Dog eating own ....

Help!!!!

Is it normal for a dog to continuously eat its own sh1t?

kylith

I'll put it this way; it's not abnormal.

Is it just its own? What are you feeding?

I've heard that feeding a slice of pineapple a day can put them off their poo, something about the smell of the enzymes.

Of course, the best thing is to keep your garden clean so that it can't get at any of it to eat, or is it eating it immediately.

Help!!!!

Its the next door neighbours dog....it comes out one end then back in the other pretty rapid.
She doesn't take it for walks so was wondering if this was the cause
Its a miniature Doberman/Pincher I think

Nody

Could be because it learned it get's punished for popping (i.e. pushing dog's nose into it as some morons "trainers" are still telling people to do for toilet training) so learned it as a defensive habit.

chanelfreak

Unfortunately, yes. My shihtzu just loves to do this and we tried pineapple, picking up after her the second we see her go, distracting her with treats when she poops so that she anticipates treats as opposed to poo and nothing works!

I asked my vet several times about it and she told me it is just a habit and that it can be next to impossible to break.

I should also mention that Phoebe enjoys sampling the cat poo buffet from the litter boxes. Y'know, she is just gross really

Still worship the very ground she walks on though:p

Rommie

A lot of the time, they do this because they aren't properly digesting their food, it goes in one end, only ends up halfdigested and comes out smelling like food again from the other end. I would reccommend changing the food to see if it helps.

odckdo

I also thought it was to do with the dog's diet. If their dog food has a high cereal content then they are more prone to doing it - either eating their own or others.

DBB

There is a whole raft of reasons why dogs might eat their own poop.... a malabsorption problem or other medical issue, dietary imbalance, boredom, attention-seeking, play (using it as a toy, often learned if kept at some point in its life in a very impoverished environment), or even plain old hunger.
If the poor dog is not being walked, there's every chance that boredom is playing a part, but iit is important to rule out any medical issues before trying to address it by training. Not sure if this is possible given the circumstances that the dog does not belong to you!

JJJJNR

I soak the dog food (nuts) in warm water for 10 minutes to help the dog digest , and it seems to work, my lab does not eat it, also there's a release of bubbles when they are soaking, which I don't think will help the dog. Maybe give it a try.

carav10

One of mine, a collie/retriever mix eats my other dog's poop but doesn't eat her own. (Both female). She doesn't however, eat the poop of the newer third fella (a male).

But she'll only eat it when it's nice and warm....so luckily the pooper is regular, in the morning before I go to work and then soon after I get home so I manage to pick it up in time most of the time. The poop eater though knows damn well she's not supposed to do it. If she knows I'm there, she'll stand a bit away sniffing the air, trying to edge closer but giving the back door looks and she gets quite anxious to go to it but knows she can't or there'll be war :-)

Equally funny is the rank order of peeing, smaller gentle dog first, then poop eater over hers, then fella over both.

I've just come to accept it...

seamus

Yeah mine seems practically terrified of her own, but will eat cat poo wherever she can find it and will occasionally sample other dogs', though she's very selective in that regard. She's a dirtbag.

From what I recall the received wisdom is that if eating their own is a new phenomenon, then it's likely a medical issue. If it's habitual then there's probably nothing to worry about. Depending on your own ability to cope of course.

Meemars

Agree with Seamus above. My girl is spotless in relation to her own, and is horrified if she ever stands in any! But if it smells right, she'll wolf it down. Cat Poo, other dog's poo, but not all dog's poo, and never her own. Breaks my heart, manky ol' thing.

mark_jmc

My staffy is consistenly doing it,
It happens at night (she sleeps outside in her house and every morning we wake up to a dirty protest on her blankets). she is not pooping in her bed she is taking it in so we are trying to make sure that every night she poops before we put her to bed. We have tried pinapple/ tablets nothing seems to work, any ideas appreciated