Can't say that it will hurts them, but mine ate the poop and ended up costing me a vet bill. He had diahria and throwing up all over the house.
Dog eats chicken poop! Yuck!
- Thread starter goldeneggtees
- Start date
- Thread starter
- #22
You see, that's what I am afraid of. It seriously can't be good for them!
I do my best to yell at our little guy every time I see him going near it, but he can't help himself. It's disgusting!
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At some point in time it cant be good for them. Sooner or later they are going to ingest something harmful.
But they're dogs - a force of nature. What you gonna do? If it aint your favorite shoes or chicken - its a pile of crap.
At some point in time it cant be good for them. Sooner or later they are going to ingest something harmful.
But they're dogs - a force of nature. What you gonna do? If it aint your favorite shoes or chicken - its a pile of crap.
Any dog that doesn't try to eat chicken poop he finds in the yard is probably not normal. However, we all know that the best delicacy for a dog seems to be cat poop.
- Jun 25, 2009
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Why Dogs Eat Poop: Definition of Coprophagia
Coprophagia is the ingestion of poop that is neither accidental nor incidental. It is deliberate and habitual.
Other abnormal canine eating issues include pica (eating of nonfood material), psychogenic water drinking (consuming more water than necessary for regular daily use), anorexia (starvation to the point of extreme, and deadly weight loss), and gorging (serious, unhealthy overeating).
The focus here is on coprophagia and why dogs eat poop. But, youll see that dogs can have a variety of other eating problems. Interestingly, youll probably also notice that several of these eating problems are also found in humans, such as anorexia and gorging. Were kind of like our canine friends sometimes, arent we.
Below there are 20 reasons listed why dogs eat poop. In addition, at the end of this article youll see a summarization of the reasons. Hopefully you will understand exactly why dogs eat poop so that you can solve the problem or take some action to improve the situation.
Why Dogs Eat Poop: 20 Reasons
1. Your dog might be hungry. If your dog doesn't have access to food, he might eat poop.
2. Some dogs will eat poop to clean up an area like a housekeeper. This is most likely if your dog is confined to a crate or kennel, or when he's chained up or otherwise restricted. He's taking care of his space.
3. If your dog likes to carry poop, and then eat it, it could be genetics. Some dogs have instincts to carry stuff in their mouths.
4. Your dog might be eating poop because of parasites or worms. They can suck nutrients out of your dog, driving him to eat poop. It might also leave him extra hungry because of the lack of proper fuel.
5. Your dog might be eating cat poop or other animal poop to get key nutrients and minerals not available in his own food.
6. Some dogs will simply eat poop to pass the time. Dogs will eat poop because they are bored or lonely. It can be a sign of neglect.
7. Your dog might eat poop because he's anxious, nervous or otherwise upset. Stress will drive animals to do odd things.
8. Some dogs will eat poop to hide the evidence. If you punish your dog for pooping, he might eat it to stop you from getting angry.
9. If your dog has puppies, she might eat puppy poop. This is an instinct to hide the poop from predators. Poop is evidence. Getting ride of it keeps her puppies safe.
10. Some young dogs and puppies will eat poop as a novelty. That is, they'll eat poop as an experiment. They don't know better.
11. If your dog watches you pick up poop, he might learn to do the same. This is called allelomimetic behavior. Your dog observes you and learns from you, by putting the poop in his mouth you put poop in a bag.
12. Your dog might see others dogs eating poop. From this, they learn to eat poop too.
13. Many dogs simply like the taste of poop. This obviously doesn't make sense to dog owners but that's irrelevant. Some dog like to eat it and that's that. It's warm, moist, and very much like what your dog was given as a very young puppy.
14. If your dog food lacks key nutrients, he might eat poop. Your dog is trying to get "food" with nutrients any way possible, even from his own poop.
15. Sometimes dog poop seems like dog food. This can happen when dog food is low quality and includes materials that are easily passed and not absorbed by your dog. When the dog poops, it seems to be very much like the food he just consumed!
16. In some cases, dogs will eat poop if they are given too much food. This is especially true if your dog's diet is high in fat.
17. Some dogs will eat poop to gain attention. Many dog owners get very upset when their dog eats poop, which means the dog gets attention. This is a wonderful opportunity for your dog to interact with you, although it is because of negative attention.
