Why?

Guinness has some weird habits. I was watching him during one of his...rituals...this morning and wondered why he does this.
When I give him a new bowl of kibble, before he settles in to eat anything, he pokes at the food with his snout. Then he might kind of push at the bowl. Then he takes a step back and goes to a different side of the bowl. He repeats the process at least three or four times and then takes a small mouthful somewhere around the apartment to eat it.

Does anyone else have a hound that does this? When I saw him this morning it occurred to me that...this is weird so please bear with me...he looks like he's poking at something to make sure it's really and truly dead before he digs in. Is that freakish? Yes? But does it make sense considering dogs' origins? Ugh. I'm not keen on thinking about the dog as anything other than a goofy and loving companion. I decided to not consult google. Yet. I might look it up later but for now I'm enjoying my anthropological attempt.
Good Saturday to you!
xoxo, natty ♥