“Why is my dog eating feces?” It’s a common question asked by pet owners, particularly owners of puppies and understanding the causes of this habit, known as coprophagy, can help lead to the effective treatment with use of supplements and behavior modification.
Coprophagy can affect dogs of all ages, but puppies seem to be particularly prone to developing this habit and many naturally outgrow the problem. The exact nature of the habit can vary from dog to dog; some eat their own feces, others eat the feces of other dogs, while others only eat cat feces, and still others eat only feces from herbivores, like deer and rabbits.
“There’s always the chance of acquiring an intestinal parasite or illness as a result of this behavior so a vet visit is always a good idea both before the problem is addressed and after the fact, to ensure that the pet is free of parasites and illnesses. Beforehand, we need to determine if a nutritional deficiency or other physical problem is to blame because no amount of training can effectively solve a problem that has its basis in a medical problem,” explained Dr. Michael Levine, DVM.
There is an array of causes for coprophagy and the solution will vary depending on the cause:
- Nutritional deficiencies can trigger a dog to eat feces. Dogs who are attracted to the feces of herbivores are often deficient in vitamin B, for instance. This can result from intestinal mal-absorption disorders, malnutrition and parasite infestations. So in many cases, providing a multi-vitamin supplement and a healthy diet, with fresh food components can help lessen the urge to eat stools.
- Puppies often tend to develop this habit and many researchers believe that this is the result of experimentation due to natural puppy curiosity. Others believe that when the puppy’s rapid rate of growth requires more vitamins and minerals than are contained in the dog’s diet, he will seek out alternate sources of nutrition. In many cases, vitamin supplementation, combined with behavior modification efforts can resolve this issue.
- Female dogs, particularly pregnant bitches, mothers with puppies and un-spayed females in heat, are prone to coprophagy. This is due to an instinctual maternal urge to hide the puppies from predators and eating their feces is one way to conceal the puppies’ existence. Therefore, the mother may eat the feces of her puppies, or even housemates in the case of a dog without puppies. Behavioral modification training is most often effective with these cases.
- Stress and anxiety is known to trigger coprophagy. In situations of stress, many dogs tend to be more prone to exhibit this behavior, and if a dog has previously dealt with coprophagy, the behavior is more likely to resurface during a period of anxiety or stress. For cases such as these, behavioral modification techniques tend to be most effective in treating this problem.
- Improper discipline can lead to coprophagy as well. Behaviorists have found that dogs who have been subject to improper discipline techniques concerning bathroom habits can lead an animal to believe that defecating is inappropriate, and therefore, they will eat their feces in order to avoid discipline. Utilizing proper bathroom training techniques is vital to avoid complications such as this.