18. It is possible that some dogs will eat the poop of other, more dominant dogs. Your dog might be more submissive than other dogs, resulting in strange poop eating behavior. This seems to occur more in households with multiple dogs where dominance and submission is a factor. Obviously this doesn't explain much about dogs eating cat poop or other animal poop.
19. It is possible that your dog wants to eat more than one time per day. If you only feed your dog once per day, and your dog eats poop, it could be an indication they want to eat more frequently.
20. In some cases, your dog will eat poop by accident. Dogs are curious and will try to eat almost anything, including poop. Dogs explore the world through taste and smell, much more than humans.
Summarization: Why Dogs Eat Poop
So, now you have seen 20 reasons why dogs eat poop. It could be a signal for higher quality food, more food, less food, or more frequent meals. It could be related to your dogs desire for more attention and interaction. Your dog might be eating poop out of instinct whereas in other cases it might a learned behavior from you or by watching other dogs.
Coprophagia is the ingestion of poop that is neither accidental nor incidental. It is deliberate and habitual.
Other abnormal canine eating issues include pica (eating of nonfood material), psychogenic water drinking (consuming more water than necessary for regular daily use), anorexia (starvation to the point of extreme, and deadly weight loss), and gorging (serious, unhealthy overeating).
The focus here is on coprophagia and why dogs eat poop. But, youll see that dogs can have a variety of other eating problems. Interestingly, youll probably also notice that several of these eating problems are also found in humans, such as anorexia and gorging. Were kind of like our canine friends sometimes, arent we.
Below there are 20 reasons listed why dogs eat poop. In addition, at the end of this article youll see a summarization of the reasons. Hopefully you will understand exactly why dogs eat poop so that you can solve the problem or take some action to improve the situation.
Why Dogs Eat Poop: 20 Reasons
1. Your dog might be hungry. If your dog doesn't have access to food, he might eat poop.
2. Some dogs will eat poop to clean up an area like a housekeeper. This is most likely if your dog is confined to a crate or kennel, or when he's chained up or otherwise restricted. He's taking care of his space.
3. If your dog likes to carry poop, and then eat it, it could be genetics. Some dogs have instincts to carry stuff in their mouths.
4. Your dog might be eating poop because of parasites or worms. They can suck nutrients out of your dog, driving him to eat poop. It might also leave him extra hungry because of the lack of proper fuel.
5. Your dog might be eating cat poop or other animal poop to get key nutrients and minerals not available in his own food.
6. Some dogs will simply eat poop to pass the time. Dogs will eat poop because they are bored or lonely. It can be a sign of neglect.
7. Your dog might eat poop because he's anxious, nervous or otherwise upset. Stress will drive animals to do odd things.
8. Some dogs will eat poop to hide the evidence. If you punish your dog for pooping, he might eat it to stop you from getting angry.
9. If your dog has puppies, she might eat puppy poop. This is an instinct to hide the poop from predators. Poop is evidence. Getting ride of it keeps her puppies safe.
10. Some young dogs and puppies will eat poop as a novelty. That is, they'll eat poop as an experiment. They don't know better.
11. If your dog watches you pick up poop, he might learn to do the same. This is called allelomimetic behavior. Your dog observes you and learns from you, by putting the poop in his mouth you put poop in a bag.
12. Your dog might see others dogs eating poop. From this, they learn to eat poop too.
13. Many dogs simply like the taste of poop. This obviously doesn't make sense to dog owners but that's irrelevant. Some dog like to eat it and that's that. It's warm, moist, and very much like what your dog was given as a very young puppy.
14. If your dog food lacks key nutrients, he might eat poop. Your dog is trying to get "food" with nutrients any way possible, even from his own poop.
15. Sometimes dog poop seems like dog food. This can happen when dog food is low quality and includes materials that are easily passed and not absorbed by your dog. When the dog poops, it seems to be very much like the food he just consumed!
16. In some cases, dogs will eat poop if they are given too much food. This is especially true if your dog's diet is high in fat.
17. Some dogs will eat poop to gain attention. Many dog owners get very upset when their dog eats poop, which means the dog gets attention. This is a wonderful opportunity for your dog to interact with you, although it is because of negative attention.
