Our doggy that we rescued chews on used toilet paper, dirty under wear, and eats my cats droppings?

Question

What can I do to stop her? it's disgusting, not to mention, I don't want her to get sick. I have no clue who or where she came from, but is this normal behavior? I've only had cats.

Answer 1

OK. First of all a lot of dogs are tempted by the mentioned "goodies", including cat treats! That is pretty normal so you may have to doggie proof the bathroom and laundry area. They like things that smell. Since you don't know her background and what she had for a life then you have to look for clues as to her behaviour otherwise.

Right now she is having fun adjusting to a new home. Perhaps her first real home and someone that even notices her. She will give you clues. A dog that has been hit will flinch when you just go to touch or pet. Or shake and act scaird. A dog that has been hungry will go crazy for awhile over the food/water bowls. A dog that was not played with or given toys/bones will find "toys" and "goodies" like you are seeing. Introduce her toys to her or treat while taking away what you don't want her eating on! Trade off and repeat until she realizes she will have things to do and play with. This will discourage her going after the trash, dirty clothes, etc. Now Cat Poop is a real treat. Put litter pan where only cat can squeeze into area. Use a covered version and turn opening to face a corner or wall, just enough room for cat to enter.

Thank you for taking a rescue. They make the most loyal dogs as they do appreciate a good home/person. Worth the time and effort to reteach them doggie manners they never learned.

Answer 2

Yes, they are normal for a dog. Dog's explore the world with their mouths since they don't have hands or opposable thumbs. There is nothing more interesting than the three things you mentioned to any dog. And yes, it is disgusting. Just not to the dog. Remember that a dog literally "sees" the world through its nose. Can you see how its nose got it to focus on the three things you mentioned?

You can punish the dog until you are blue in the face. All that you are teaching the dog is to perform these unwanted behaviours when you are gone. And you are also weakening the bond between you both. She will learn to be afraid of you. With a new rescue, that's not wise.

To stop her you must puppy-proof your home. There is no sense and it is ludicrous to expect a dog (especially a new rescue) to learn NOT to love the things it clearly loves. This is not a training issue. It's an environmental one.

Toilet paper in the toilet or in the bin (with a lid).

Underwear (and all laundry) in the bin (with a lid if you need it).

Cat droppings - a little more difficult. Assuming you have a litter box this is going to attract the dog like flies to honey. Nothing strange or mentally unsound. Just a doggie thing. Keep the box as clean as humanly possible. Just to set your dog up for success, make it impossible for the dog to reach the box. Use baby gates, boxes, furniture, whatever you can to make it impossible for the dog to reach the litter box. Of course, cats can jump and squeeze into smaller spots than most dogs. Just be sure the cats can access the box but the dog cannot. Another suggestion could be to turn the cat box towards the wall so that the cat can squeeze in but the dog cannot. Be creative!

Kudos to you for rescuing a dog. She depends upon your guidance to keep her safe in the human world. Sometimes we have to save them from themselves!

Answer 3

You should put these types of things where she cannot reach them. Such as used toilet paper should be flushed down a toilet, dirty underwear should be in a clothes hamper and put the cats litter box up high. Cats will jump up to use their litter box. Your dog is lacking an important nutrient. Switch her food to a all natural well balanced dry dog food. Nothing that contains fillers, corn, wheat, soya, sugar or salt. Try Natural Balance

Answer 4

well my dogs get into our trashcans and eat the toilet paper and they eat my underwear too
but they have never eaten my cats poop
soo i dont know about that one but i no for a fact that when they eat the toilet paper and under wear that thats normal.
just leave the bathroom shut and keep the underwear in a spot she cant reach
and were ever your litter box is just put it some were that the cat can get to but not the dog
hope i could help !
=)

Answer 5

yuck!

Yes, some dogs do that so i guess it would be considered normal..
she probably wont stop.

You will have to do things differently. Get a trash can with a lid.
They have small metal ones at walmart that would work well.
You'll have to do better about leaving your undies laying around...
buy a dirty clothes hamper.

As for the cat box, either put it out of her reach, start scolding her and train her not to do it...or put up a kiddie gate where she cant get to it. The cat might not mind jumping over...
goodluck

Answer 6

I share/have shared the same problems with my dog. I'm sorry to hear about your dog's problems. Dogs eat feces of other dogs or their own. That is known as coprophasia and is a fairly common problem in young dogs and fortunately, most dogs outgrow it. It doesn't usually cause any medical problems. However, I would recommend that you get your dog de-wormed regularly with some oral de-wormer that you can get from your veterinarian. To discourage it, it's usually a behavioral problem, which means cleaning up any dog feces as soon as possible so that your dog doesn't have access and then trying to deny your dog access to any other dog's droppings as well. Fortunately, your dog will outgrow this habit; they almost all do. In the meantime, good luck and thank you for your question. My dog enjoys eating any dropping he can find. We are very strict with our dog. As far as the toilet paper issue, that is a easy fix. Dont allow him access. He does not rationalize like you. Put a lid on it. The dirty underwear... likewise, put a lid on them. Good luck with this issue. It isnt unique to your dog...dont worry.

Answer 7

Yes this is normal and yes it is disgusting.

Animals are great teachers. It sounds like you need to:
- close the lid and flush the toilet when your done.
- Pick up your dirty clothes.
- Move you kitty litter box to a place that your dog can't get to.

That's all. If somebody is not doing their part then get after them.

Answer 8

if it smells good to a dog, it is going to try to eat it. we kept a spray bottle with water handy and when we caught the dog doing anything we did not want it doing we sprayed the water in his face. { The same goes for training a cat too.} You also have to say NO real loud. Sooner or later it gets through to his stubborn brain.

hope this helps a little.

Answer 9

Take all the things she likes to chew and lay them out on the floor. When she goes for them correct her. Do this over and over until she no longer has a desire to chew them. You might have to keep repeating this for awhile. She will catch on though. The correction can just be a stern no.

Answer 10

I have to laugh at that.
But Get some Bitter Apple.
Its a Spray you can get at Petsmart and Petco.
It stops them from chewing everything up.
Spary it on the items and punish her when she does chew something up.
Sometimes it is. My Dog likes to do that somethimes but she stopped when we started to punish her. You cant be a softie on dogs.