I'm concerned that one day I will not be able to dislodge the food and she will choke to death.  I considered wet food but worry about how healthy it is for her or even if it would matter as long as she is not chewing.  Also, as a side note, she has escaped the backyard and gotten in neighbors trash and come home so full she could barely walk.  Of course I rushed her to the vet for that and was told it was just a good case of "garbage gut".  After 3 escapes we finally poured cement under the bottom of the fence so our other dog can no longer dig her out, so that is not an issue anymore.  She just doesn't seem to get full.  I have asked the vet and he cannot come up with a medical reason for this behavior.  She has had a full medical evaluation at much cost and I have been told she is as healthy as can be.


Answer
She had heartworm, maybe she has other parasites eating her food? Discuss with your vet whether a broad spectrum de wormer is OK for a 12 year old dog.

Look into feeding a raw diet. Her age may be an issue, my dogs generally do better on raw younger. But you may want to consider www.greentripe.com.

If you stay with kibble, rather than putting it in a bowl, try scattering it in the kitchen so she has a chance to eat one before going to the next or the old flat rock in her bowl to slow her down.

And most definitely stay away from any kibble that has citric acid, I would be more concerned about bloat.