October 6, 2009

Dog Coprophagia – Stop My Puppy Eating Poop

Dog Coprophagia How do you Stop your Puppy Eating Poop

Dog coprophagia yes that’s the proper name is but most of us call it puppy eating it’s poop Yuk!!!

When this happens you will probably feel like you are the only puppy owner out their that has a puppy that does this disgusting thing, but your not. It’s also not the sort of thing you want to talk to your friends about, especially when your best friend loves it when your puppy come up and licks her face and thinks that it’s adorable. How could you tell her that your lab puppy has just been outside to the loo and eaten it’s own poop and has just licked her face.

Puppy Eating Poop

So Dog coprophagia, why does your puppy eat it’s poop and how can we stop it.

Firstly I asked the vet if a puppy was eating poop was it a vitamin deficiency and she said “no it’s just a bad habit that needs to be nipped in the bud now”.

So how do you stop Dog coprophagia?

I have spent many hours researching this subject and I am pleased to tell you in the process I have lost weight this week. Lets hope I have found you the information that you need to stop your puppy eating poop.

So this is what I have found out how to stop your puppy eating poop.

If your puppy is eating it’s own poop then when you take it outside always have dog poop bags with you so you can pick the poop up. Distract your lab puppy with a treat while he is busy eating his treat pick up the poop.
Another trick is to sprinkle something on it’s food so when it comes out of the other end it doesn’t taste very nice. A lot of people suggested meat tenderizer in his food, I would be cautious with this one as I would be concerned about the ingredients that are in this, other people have recommended 3 products that can be bought on-line or in pet shops. The names of those products are For-bid , Deter and Solid Gold S.E.P. (Stop Eating Poop).
Lots of people also suggested adding Corgettes and Pineapples as they are also said to be unpalatable when they come out of the other end so you might want to try mixing these in with food.
If your puppy is eating other dogs poop when you are on a walk take a water spray with you, fill this with water and a few drops of lemon juice and spray the offending poop with the mixture, your puppy will not like the smell.
Does your puppy eat too fast? another reasoning for eating poop is because when your puppy eats to fast their food doesn’t have time to digest. And when he poops after eating his poop is still like fresh dog food for him. I would recommend when feeding him (he will get it after a few times of feeding) you just start out giving him a tiny bit of food in his bowel. When he is finished give him a tiny more, then again and again till he eats all his food. That will teach him to slow down when eating and he won’t be tempted to eat his own poop.
It may be related to boredom or stress. The particulars of this theory are hazy, but essentially, bored or stressed dogs – such as those that spend too much time on their own, those that lead under stimulated, under exercised lives, and those that are excluded from family life and adequate human attention and affection – often succumb to strange and compulsive habits, like pulling out their own fur, spinning in circles for hours on end, and (theoretically, at least) poop eating. In other words, a dog will eat poop simply because there’s nothing else for him to do.
Improperly toilet trained dogs sometimes eat their own poop in an attempt to conceal the “crime” from their owners and thus avoid detection. This is especially true of dogs whose owners tend to punish them for house training mistakes, whether out of impatience/frustration or because they believe that the dog is somehow doing it to “spite” them.
Teach your dog the “leave it” command for those times when you want to be able to walk him off-lead. Reliable obedience in the “leave it” makes off-lead walks a real pleasure (and it’s a lot safer for your dog, too – the usefulness of “leave it” applies to things like herbicide, snail bait, and broken glass as well as poop!).

So the long term solution is to train your puppy to stop eating poop. If you make a big fuss when your Lab puppy eats poop and try to stop him mid-scoff, he is more likely to simply attempt to be quicker next time. Your lab puppy may even think you are in competition and trying to reach the poop first because you desire to have it. The eating of poop has then become a significant event and could easily escalate into a habit. Distraction and reward is therefore preferable. Teaching the leave command can help. Start with something of low value before you graduate to using the leave command on something as rewarding as poop eating.

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I hope this information on Dog Coprophagia – Stop My Puppy Eating Poop has helped, if you have heard of any other tricks that have worked for you please leave a comment.

P.S. If you want more tips don’t forget to sign up for my 10 day Lab Puppy Training course, just fill in the form at the top right hand corner of the page and I will send my free puppy training tips to your in-box over the next 10 days.