Why Does My Dog Eat Poop?

Why Does My Dog Eat Poop?

As every dog owner knows, dogs do a lot of weird and crazy things. Most of the crazy things they do are considered cute by dog owners, but not all of them. Some of the things they do are quite disgusting. One of the crazy and disgusting things some dogs do is eat poop. When you see your dog do this the first time, you’ll probably think he has lost his mind. You shouldn’t worry, however, because it is quite normal behavior, and it is fixable.

Reasons Why Does my Dog Eat Poop?

The scientific, technical term for when an animal eats its poop or stool is coprophagia. For many animals, eating poop or stool is normal behavior. They eat poop as part of the digestive process. Without it, they won’t digest their food properly. But this isn’t the case with dogs. Even though it is a common behavior amongst many dogs, it’s not normal. There is no health necessity that requires dogs to eat poop. In fact, it usually just the opposite. When a dog eats stool, it is typical because there is something missing in their diet.

One of the first reasons which could lead to understanding as why dogs like to eat poop or their own poop, is simply because they might find that in other animals feces, there is a higher level of fat which was originally contained in the food that was eaten by these animals, their food might also have a higher amount of protein which, when it comes to comparing to the food that dogs normally eat, they bring way fewer calories and proteins, sometimes leaving dogs with a desire that might only be satisfied when finding in the feces of another animal the things that they are missing from their own food.

Quite often, dogs eat their poop because their diet is deficient in vitamin B. Other times it’s because their diet is short of the specific enzymes necessary for proper digestion. When this happens, just like animals that require poop to stimulate the digestive process, dogs must resort to eating poo for the same reason.

For some dogs, it is learned behavior. They learn it from their mother or their litter mates. And still others engage in coprophagia because they aren’t getting enough food, so they resort to eating poop to compensate for the lack of food.

Lastly, others do it because they are bored, or because their living are isn’t kept clean, so they eat poo out of boredom or for cleaning reasons.

The good news is none of these reasons are serious or life threatening and all are treatable. My Alaskan Malamute had a craving for cat poop and only cat poop. It was quite bizarre. Any other kind of animal stool we happened to come across on our daily walks wouldn’t make her look twice, but if there was any cat poo nearby, she was drawn to it like a magnet. Finally fed up, I took her to the vet, and he prescribed her some medication that solved the problem.

If your dog is attracted to poop, the first thing you should do is consult with a veterinarian to rule out any potential health issues. If it’s not a health issue, he can provide you with steps you can take to stop your dog’s poop craving.

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