My puppy eats his own poo!

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Robbi

Boxer Pal
I have a disgusting dilemma! My sweet puppy (about 4 months) loved to eat poo. The worst is when he poos while we are gone at work and eats it before we can get home to clean it (we know it happens because we have a camera set up to watch him).

I am not sure what to do or if there is anything I can do! He's a good dog in other aspects but I know this is not a healthy behavior!

Does anyone have advice? Thanks in advance.
 
ehayes21

ehayes21

Boxer Insane
The only real solution to this problem is getting to the mess before he does. How long is the pup in the crate? That could be your answer right there.
 
BxrMommieNAZ

BxrMommieNAZ

Boxer Insane
My pup did this although he didn't go anywhere but outside, I just had to watch him everytime I put him out and give him a no command when he went near feces, that combined with growing older he grew out of it. Many animals will eat their feces in order to keep their "den" clean so maybe getting him on a better schedule or having somene come in in the afternoon to let him out would be beneficial so that he has the opportunity to eliminate outside and not in the house.
 
tianthai

tianthai

Completely Boxer Crazy
What food do you feed your pup? I heard that dogs ate their own poo when the food they ate had not enough nutrients in it. Could this be your case?
 
Groundhog

Groundhog

Boxer Buddy
BxrMommieNAZ said:
This is starting to become old wives tale BTW, more and more research is debunking this myth.
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Debunking a myth about poo? Good choice of words! That IS funny!

One thing no one has addressed and I've always wondered. It's gross and disgusting to us but is it ever harmful to the dog?
 
BxrMommieNAZ

BxrMommieNAZ

Boxer Insane
Groundhog said:
Debunking a myth about poo? Good choice of words! That IS funny!

One thing no one has addressed and I've always wondered. It's gross and disgusting to us but is it ever harmful to the dog?
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As far as I read when my own pup was doing it no, it is only harmful if they eat another dog or cat's feces that is contaminated with something such as a parasite or something along those lines, but in general as long as the feces isn't contaminated no. Mother dogs eat their babies feces in order to keep the den clean and keep predators away, it's part of a natural instinct and unless there's something wrong with it, it isn't thought to be harmful.
 
TwoDogs

TwoDogs

Boxer Insane
My guy was really skinny when I adopted him. He wasn't being fed enough by his previous owners. As a result, he ate his poop. So in a way you could say his diet was lacking in nutrients and that caused the poop eating.

I switched him to Canidae and added digestive enzymes and of course started feeding him more and the poop eating reduced but every once in a while he would still try. I switched to California Natural and not only did his pooping reduce, the poop eating was totally eliminated. He is now on a prescription food for an unrelated health issue. The prescription food is loaded with grains and fillers and he is back to eating the poop full force. I definitely think the quality of the food is the reason. Crappy food (no pun intended) makes him poop more and the poop stinks like the junk food, so it's more desirable. Consider feeding your pup a grain-free food if you aren't already.

I think the poster who suggested that you need to get to the poop first, and make sure he's not in the crate too long has a point. Also, sticking to a set feeding schedule and tailoring the feeding times to your pups internal clock will let you control when he poops. When my girl was a pup, I could tell that she would poop within an hour of eating a meal, and be ready to poop again in 4-6 hours. When do you feed your pup? Maybe it is too close to the time that you crate him. Perhaps if you fed him earlier, it would give him time to eliminate before you leave for work. Alot of people make the mistake of free-feeding and just leave food down or in the crate all the time. A pup that free-feeds will have a tougher time developing an elimination schedule.

Another thing that will help is to make sure your crate is not too big. If a pup has a lot of room in the crate, he is more likely to soil in it because he can soil in one spot and lay in another. An appropriatly sized crate may make him hold things in just that little bit longer until you get home. Of course he shouldn't have to hold it too long, so maybe coming home to take him for a potty break, or hiring a dog walker is the answer.
 
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LILYLARUE

LILYLARUE

Boxer Insane
There are additives you can put in their food to eliminate this. It makes the poo unappealing by scent. Pet stores may have it. Petsmart does carry it. Also, adding fresh or canned pinnaple chunks will do the same thing if they like the taste.
 
B

boxermax

Boxer Pal
My pup was exactly the same! he's 2 now and has completely grown out of it. We just used to watch him carefully in the garden and pick it up as soon as he did anything, and told him no. He eventually got the message (about 6 months). However when researching the behaviour I did read if you put tomato ketchup or pinapple juice on their dinner they won't eat there poop - not sure if it really works as we didn't need to try it!
 
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