Every dog has their quirks – but it seems most of them display similar behaviours regardless of their distinct personalities. This has led animal experts to explain exactly why your dog takes their food off into another room to eat it rather than munching it down where it's served.

On Reddit, one puzzled owner asked: "Why does my dog pick up mouthfuls of food, from her bowl, then come into the living room and drop it on the rug to eat it piece by piece?".

According to the experts, it all boils down to their pack mentality. A statement from Wag! reads: "A lot of animal experts agree that pack mentality is still one of the reasons why dogs will get food from their dinner dish and take it someplace else to put it in a pile and eat it later.

"There are dogs that will go only a short distance from their dishes and there are others that will go far or even find a hiding spot to eat their food."

"Instinct is the biggest reason for this. This pack mentality is natural and each breed has a different level of pack mentality.

"Some dogs have a stronger instinct than others and although you do not see your pampered canine in the same way as you would a pack of wolves, they still have this lingering instinct.

"When your dog moves the food away and puts it into a pile, they are saying 'this is my food so don't you move it.'".

Not only this but they might bring their food into other rooms because they simply want to eat near you.

The statement continues: "Dogs also long for companionship so he may just want to see you or be in your presence while he chows.

"Although dogs are considered family members, they do not really eat with the family so the act of carrying his food could be a sign that he also wants to be a part of the family dynamic.

"If you are using metal dishes, there is a possibility that your dog does not like the noise and is frightened or annoyed by it.

"The sound of metal against metal can easily startle your dog so it could be one of the reasons why your dog takes his food away. An easy solution to this is to swap the metal bowls for plastic ones."

One user commented: "My dogs do this. When they do it, they always bring their food to the room we are in. So I think it is because they don't want to eat alone."

Another added: "My dog's food bowl is in the family room and he still takes it out of the bowl and sets the kibble literally next to the bowl then eats it off the carpet. Well, now the dishtowel we put there so he'd stop slobbering all over the carpet."

A third remarked: "My dog likes to do this with the food usually but he will specifically do it when guests come into the house. This definitely makes sense!".