18. It is possible that some dogs will eat the poop of other, more dominant dogs. Your dog might be more submissive than other dogs, resulting in strange poop eating behavior. This seems to occur more in households with multiple dogs where dominance and submission is a factor. Obviously this doesn't explain much about dogs eating cat poop or other animal poop.
19. It is possible that your dog wants to eat more than one time per day. If you only feed your dog once per day, and your dog eats poop, it could be an indication they want to eat more frequently.
20. In some cases, your dog will eat poop by accident. Dogs are curious and will try to eat almost anything, including poop. Dogs explore the world through taste and smell, much more than humans.
Summarization: Why Dogs Eat Poop
So, now you have seen 20 reasons why dogs eat poop. It could be a signal for higher quality food, more food, less food, or more frequent meals. It could be related to your dogs desire for more attention and interaction. Your dog might be eating poop out of instinct whereas in other cases it might a learned behavior from you or by watching other dogs.
- Jun 25, 2009
- 492
- 5
- 121
When we brought our doxie home, she was a poop eater, scoping out the litterboxes twice an hour. Not only was it disgusting (her breath... blech!) but not hygenic at all. Our vet sells a product called "Forbid" that you feed to the poopers, mixed in with their food, that makes the poop taste bad to the poop eater. I thought "It doesn't taste bad already???" It's VERY inexpensive and I'm confident that the cats had absolutely no idea they were ever being used as training devices. lol
http://www.jefferspet.com/ssc/product.asp?CID=0&pf_id=11801
But anyhow, after three Forbid tainted meals, we were secretly encouraging her to go checking out the litterboxes.
Worked. Like. A. Charm.
She hasn't eaten cat poop since.
Although, now that we have the chickens, she's taken to chicken poop instead. I'm thinking I may have to ask the vet if Forbid will harm the chickens.
http://www.jefferspet.com/ssc/product.asp?CID=0&pf_id=11801
But anyhow, after three Forbid tainted meals, we were secretly encouraging her to go checking out the litterboxes.
Worked. Like. A. Charm.
She hasn't eaten cat poop since.
Although, now that we have the chickens, she's taken to chicken poop instead. I'm thinking I may have to ask the vet if Forbid will harm the chickens.
I'd sprinkle a little black pepper on a pile and see if that deters them for awhile. Red pepper is used by dog hunters training their pack to avoid eating any meat they find unless it comes from their trainer's hands. It's a harsh lesson but eating fouled meat (granted it's not poop) is a vet bill. I've already shampooed 2 rugs and I'm convinced my young dog is doing the same thing but with duck poop. Ick...and folks talk about cats but mine don't annoint their fur, gargle with yard finds and then want to give me kisss!
Before I had chickens I had a cat. The dog ALWAYS had crunchies from the cat box on his nose (evidence). The vet told us to sprinkle meat tenderizer over the CATS food. No more snacks for Spike.
As for the chickens. Spike eats their poo and feed. Rolls in every nugget he doesn't eat. It is really gross, but he is a dog. I was told they roll in poo to mask their own scent.
I am glad I am not the only one dealing with this.
GOT TO LOVE DOGS!!!
As for the chickens. Spike eats their poo and feed. Rolls in every nugget he doesn't eat. It is really gross, but he is a dog. I was told they roll in poo to mask their own scent.
I am glad I am not the only one dealing with this.
GOT TO LOVE DOGS!!!
If you have a hound it's even worse. It's an instinct for them that just won't quit. I'm getting off lucky with my terriers it sounds like. I just have to keep chewies at all times or something WILL be gnawed. I think half my todder's toys have puppy marks on them. That is the ones we get to in time the others come out on their own. We do not retrieve those.
We used to say the litter seasoned it juuuust right for the dogs. They ALWAYS had litter on their noses.
I think they could get sick if they ate too much or picked up some bacteria, but for the most part i think a lot of dogs do it and are just fine. Some have stronger stomachs than others. I once saw a rottweiler eat five full sized fruit pies that were left unattended at a funeral, meanwhile if i feed my dog the wrong kind of food i'm cleaning out her kennel for a week.
P.S.
My dogs have NEVER thrown up or had the runs from poop, only from cat vomit... and the one dog has a penchant for vomit, which, if left unsupervised is the beginning of a eat/vomit/eat/diarrhea cycle.
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