Why do dogs eat their own waste/feces? My dog just started doing this.?

Answer 1

Its called Coprophagia. Read this:

"Coprophagia is defined as the ingestion of any type of faeces, and is a common complaint of dog owners. A dog may eat its own faeces, those of another dog or the faeces of another species. Dogs commonly eat the faeces of cats with whom they share a household or farm animals.

The only circumstance in which coprophagia is considered a normal behaviour is when a mother dog eats the faeces of her pups from the time of their birth until about 3 weeks of age. It is felt that the ***** does this to keep the nest area clean until the pups are able to move away from it to defecate. A clean nest area may be less likely to attract predators in the wild.

It may also be considered a natural, although not normal, behaviour for dogs to consume the faeces of large herbivores (cows, sheep, goats etc.) containing significant amounts of nutrients remaining after large intestinal fermentation. This may have helped to sustain dogs in the wild when no other food source was available.

Coprophagia may be a behavioural problem or secondary to a medical problem.

Coprophagia may be a type of behavioural coping mechanism for an animal that is caught in a stressful situation, such as a sudden environmental change. It can be a tactic to avoid punishment for having a bowel movement in an inappropriate area. Coprophagia can be taught to a puppy during housetraining; if the puppy is scolded or he sees the owner 'cleaning up' the bowel movement in the house, the puppy may learn to 'hide' the bowel movement by eating it. Some dogs may simply just enjoy it!

Coprophagia may be a sign of an underlying medical problem. Internal parasites or diseases that affect major organ systems (such as the pancreas or thyroid gland) may cause an animal to exhibit coprophagia. Internal parasites and some diseases can prevent the absorption of dietary nutrients; therefore, the animal may remain hungry even after consuming a meal and it may turn to eating bowel movement. Also, when undigested food is excreted it includes undigested carbohydrates, protein and fat, which may still seem palatable to eat.

Many have theorized that in some animals, coprophagia may be caused by dietary deficiencies, but there is little information to support this theory."

Answer 2

My puppy, Coco, started doing this a few months ago. Everytime she did that, I would say "NO". I house train her in a litter for dogs which works really well because she is a tiny dog. I take out her waste right away and she doesn't dare go near it to eat any more. Just teach your dog the word "NO", and they'll get it. Otherwise, you can go out and clean up the waste before they can go back to eat it!

Answer 3

this is learned behavior, usualy we see this in puppies bred by irresponsible breeders, these dirtbags cram the litter of pups in a small area or cage and do not keep it clean, forcing the pups to eat their waste. this is a natural behavior in the wild to prevent the nest/lair from drawing vermin or predators.

when it goes on too long the pups are programed to "clean up" after they go, and will "clean up" any waste they find.

to break this nasty habit set your dog on a ridgid feeding schedule. set a clock for it so the timing is absolutely rigid.

walk the dog after he eats, and keep walking untill he goes, as soon as his "product" lands swoop in and clean it up, and praise him like it was the best thing he ever did.

dogs have simple guts, food goes in, turds come out, set feeding makes the timing predictable so that you can intervene. a couple weeks and you should be set.
if he does get a nugget dont panic, just pretend nothing happened.

Answer 4

Disgusting, isn't it? The Vet told me it's because there is a lot of undigested food still left over.... so they eat it! You can dicourage this behaviour by sprinkling hot pepper or vinegar on the feces (before the dog gets it!)

Answer 5

Yukky, isn't it? I have a Golden that does it...or did it. I broke her of it, by sprinkling a little Accent (nothing else seems to work), on her food every meal...for several weeks. Per my vet, the enzymes in Accent work on the proteins in the feces and makes it "nasty" tasting...for the dog. It seems to have worked, as she stopped and hasn't started again.

In case she does, I have a giant can of Accent and the will to sprinkle.

Answer 6

Sometimes they do it because they're bored; sometimes they do it because they get in the habit of doing it for their puppies (mother dogs clean up after them); sometimes they do it because they're lacking in something nutritionally; sometimes they do it to copy other dogs. In other words, there are many reasons for it and it's a disgusting habit! I've heard that if you put fresh pineapple in your dog's food, it will deter it. I bought a medication that you put in the food, but it didn't do any good. I have 9 dogs, so it's pretty interesting who eats what. My husband said that he felt we should train the horses and cats to eat their own poop, then we'd never have to clean animal poop up again. (Don't anyone get mad...he was only kidding).

Answer 7

From what I have been told your dog eats his fecal matter normally for one reason. Undigested protiens in his stool. Find a better brand, one that is more easily digested and better utilized by your puppy.The brand you are using may not be properly processed with his system.

Answer 8

Don't quote me. Someone told me dogs that eat poop, are lacking minerals or some kind of nourishment it body needs. I would ask a vet and see what they might think about that. Good luck!

Answer 9

Well, myChihuahua eats it, but she only eats half of it each time so we see the other part of it and we reward her for pooping on the dog mat...

Answer 10

Your dog may be hungry! ;-)

How old is your dog? Many puppies do this and grow out of it. Two vets I know say it is normal.