How to Stop Your Dog From Eating Dog Poop

By nature, dogs act as scavengers. As a result, they may end up consuming dog poop, a behavior known as coprophagia)\. When this happens the dog may become ill, since eating dog poop exposes the animal to bacteria, worms and other undesirable elements. Fortunately, by following just a few simple steps, you can slowly but surely help to end this disgusting habit.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Poop scooper
• Sandwich bag
• Prone collar
• Poop-eating preventative
• Change of dog food

1. Take your dog to a veterinarian. Sometimes poop-eating could indicate a more serious medical problem. For example, if a dog is suffering from worms, they might be eating poop because their normal rations of dog food aren’t keeping them full. So to be on the safe side, get your dog checked out by a vet. If the dog seems healthy, chances are their coprophagia is the result of boredom or a desire for attention.

2. in the area. If possible, you will want to try to remove any feces that might be in your dog’s pooping area,even if the feces are from another animal. In addition, make sure you immediately remove your dog’s own poop right after he answers nature’s call. You can do this by picking their feces up with a poop scooper, then putting it in a sandwich bag.

3. Apply a poop-eating preventative to the dog’s food. Sometimes dogs will have "accidents" no matter how often you clean up their poop. When this happens, there might still be some temptation to engage in coprophagia. So, to lessen this temptation you will want to apply a poop-eating preventative to your animal’s food. Examples of such products include For-Bid and Deter, both of which are available at your local pet store. Either way, when these products are used, they will cause the feces to taste very bad. The dog remembers this unpleasant taste and becomes deterred from wanting to eat their feces in the future.

4. If you are in a situation where you are unable or unwilling to clean up feces, use a choke collar to navigate the animal away from them. Just remember that jerking a choke collar results in a very unpleasant sensation for your dog so try to use it sparingly.

5. Occasionally, dogs engage in coprophagia because they are bored with their regular dog food. Try experimenting with different types of dog food until you find a brand that really whets your dog’s appetite. Also keep in mind that there are special gravies you can buy to help enhance your dog’s food while providing for its nutritional needs.

Tips & Warnings

• Always have a toy or a bone around so your dog won’t eat poop out of boredom.
• Most poop-eating preventatives won’t affect the taste of dog food, just the feces.
• Do not apply hot sauce to your dog’s poop as it could result in choking.
• Do not give For-Bid to dogs that are on steroids.

Resources

• How to Use a Prone Collar Video

Who Can Help Sponsored

[JacquelineAbner]

on 1/2/2009 My youngest dog wants to eat poop immediately after relieving herself. It's so frustrating! I've seen the gravies in the store and have contemplated on purchasing some. This article was very informative, thanks!