Charlie Is A Poo Eater Again :(

[SeeGee]

Charlie has started to seriously eat his poo. Not just nudge at it, but EAT the damn stuff. Its disgusting. He used to do it in the early days but stopped.

We have had a change of diet, incorporating Vets all natural, and Ester C..... Mia doesnt eat her poo (she gets the same diet, exactly).

Any ideas to assist in deterring? Im at a loss, and competly grossed out.

Cheers

Jacqui

[curlygirl]

I heard that adding pineapple to the food is meant to help, dont know if its fresh or tinned or either.

[Guest belgian.blue]

Picking it up as soon as they do it also works.

My girl was a poo eater but I found she only ate poo that was from a dog fed a higher diet in salt.

Fresh pineapple works and the dogs seem to eat it with no problems.

[BJean]

What breed is charlie?

Sorry to hijack your thread but I was talking to an owner of a guide dog puppy

and apparently poo eating is common in Guide Dogs puppies (???)

I dont know if this is true

I was hoping to find out more info

and any success stories of curbing the behaviour.

nb: Charlie doesn't sound too bad

the dog I am referring literally eats its as the other dog is producing it.

Quite gross.

Edited June 16, 2010 by lilli

[SeeGee]

Charlie and Mia are beagles. Maybe I will buy some tinned pineapple and add it and the natural juice to their mince mix in the morning.

If anyone has other suggestions Id be appreciative.

Jacqui

[oakway]

Only tinned pineapple.

Just don't worry over it. Dogs all over the world do it.

They are dogs and dogs do things like this.

The only other advise I can give, is what was given to me

when I first noticed my dogs first doing it.

Don't look.

I have had blood tests run, had diet checked, I literally spend thousands trying to find out what caused it to avail.

It certainly had nothing to with diet or any other practiced management we use in dogs.

It comes down to...they can...so they do.

Again don't look.

[sas]

I think it's important to remember that it is a natural behaviour for a dog, there are no need to run expensive tests unless your Vet feels there is reason to be concerned.

After all it is disgusting to you but not to the dog.

There are many theories as to why dogs do it but no 100% answers.

Some things you could try:

If you feel that the dog maybe missing some vitamins/minerals from their intake you can try a product such as: Value Plus Organic Iron/Min 500 Tablets

You can and make the Poo taste yucky by giving the dog Pineapple Juice in their meals.

You can pick up the poo as soon as you see it.

You can not make a big deal of it when the dog is doing it as behavioural wise it is believed it can turn into a came ....who can get to the poo faster you or me!?

Edited June 17, 2010 by sas

[casowner]

Thrive D works wonders, we had a chronic poo eater at the training kennels called Morgan. She would stand behind a dog and eat the poo as it came out, vomit it up and eat it again, it was gross. She had an underbite so would have crap in her teeth and her breath was vile. Within one week of using Thrive D she stopped

Thrive D contains natural mineral clay and digestive enzymes producing improved digestablitity of food and reduced flatulence. Can help with weight gain and improved coat condition.

Registered Name Nature Vet Thrive D Oral Powder for Dogs

Composition Active. Sodium bentonite 718.9 g/kg; digestive enzymes (with lipase, amylase and protease activity) 7.2 g/kg.

Inactive. Sodium bicarbonate, calcium carbonate, copper, manganese, magnesium, zinc, iron.

Actions Sodium bentonite is smectite earth which slows the rate of passage of food through the bowel and enables more efficient digestion. It also alters the bacterial fermentation activity and prevents the absorption of certain toxic bowel acids.

Digestive enzymes break down food elements into digestible components.

Indications Weight gain, improved coat condition and digestive efficiency in working, racing and show dogs, puppies, debilitated or convalescent animals, brood bitches.

What it basically does is make the food take longer to go through the system therefore more nutrients are absorbed

Edited June 17, 2010 by casowner

[SeeGee]

Thank you everyone. Im going to start with the pineapple and work my way down the ideas from everyone. i appreciate such informative posts oakway, sas and casowner.

[Rysup]

I have Poo Eaters here too. I dont look. I pick up poo every morning, following them around to pick it up as its done, but I have a few dogs and someone inevitably eats someone elses poo! I have also caught the odd one raiding the poo scoop when I had my back turned. Just turn away, or close your eyes. It never happened

[Kelly_Louise]

I'll swap you a poo eater for a poo roller???

Chloe dove into something at the park the other day that looked suspiciously like human poo (with an upset tummy) and smelled like nothing I've ever smelled before, and rolled her little heart out. Why do they find such smells so appealing???

I'd rather a poo eater anyday. I'd just avoid doggy kisses.

[Kelly_Louise]

I have Poo Eaters here too. I dont look. I pick up poo every morning, following them around to pick it up as its done, but I have a few dogs and someone inevitably eats someone elses poo! I have also caught the odd one raiding the poo scoop when I had my back turned. Just turn away, or close your eyes. It never happened

BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAH... this post really did make me laugh out loud!!!

[Dagmar]

some people have success by sprinkling something like chilli or any other deterrent on the poo.

You got some quite good tips here so far, pineapple, picking it up immediately (obviously), NOT making a big fuss over it - and no doggy kisses ;-)

Good luck!

Dagmar

[matilda1]

Just as a footnote, be careful with how much pineapple you feed as it is very high in acids.