Why Dogs Eat Poop?

Why do dogs eat poop?

Eating poop is also known as coprophagia. This is a normal behavior among many animals and is seen in roughly 25% of dogs. There are many reasons why dogs may be eating poop, but it’s probably because they just like the taste and texture of it. We may be repulsed by the very thought of poop, but to dogs, it’s packed full of interesting information that tells them about who its maker is and what they’d been eating. As well as just enjoying a delicious snack, dogs may feast on poop for two reasons:

· Medical

· Behavior

Possible medical causes

In the wild dogs eat a more diverse diet than most domesticated dogs. Therefore, they may not get the nutrients they need, or lack of enzymes they need to absorb nutrients. Feeding you dog a varied raw diet is important as they get different nutrients from different proteins. It is also important to add a digestive enzyme to their diet to help them absorbs all the nutrients. This may help your dog to reduce the need to supplement his/her diet with poop. There are some medical conditions that could make your dog more likely to eat feces, including:

• Medications, such as steroids

• Diabetes

• Exocrine Pancreative Insufficiency (EPI)

• Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD)

• Parasites

• Digesting their current diet

Feeding your dog, a well-balanced Raw diet is the best way to resolve just about any health issue.

Behavioral Reasons Dogs Eat Poop

There may be behavioral issues behind your dog’s poop-eating. Sometimes eating poop is just fun for your dog. They are guided by their nose, so finding poop and eating it is a great reward. Here are a few reasons for this natural behavior:

· A female dog will clean up after their puppies by eating their poop. Puppies want to discover everything around them, including poop! Puppies will usually outgrow this behavior.

· Dogs love to explore with their sense of smell, to them, fresh poop smells great. If your dog is bored, he might eat poop for entertainment.

· If you react to your dog eating poop, he might eat more to get your attention. On the other hand, if your dog has accidents in the house, he might eat his poop because he’s worried about getting in trouble.

· A stressed dog sometimes relieves stress by eating things they shouldn’t … including poop. It’s also a sad fact that dogs who come from puppy mills grow up in stressful environments … and haven’t been nourished well.

· If your dog’s ever been punished for pooping in the house, he might try to hide the evidence by eating his stool.

· Dogs learn from other dogs … so if your dog sees another dog enjoying a yummy poop snack, he might think it’s a high-value treat and decide to try it.

Are There Risks For Poop Eating?

There are minimal health risks to eating their own poop. If your dog is a kisser, you might worry about him passing on bacteria and parasites to you and your family or other dogs. If your dog insists on eating poop, you might want to discourage him from licking people, wash your face and hands thoroughly if necessary! Teach your kids to do the same!

Monitor your dog for parasites if he eats other animals’ poop – especially wild animals. It’s easy to drop off a fecal sample at the vet for testing. At Happy Hound Daycare we require a negative fecal every 6 months. This keeps our environment clean and decreases the chances of parasites being passed from one dog to another.

How Can You Stop Your Dog From Eating Poop?

Once you have figured out if it is a medical or behavioral reason your dog is eating poop then you can work on stopping this undesirable behavior.

· If your poop-eating dog lives with other dogs and cats, clean up the poop as soon as it happens. Keep your cat’s litter box clean. This will minimize poop-eating opportunities.

· Avoid boredom: Daycare provides your dog with plenty of exercise and mental stimulation. Playing games at home such as offering toys and swimming. It is important to keep your dog’s brain and body active and occupied. This is especially true with working breed dogs – they really need to be kept busy.

Feeding A Great Diet

Feeding real food instead of processed commercial food (kibble) can make all the difference. Give your dog a balanced, whole food, preferably raw-meat based diet to make sure he’s getting the nutrition he needs. Be sure to include enough organ meats, as they’re especially rich in vitamins and minerals. Add pre and probiotics and digestive enzymes to make sure he gets all the benefits of his food. Happy Hound Daycare sells #Rawganics Raw Pet food which comes in variety of proteins and is a complete diet.

Don’t Make Poop A Big Deal

Punishing your dog for eating poop isn’t effective. Don’t make a big deal about him/her eating poop. Instead, pay attention to your dog’s digestive health and make sure your dog gets plenty of exercise and mental stimulation.

With some time, patience, and detective work, you can figure out why your dog is eating poop. Remember, poop eating is normal behavior for your dog!