How to Stop Your Puppy From Eating Poop
The majority of new owners like their puppy's antics, but a puppy that eats poop rarely results in smiles. It might also be an animal's waste. Some puppies are willing to consume any type of poop, including their own feces, your cat's litter box deposits, and even the horse or cow manure of their neighbors.
There are methods you may take to discourage and even stop the behavior, even though many pups grow out of this phase at least in part. You may stop your puppy from engaging in this disgusting behavior in a number of ways, including by increasing exercise, switching diets, making it obvious that eating poop is unacceptable, and reducing the opportunity your dog has to nibble on excrement. What you need to know about why pups eat their own feces and how to stop it are provided below.
Why Do Puppies Eat Poop?
No matter what sort of animal does it, dogs frequently consume their own or another animal's excrement. Coprophagia is the technical term for it.
This habit is usual for newborn puppies and may help the gastrointestinal tract become colonized with healthy bacteria. A female dog generally eats the feces of her nursing puppies to keep the "den" clean and deter prospective predators from coming to investigate the odor, therefore puppies may pick up this behavior by emulating their mothers. Around the time the puppies wean, female dogs usually cease eating their pups' feces, while some puppies may continue to ingest excrement.
The good news is that most puppies grow out of the behavior, though. Unfortunately, some dogs continue to engage in this repulsive behavior throughout their lives.
Your puppy may eat excrement for a number of reasons:
Entertainment
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Great puppy entertainment is provided when you chase the dog around the yard while waving your hands, yelling in disgust, and trying to stop it from eating crap. Your puppy thinks you two are having fun while playing a game. Chasing your puppy might reinforce the behavior and get them playing poopy-keep-away. Poop eating can sometimes result from boredom. A dog left alone in the yard by itself may choose to play with the only thing there is if it has nothing else to do.
Fun Fact
Eating the feces of other animals can just be a matter of preference. It's possible that undigested grains or other compounds found in cow and horse excrement will appeal to your dog. This could be the reason the litter box looks so much like a puppy snack bar!
Low-Quality or Low-Quantity Diet
Puppies who have poor nutrition may eat their own feces. For instance, if a dog's meal is not being digested completely, the dog may turn to its excrement as a supplement as it is almost identical to what was consumed. A dog may potentially just not be eating enough, in which case its daily food consumption needs to be raised. Another explanation is that a puppy with a severe worm infestation tries to replace the nutrients it is losing to the worms by eating its own waste.
Health Conditions:
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Coprophagia may also be brought on by certain medical conditions. Maldigestion or malabsorption may be brought on by conditions of the pancreas or small intestine. A dog's hunger may also be increased by illnesses like diabetes and thyroid disease, so if its regular diet isn't satisfying, it may turn to other foods. Make an appointment with your veterinarian if your puppy isn't flourishing despite eating a healthy diet or exhibits other symptoms of disease to make sure there isn't a health problem at hand.
Stress
Dogs who are under significant stress, such as those who are adopted, may also eat their own waste. Stress can also develop in puppies if they receive severe punishment for eating their own waste. This can create a vicious cycle where the puppy consumes the "evidence" in an effort to avoid getting into trouble since it equates eating excrement with punishment.
How to Stop Dogs From Eating Poop
The best course of action is to halt this behavior before it becomes out of control. Feces are frequently a vehicle for the transmission of parasites, therefore giving your dog some as a treat puts their health at risk. You can stop this disgusting behavior in a number of ways, including
Make It Clear the Behavior Is Unwanted
Puppies may consume trash to get your attention, therefore yelling at them could encourage this behavior. Keep your mouth and eyes shut if you see your dog acting inappropriately. Instead, stop the action by clapping your hands or shaking a can full of pennies. Do not smack your dog because this could make things worse by instilling fear in your puppy. Once your dog has left the feces alone, you can praise or pet it, play with it, or give it a tiny treat as a reward for its excellent behavior
When training your dog, positive reinforcement is always preferable to negative discouragement
Increase the Level of Activity
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Increase playing to at least 20 minutes several times a day to keep puppies entertained, or try cardiovascular activity twice daily. Increase the quantity of toys accessible if you leave your dog in the yard while you're gone. Poop can be replaced with a more palatable, healthier food like a peanut butter-filled Kong. Try to schedule frequent play and bonding sessions with your pet. Puppies are naturally playful, social animals that long to be with their favorite humans
Training sessions are a great method to break up monotony, promote bonding, prevent poop-eating, and enhance your dog's general behavior. Training sessions include training your puppy to walk on a leash, sit, stay, come, and lie down.
Minimize Stress
Try to provide some relief if you think stress may be contributing to your dog's habit. This will need addressing the source of the worry, whether it be a relocation to a new home, a change in the composition of the household, or even separation anxiety. While you attempt to reduce your puppy's anxiety, calming products like Adaptil might be helpful in the interim. To get assistance with diagnosis and treatment, consult your veterinarian.
Keep Your Pup On a Leash
By leading your puppy away from its pile of waste after it has finished its job while on a leash, you can prevent access. Give it incentives to leave the stool alone. As you pick up the waste, reward the puppy for "coming" and sitting in front of you after each bowel movement, whether it was its own or that of another dog. Then, make sure to discard the waste in a trash can with a tight-fitting lid to prevent your dog from retrieving the poop from the trash.
Add Bad Flavors
If you make the excrement taste unpleasant, you might be able to stop your puppy from eating it. You can achieve this by giving your puppy a supplement that makes the excrement it produces taste awful. Two of the substances that are frequently included in these supplements are hot pepper and garlic. If your puppy is eating cat waste or the waste of other house pets, try adding some hot sauce to the waste before giving it to your puppy to eat. The puppy may develop the negative association that excrement tastes disgusting as a result, so avoid doing this.
Switch Foods
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Some dogs may consume their feces before it has fully "processed." A more digestible diet that contains all the nutrients your dog needs may be helpful in these situations. Consult your pet's veterinarian for advice. Always remember to introduce the new food gradually because doing so suddenly could cause stomach problems. Additionally, make sure any new food is balanced and suitable for puppies or dogs of all ages. Unless your veterinarian specifically instructs you to do so, avoid feeding your young puppy food intended for adult dogs.
Puppy food is designed to give a growing dog the higher quantities of nutrients and calories needed.
Minimize Access to Other Animal Waste
Put the litter box away from the dog's reach on a table or counter. A covered litter box might keep the dog away if the cat doesn't object while still giving it access and privacy. To keep the dog out of the cat's territory, use a baby gate. Some cats are able to jump over the typical gates, but you can also place it so that it is a few inches off the ground, allowing your cat to slip underneath while blocking the path of the enormous dog.
When you're out walking your dog, keep it securely leashed so it can't get to the dog waste if your dog enjoys eating the waste of the neighborhood dogs. You can use the same method to prevent your dog from consuming cow, horse, rabbit, or other animal droppings. When you're out strolling with your puppy, keep in mind that dogs can move quite quickly if they spot anything on the ground to eat.