There are many reasons why a dog may eat his poop. Sometimes it can be out of boredom, to seek attention, to avoid punishment, or due to health issues. This practice, known as coprophagy, is quite normal for a puppy. This behavior always has an underlying cause and, if not corrected appropriately and in a timely manner, it can become a recurring habit.
Sometimes a dog can eat poop as a result of a lack of nutrients in his diet. This happens when a dog has parasites or worms that prevent proper digestion because they consume most of the nutrients. the solution to this would be to make sure your dog is getting proper nutrition in his diet and, of course, to have him checked for worms.
If your dog is behaving differently and uncomfortably, there may be an underlying health issue at hand so it is best to check with your vet on this. However, if your dog is simply eating his poop for fun, here are some tips on how you can make him stop.
- Coat stools with hot sauce or lemon juice. You can also add some canned pumpkin to his food bowl every day! Pumpkin tastes good as food but it tastes disgusting as poop so your pupper will most likely not eat it their poop because of this.
- Add meat tenderizer to your dog’s food. This will make your dog’s waste taste VERY bad, thus stopping your dog from eating his own poop.
- Keep waste picked up on a regular basis. Perhaps the simplest way is to stop your dog from getting the chance of eating his poop, so be sure to clean up after him every time he takes a dump!
There are times as well when coprophagy is caused by high stress. When dogs are stressed, they may start behaving differently. Take your dog out for regular exercise and bonding time to lessen his stress.