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What are the steps to be taken to stop your dog from eating poop?
If you are reading this post, you have a dog who likes to eat poop. Try out the following amazing tips to correct and stop your dog from eating poop. Most commonly, your dog eats poop due to malnourishment. You can do the following to improve your dog’s nourishment and reduce the poop eating behavior:
Enzyme supplementation
The current canine diet which is commercially available has a high level of carbohydrates and low levels of need-based proteins and fats which were a part of the canine ancestor’s diet, thus supplement your dog’s food with liver enzymes and other biological enzymes that might be needed.
Vitamin supplementation
The most common reason why dogs eat their feces is due to a lack of vitamins in their diet. A dog multivitamin can be very helpful in such a case. Vitamin B deficiency specifically has been observed to be a prime suspect and there have been studies to even back this observation. A study done in 1981 showed that physical microbial activity causes the synthesis of thymine which is a B vitamin. Thus, adding a multivitamin to your dog’s diet can be highly beneficial.
Use of poop aversion products
The theory behind this is that if the poop smells and tastes as disgusting as the part of the same as humans, the less likely that your dog will not eat his or her poop. For this, commercial eating dividends are available which can be added to dog food or treats. Adding this deterrent will cause the production of poop which would be very less appealing to your dog. A lot of these products contain chamomile, your car, parsley, garlic, and monosodium glutamate. One word of caution, use the taste diversion products on all the dogs if it is a multi-dog household with a competing problem.
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However, if poop eating is due to behavioral issues, the following environmental management methods might help:
Keep clean:
Keep your dog’s living area clean including the backyard and remove all the poop immediately before your dog has a chance to ingest it.
Supervisor your dog on walks and pick up the poop immediately.
Training
Work hard on the commands like come and leave it. One very simple exercise to prevent your dog from eating his or her poop can be offering treats. The moment your dog has popped, offer him or her a treat immediately. This will focus your dog’s attention away from the pope and on to the treat. Eventually, your dog will develop a habit to run to you for a tasty morsel of food instead of reaching for the one which is on the ground.
Use playtime as your weapon:
The aim is to give your dog screen active and healthy. Delegate a regular training schedule that provides mental stimulation and exercise to your dog. This is particularly important if your dog belongs to a working breed. You can also sign up for a flyball class or agility class for additional learning. Most important is that you choose safe toys that can provide entertainment to your dog when you are not around or when your dog is alone.
Feed your dog the best diet possible
Make sure that your dog is eating a whole and healthy diet containing quality proteins. Raw food can be particularly important for your dog as it can provide the digestive enzymes your dog needs to process his or her means. If you only feed your dog cooked food, you must add digestive enzymes. Raw green tripe is particularly high in probiotics as well as digestive enzymes which will keep your dog’s digestive tract healthy.
Provide supplements to your dog
If your dog has HCl efficiency, you can add some Apple cider vinegar into his or her food which can help compensate for the deficiency.
Screen your dog for parasites:
If you feel that your dog is struggling to absorb nutrients from his/her food, it is time to visit your vet. A quick and easy test to let you know if your dog needs deworming medication.
Act as if eating poop is not a big deal
Dogs are like kids. Punishing them might reduce their behavior right then and there, but eventually, it may interest lead to an increase in the behavior to avoid confrontation. Thus, behave as if eating poop is no big deal. Your aim must be to diverge your dog’s attention from the pop on the ground to something else.
Use of food additives to make poop aversive does not work:
It has been observed, that food additives which are aimed at making poop aversive, work in only 2% of the cases. So don’t waste your time on this. Rather, work on your dog’s training. If your dog is food motivated, use food as a means to diverge your dog’s attention from the poop on the ground.
For dogs who eat cat poop:
If your dog consistently eats cat poop, make sure that you have a doggie gate installed to keep your dog away from the litter box. You can also keep the litter box in a place that is out of reach of your dog, for example, on a high table or bridge your dog will be able to jump at your cat can easily access the litter box. Always remember, dogs will repeat to eat things that appeal to the taste buds. Poop might be one of them.
How to prevent puppies from eating poop
Puppies that come from puppy mills usually tend to eat feces. If your puppy exhibits such behavior, you need to control its access to poop itself. During your house-training sessions, take your puppy out at consistent time schedules so that your puppy learns to not poop in the house. You’re your puppy finishes defecating, immediately offer him or her praise and a treat. Make sure that it takes a while for your puppy to eat the treat so that you have the time to pick up the poop before the puppy’s attention goes on to the poop.
Such actions on your behalf, print your puppy from accessing the poop. You are also reinforcing a positive behavior during the potty-training sessions with your puppy instead of using punishment as a means of training. Remember, punishments never work. They may instead cause your pup to become aggressive and repeat the behavior which is causing him or her to get punished.
How to prevent adult dogs from eating their feces
As I mentioned above if you punished your dog for a behavioral issue, it will just reinforce that behavior over time and it will also cause your dog to become aggressive. Thus, if your dog has learned to eat their feces because he or she is scared to be punished for having defecated in the house (this can happen if your dog had previous guardians who believed in the power of punishment rather than training), you must reduce your dog’s access to the feces itself.
Try to re-housetrained your dog. Set up a schedule and take your dog out at those specific times so that your dog learns that that particular time is the time to defecate. The moment your dog passes stools, call him or her over to you offer praise, and give a treat. This would reduce your dog’s association with the poop and increase your dog’s association with the treat and reward. He or she will learn that if I move away from the poop immediately I get praised and I received a reward thus reinforcing the positive behavior over and over again.
This behavior won’t get corrected in one day or a few sessions. You need to be consistent in managing your dog and restricting his or her access to the feces to make sure relapse does not happen. If you have been successful in teaching your dog the leave it command, use the command with a treat to keep reinforcing the positive behavior in your dog.
The primary aim is to offer higher value treats and consistent praise to your dog for good behavior. It would be beneficial if you have a high-value sheet specifically for this occasion.
Use tools for dog training
I do not advocate using a muzzle or a head caller on your dog. However, if your dog is a very aggressive poop eater, these might just be the things of choice. You can use the head color to guide your dog’s head away from the poop. Turn your dog away and immediately remove the poop from the scene.
Alternatively, you can use a basket muzzle on your dog to prevent him or her from eating the feces. However, if your dog is particularly germane to eat the poop, he or she might smush the muzzle on the poop to gain access.
One other tool that you can use to prevent your dog from eating feces is to use a foxtail field mask. The fabric measure of this has tiny holes that prevent the feces to be pushed from the opening into your dog’s face.
You can also use canned pumpkin or meat tenderizer as an ingredient of your dog food. These items with this book if your dog when eating but they will cause the poop to taste terrible.
Always avoid punishment
This is the key point to keep in mind when training your dog or correcting the behavior of your dog. Punishments only work short-term; they are not the solution from a long-term behavior correction in your dog. So, never punish your dog. Always try to understand their behavior from their perspective and then provide the correctional measures. This will make sure that your relationship with your dog is loving and healthy.
Does your dog have this problem? What do you do to divert your dog’s attention from the feces on the ground? If you have any other solution other than the ones listed above, please mention it in the comment section below. If you have any queries or topics you wish for me to write on, mention them in the comment section below. If you have any stories you wish to publish on my blog and share with readers, please contact me on one of my social media channels.