Eating her poo!!!

Louby for the past few weeks has taken to eating her poo, we are now having to watch her very closely and pick it up as soon as she goes to the toilet.

Does anyone else's dog do this? Any ideas why she does it? She certainly isnt hungry..

Vinnie has never done it, but used to try and eat other dogs poo. Sorry cant be of more help, but Vinnie did grow out of it.

It really is disgusting - she doesnt try to eat other dogs.. And it only when she does it in the garden, never when we are out.. Then she thinks its great to run over to us, and we are pushing her away, which in turn makes her think its a game and tries even harder to get to us...Its really fun?!?!

It could be that her diet has to much protein in it. Buy tinned pineapple, chop a ring up and pop it in with her main meal. The natural acid/sugar will combat the protein. Our last girl was fed eukanuba and did the same thing every morning! Our vet suggested the pineapple thing, the next day she left the poo as if it was no longer yummy! We also changed her food but the pineapple was instant!

Mrs McFisher wrote:It really is disgusting - she doesnt try to eat other dogs.. And it only when she does it in the garden, never when we are out.. Then she thinks its great to run over to us, and we are pushing her away, which in turn makes her think its a game and tries even harder to get to us...Its really fun?!?!

By pushing her away you're actually joining in her game & reinforcing the behaviour!

What you need to do (the pineapple thing may or may not work - I've had conflicting reports on it!) is teach her a really strong "Leave!" command & then watch her like a hawk!

Hugo likes to eat it aswel, instead of growing out of it he now likes to chomp on other dogs poo to.

It's disgusting and foul, I pick his poo up as soon as he has one, but nothing worse when out on the felds and he's 50 yards behind with his head in the grass, I sprint over knowing he's tucking in and guess what ? there's a little nibble left over and he looks at me knowing he's done wrong but still dives in.

A real pet hate of mine is people not picking up there dogs mess, if caught they should get fined £1000 minimum.

Eeew, luckily it's not a problem I've had!! I definitely would work on the leave command.

Thankfully, I've not experienced this either, although I have heard of it - I particularly remember hearing of a dog that could wiz round and catch it's poo before it hit the ground! I did have a dog who would try to eat other dog's poo when it was (hold onto your stomachs) particularly loose, and I was told at the time by knowledgable friends, that it was probably because the other dog had been fed on Pedigree Chum (which was popular at the time) which had particularly "fragrant" gravy and was too rich for most dogs' stomachs and so went right through them.

Rocky has done this a few times on our walks, first time I almost had a heart attack thinking why the hell would he do that! Then got really mad that other owners really cant pick up the mess their pets make. But it only took about a week or two and the strong 'leave' really worked.

Lynda - that is a lovely story ;-))

She only does it in the garden, as when we are out & about im there to pick it up straight away. But when we are home the door is always open to the garden so she is in and out. Its impossible for me to follow her around the house and garden the whole time, although i do keep an eye out...
is pineapple ok if she has allergies?

If you are worried about giving her pineapple have a quick word with the vet, just give them a call if you can and ask the question.

They do have some strange habbits don't they, a good strong Leave should work eventually. If you can clear it up before they get to it all the better.

My two did this, when they used to pinch the cat food. Now all the cats are fed on the kitchen worktop (I know, not very hygienic!!) and the dogs have stopped doing it. So, I think the answers about protein are correct because cat food has added protein.

She is on James Wellbeloved duck & veg kibble...does this have lots of protein in it?

The site for James Wellbeloved says Duck and Veg contain 21% Anything between 20 - 25% is a "normal" percentage. Anything over 25% is considered high in kibble foods so it's pretty good!

Louby may just like her poo - after all our dogs are a little weird!

Thanks, maybe she liked her food so much, that she wanted to eat it again...Bleurgh, dirty hound!!

It's called Coprophagia. Surprisingly common in domestic animals.

There are several theories and suggestions as to why some dogs eat their own faeces. It's often found to be a medical reason - for example, pancreas problems such as pancreatitis. However, this would present other noticeable symptoms, so I sincerely doubt that's why Louby is doing it. It can sometimes be due to malabsorption of the gut, meaning the dog isn't getting the right nutrition.

Enzyme deficiency is a big culprit. If they aren't producing enough enzymes themselves, particularly if they are fed on a dry diet, they will often eat their own faeces, as well as the faeces of other animals. This is due to the high source of digestive enzymes found in droppings. You can try adding probiotics to her diet if this is the case.

It can also be compulsive, in as much as she might just like doing it. Unfortunately, Dempsey falls into this category. Any type, any place.

Wow, thanks Eleanor. These things are definitely worth checking out.
Daft question, how do i had probiotics to her diet?

Knowing her it will just be a complusion..But it is just her own, maybe she is picky about what poo she eats?

Its another one to add to the list of 'its a good job we love her!'

No problem!

This site seems quite useful for probiotic information: http://dogprobiotics.com/

Yeah, she might just like to eat her own poop. Dogs are oddballs!

Our last dog - not a staffy - used to eat her own poo but not other dogs. We tried rattling stones in a tin to distract her - that didn't work. Then I tried sprinkling pepper on it. The first time she sniffed at it and walked away and left it. Next time I did it she ate the lot - pepper as well!

As I say, it's a good job we love them xxx