Why do dogs eat their poop?

Answer 1

Here's a great website concerning Coprophagia (poop eating)

http://www.paw-rescue.org/PAW/PETTIPS/DogTip_PoopEating.php

Answer 2

Coprophagia is a very maternal behavior. Mordecai Siegal and Matthew Margolis in their book entitled ‘When Good Dogs Do Bad Things’ state that coprophagia is more commonly seen in hunting, working and herding breeds.


There are several other factors that result in coprophagia. It is seen in dogs who are hyper, out of control, and who appear to be immature in nature. These dogs may engage in stool eating simply because they have nothing else to do and they are driven to keeping themselves busy. There is also an environmental component to this behavior. Dogs who have been raised in filthy environments are likely to eat feces simply because they have a need to be rid of the excrement. It becomes a habitual behavior for them. There is a theory that some particularly dominant dogs will eat other dogs’ stoolin order to remove it, and therefore remove other dogs’ presence. This is because excrement is one way in which dogs mark territory.

Answer 3

They don't eat poop. They eat meat. was told by my vet that in the wild puppies ate their poop to not get detected by predators. I've also heard that it could be from a lack of vitamin intake. They sell products at Pet co to try to alleviate the problem. i tried it with mine but it didn't work well. i found that changing her diet worked better. As she has gotten older her unpleasant fetish has gotten better. My vet also told me this is a very common problem for labs.

Answer 4

Most likely dogs eat their own fecal matter because they are hungry or because they consume almost anything. It could be part instinctual though. In the wild some animals will eat their own organic matter to conceal the fact that they are in the area, just as they would leave it to mark their territory.

Answer 5

Because dogs will eat just about anything, including cat poop. Cats are pickier, you'll never catch THEM eating poop.

Answer 6

They dont, they eat other dog's poop and t6hey do it so that they can mark there territory and get rid of evidence of other dogs

Answer 7

I was told by my vet that in the wild puppies ate their poop to not get detected by predators. I've also heard that it could be from a lack of vitamin intake. They sell products at Pet co to try to alleviate the problem. i tried it with mine but it didn't work well. i found that changing her diet worked better. As she has gotten older her unpleasant fetish has gotten better. My vet also told me this is a very common problem for labs.

Answer 8

Here's your reason...

Leftover trait of their carnivorous past. They used to eat the innards of other animals (after ripping them apart). That included the internal organs such as intestines which held.... poop!

I think it's funny that vets can prescribe a medicine that makes the feces taste bad..... isn't that already the case with poop?

http://www.animalbehaviorassociates.com/pdf/RMN_dogs_eat_poop.pdf#search='why%20do%20dogs%20eat%20poop'

Answer 9

YAY! KEEP THE POOP QUESTIONS COMING!

Who knows. Dogs are disgusting. If they aren't eating it, they're rolling in it. They smell bad enough as it is.

Answer 10

Cause dogs eat everything