Why Do Dogs Eat Their Own Poop

Reasons Why Dogs Eat Their Poop

There are several reasons why a dog eats its own feces – psychological, physical and pathological, that is, associated with diseases. Puppies have a special attitude towards feces and the reasons for coprophagia in them are often behavioral and not associated with disease. It is also worth noting that if a dog is once interested in waste products, this does not yet indicate a problem. Sometimes they study through the feces of other individuals – how long ago another dog was here, what gender it is, whether it is in heat.

Hunger

One of the most common reasons why a dog eats its own poop is simple hunger. Feces contain undigested food, particles of fat, starch and protein, especially large amounts of them in the excrement of unhealthy animals. Therefore, if the diet is not caloric enough or the balance of proteins, fats and carbohydrates is disturbed, the dog may start eating its own poop. It is important to choose the right food or balance the natural diet based on the age, sex, activity and physiological needs of the pet.

Helminths

With a heavy infestation of helminths, an animal may experience a perversion of appetite. The dog begins to eat not only feces, but also stones, paper, earth and other foreign objects. There are no drugs that protect a dog from helminths, and there are many ways of infection – through water, earth, food. Also, fleas are carriers of worms, and even a person can infect a dog with helminths. Eating feces is another way of infection. Puppies can also become infected in utero from their mother.

Bowel diseases

As a result of inflammatory processes, the intestines cannot fully digest food coming through the mouth, so some of it comes out unchanged. As a result, the feces may look like a regular portion of food, and the dog will happily swallow an extra meal. This is especially evident when the pet has an increased appetite due to behavioral characteristics, hormonal imbalance, or takes hormones as prescribed by a doctor.

Lack of vitamins and digestive enzymes

A dog eats its own or other people’s poop if it doesn’t have enough of its own bacteria to digest it or digestive enzymes. A dog’s intestines are densely populated with bacteria that help it digest food. Vitamins, enzymes, and bacteria are necessary for good digestion. If any of the elements are missing, the dog will try to replenish them, including by eating waste. Feces contain many microorganisms, both positive and harmful.

Jealousy

When a dog is jealous of its owner, it often destroys someone else’s feces by eating them so that the owner does not pay attention to another individual. But it also happens that its own feces are eaten.

Imitation

After the bitch gives birth, she takes care of the babies for a long time. Why does the puppy eat its own excrement? Because its mother taught it to. After each feeding, the mother actively licks the puppy’s tummy and bottom until it empties itself. When the puppies grow up, the mother eats their feces for a long time. This is an instinct left over from the wild nature to hide its offspring. The puppy grows and sees its mother’s behavior, it learns from her and copies her habits.

Curiosity

For you and me, poop is just a pile with an unpleasant smell. For other dogs, especially young ones, it is a whole portal to a world of information. From the feces left behind, a dog can determine what individual was there, what they dined on, how old they are, whether they are sick or healthy, how long ago they passed by here, and in general, what the pile tastes like – sometimes it is also very curious. Banal curiosity is another reason why a puppy eats its own or someone else’s feces.

Stress

Stress and boredom are common causes of eating feces. When an animal spends a lot of time alone, or walks are irregular, and in addition to everything else, it is punished for leaving piles or spoiling furniture, this leads to changes in behavior, including eating excrement. Lack of attention from a person can cause eating feces if the dog understands that you only talk to it at the moment of punishment after it has eaten a harmful object. It will try to attract your attention further by eating its own or someone else’s feces. It is worth spending more time with your pet, buying educational toys for it, regularly giving the dog’s brain a workout by learning new commands.

Competition for food

If you have a lot of animals in your house and they compete for food, the dog will indiscriminately eat everything that falls on the floor and even slightly resembles food. Therefore, feces will become one of the favorite treats for such individuals.

Fear

A dog starts eating its own excrement out of fear. Fear can be different. Some are afraid of being punished for leaving a pile in the wrong place and, having eaten it, the dog destroys the evidence. And some are afraid of being discovered. We have already said above that feces are a whole storehouse of information about a dog for other individuals. And if a dog is intimidated, sick, has no dominance, by eating its feces, it will hide evidence of its presence from other, stronger dogs. This can also be accompanied by rolling in other people’s excrement or foul-smelling waste – fish, rotten meat.

Taste preferences

Yes, unfortunately, there are dogs that are doing well – no stress, no hunger, no worms, their intestines are completely healthy, but they eat feces. Some dogs just like the taste of their own feces or other animals. Although, it is worth noting that there are very few such dogs.

What to do when a dog eats its own poop?

• Based on the reasons, let’s try to understand what to do if a dog eats its own feces:
• Consult your veterinarian and rule out diseases of the intestines and other digestive organs.
• Treat all pets living together for worms.
• Train your dog from puppyhood to wear a muzzle and to hear the “no” command in order to react in time to undesirable eating habits.
• Pay more attention to your pet at home and on walks.
• Remove your dog’s feces immediately after defecation or treat it with unpleasant substances with a strong odor so that it does not seem so tasty – pepper, horseradish, mustard.
• To eliminate coprophagia, use special food supplements, for example, 8 in 1 Excel Deter vitamins.
• Buy your dog some educational toys.
• If there are signs of mental disorder – fear, stress, jealousy, be sure to contact a zoopsychologist. The process of restoring the dog’s emotional state is very important and extremely labor-intensive, so trust a specialist.

How to stop a dog from eating its own poop

Unfortunately, there is no universal way to wean a dog from eating its own excrement, so you need to try all possible options.

Never yell or scare your dog when you catch it eating feces. Yelling and spanking will only make the situation worse. A frightened dog will think that defecation is something forbidden and will start destroying evidence, which will only increase the amount of feces eaten. But do not encourage your pet, do not pet it, do not allow it to lick, ignore the dog.

Approach the dog and say loudly and clearly: “No!” If you doubt the severity of your tone, you can clap your hands at the moment of the command, then calmly lead the dog away from the place of the meal.

When walking, give your dog all your attention, play, entice him with toys, and do not leave him alone for a minute. You can train your dog to carry a toy in his mouth during a walk and not let him go without a command. As soon as the dog has emptied himself, immediately distract his attention with commands and games, and lead him away from the toilet.

Buy some “smart toys” for your pet; there are plenty of them on the market today. If for some reason you can’t buy them, make them yourself. For example, take a silicone ribbed toy, spread a thick layer of dog pate on it and freeze it. When you leave home for a long time, give it to your dog. While you’re away, the dog will be busy licking the pate off the toy and may not even notice that you left.

It is much more difficult to wean an adult dog off eating its own poop than a puppy, so don’t miss the opportunity and correct its behavior from puppyhood. Sign up for training courses, feed it good complete food or natural balanced food as recommended by a nutritionist, play with the baby a lot, and clean up the poop in a timely manner. Do not punish the puppy if it poops in the wrong place, especially by poking its muzzle into the pile. This can adversely affect its sense of smell and cause fear of defecation itself, which will make the puppy “hide” its poop even more and faster.