Samantha's eating dirt

[urge to herd]

Sami is my soon to be 13 yr old spayed girl. Several weeks ago, I posted about her seeming to have symptoms of Canine Cognitive Disorder - confusion, anxiety, not responding to things she would normally have been excited about.

 

My vet doesn't think much of Anipryl, and Becca and a couple others, I think, recommended Cholodin. Got some, she's been on a full daily dose for 3 weeks or so, improvement is minor if at all so far. I do understand there's a loading period.

 

So, DH lets her out in the yard, I go out with the other dogs, and there she is, scraping at the soil and eating it. She was definitely eating it, I saw it. I'm pretty sure it's not animal droppings, she's been digging at this one spot for a while now, and must have been eating some, too. We've got dense, sticky, clay soil, so it's not likely the feral cats or anything else would be wanting to poop there, 4 inches below the top.

 

She gets about a cup and a half daily of California Natural, and has eaten that for years. She also gets some training treats daily, healthy stuff. She weighs around 40 lbs, looks good, good coat, good nails/ears/stools, etc.

 

There's been some upset since the first of the year, one of our cats has been diagnosed with hyperthyroidism, the other with kidney issues. DH and I have both been spending a lot more time/energy on the kittys, getting them used to new foods, medicating, etc., and the kittys are doing really well. Could this be part of Sami's dirt eating?

 

I'll call the vet and check with him, but wanted to see if any one here could contribute anything.

 

Thanks,

 

Ruth n the BC3

[Guest SweetJordan]

She could be missing something in her diet that she's trying to get by eating the soil.