Poop eating

[NewCollieMum]

My almost 5 month old border collie is obsessed with eating poop, he's not that interested in his own but eats anything else's (dog, cat, fox, rabbit, horse). I live with 3 other dogs and a cat so everytime I let him out to the toilet he starts desperately searching for poop to eat, once he finds it he gulps it down so fast that even if I grab him it's too late. He does the same on walks which means I don't want to let him off the lead. 

Is this normal? Is it a stage he'll grow out of? Is there anything I can do? 

Yesterday I went outside and instead of picking up the poop I sprayed every one with bitch spray (citronella thats meant to keep dogs away from bitches in season) He went over and sniffed the poop, thought about it for a moment, then grabbed it and swallowed it whole! He wasn't bothered at all!

 

[alligande]

It can be a normal stage, my youngest dog thought all dog poop was delicious. The only thing we could do was be extra vigilant on keeping the place clean so he didn’t get a chance. He grew up to be a fastidious dog who doesn’t touch anything undesirable, doesn’t roll in dead stuff etc. My older one had an obsession for goose poop, so when the Canada geese arrived in their thousands I had to be careful where we walked, by the next migration season he had grown out of it and is also a dog who doesn’t eat strange things.

[GentleLake]

Coprophagia can be the result of some nutritional deficiencies. Have you spoken to your vet about it? It's definitely something I'd consider addressing with my vet to rule out any medical/nutritional reasons.

One thing you should do is make sure you've picked up all your other dogs' poop as soon as it hits the ground so that the puppy doesn't have access to it. And make sure he has no access to the cat's litter box. This will at least cut down on what he has readily available to him at home. Even if it's a phase, you don't want to allow it to become an OCD behavior.

Not a particularly detailed article, but it has some information: https://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/healthypets/archive/2018/10/01/coprophagia-in-dogs.aspx?cid_source=facebook&cid_medium=social&cid_content=facebookpets&cid=video_20200412

 

[diane allen]

He may or may not outgrow it.  My experience (which is considerable!) is that it can be nutritional - or it can just as easily be behavioral.

1) Don't let him outside if there's ANY chance there's poop on the ground.  Or leash him when you do.

2) If it is truly a problem on hikes. you might consider the Outfox mask. (www.outfoxfordogs.com)  I had one dog who wore it on every hike and it worked great.  Doesn't limit vision, can still actually pick things up (in his case, it was usually sticks!), fastens to collar so very hard to get off (though it can slip....).

3) People may suggest all sorts of things to put on your dogs' food, or on the poop itself.  Believe me, I tried EVERYTHING an nothing worked.  My guy even really liked siracha! Product called ForBid (and another one I've forgotten the name of) did nothing.  Meat tenderizer did nothing.  Really, in our case at least, NOTHING worked. 

4) People will also give you lots of reasons dogs do it.  I'm convinced for many (but perhaps not all) it is just something they do. No logical explanation, no solution except as mentioned above.

Good luck!

diane

[GentleLake]

2 hours ago, diane allen said:

...My guy even really liked siracha!...

I've got 2 who like sriracha. . . . and wasabi . . . and Chinese hot mustard . . . and kimchi. (The third is more sensible.) Haven't tried horseradish yet but given that they've liked every other hot thing I've offered I suspect they'll like it too. 

[GentleLake]

@NewCollieMum Re: poop eating: