gypsy84 Posted March 19, 2007 Report Share Posted March 19, 2007 Hey everyone, hopefully you'll be able to help me with this one. Ok, well lately Gypsy's been following around our other dog (RottieXElkhound 4 year old male) outside, and when he stops to have a poop, she'll run over, sniff it while he's going, and then eat it. This has been happening for the past few weeks. I googled it, and it's called coprophagy. The site I found said that it occurs most with dogs that are highly food motivated (which she DEFINITELY is), or dogs that are bored and seeking attention. It isn't because she's bored because she'll do this even if she has only been outside for minutes, and if we're out there with her. And she won't eat her own either, only Milford's The site I found said that you could put cayenne pepper or Bitter Apple on the poop so the dog will learn that it tastes bad (like it doesn't already ) Except....... yesterday I offered Gypsy a little spoonful of cayenne, which she instantly gobbled up I tried another tiny spoonful to see if she just hadn't realized what it was the first time... gone! I think she just likes the taste. I then tried a spoonful of black pepper - gone! Then as a last resort, I tried a small spoonful of my dad's "Inferno XXX hot Chili sauce" - She ate it, and sat down as her eyes watered up.... then came back for more!! She's officialy insane. Now I know I could just clean up the poop every single time they go, but I want her to learn NOT to eat it, not just that it'll never be there. Is there anything out there that would work on her? What about Bitter Apple? I've never used it before so I don't know what it's like. If anyone has ANY ideas, I'd like to know... Her breath really stinks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kat's Dogs Posted March 19, 2007 Report Share Posted March 19, 2007 My Little Peanut used to do that. One time when we went to the vet for shots we asked about it and she gave us this stuff to feed her (she actually liked the stuff). I don't know what it was but it did something to her stool so that she wouldn't eat it. It worked!! If she likes all that other stuff ( ) I don't think bitter apple would help much (plenty of dogs don't mind the taste). To me, (yes, I have tried some), it taste like earwax mixed with rotten lemon. Really gross. All my dogs HATE it but Gypsy might find it quite tasty! You can buy really small bottles of it if you want to just try a bit and see if it works. hmmmm. I am still puzzling over the fact that your dog likes cayenne pepper and "Inferno XXX hot Chili sauce"!! Dazzle won't even go near pepper! Oh, one more thought, maybe some wasabi? I don't know if that is safe for dogs but Daz found a bit once and really really really really didn't like it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gypsy84 Posted March 19, 2007 Author Report Share Posted March 19, 2007 Seeing her gobble up the spices and hot sauce yesterday, I'm sure she'd love a little wasabi to go along with her Milford poop You said your dog used to do that - is it just a phase? Do you think she could just grow out of it? Hopefully that'll happen soon... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kat's Dogs Posted March 19, 2007 Report Share Posted March 19, 2007 Maybe she would grow out of it.... Peanut was about 1 year old when she stopped.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silhouettestable Posted March 20, 2007 Report Share Posted March 20, 2007 Do both dogs eat the same food, or could there be something special and tasty passing through into his stools that makes them more appetizing to her? I know this winter my dogs have been terrible for eating horse manure and they don't normally bother it too much, plus a couple of them have been playing with (and eventually eating) the dog poop too. I've never noticed it happening with the fresh ones, or in the warmer weather, but once it's frozen it becomes fun I guess. There were a couple of times some chunks got carried into the house even For a lot of this winter though, two of mine have been on a high protein, high fat food for racing. Also, at one of the races we went to everyone got to take home a bag of dog food and there were a few different kinds to choose from. I stuck with the same brand mine normally eat, but it was a different formula and now it's mixed with their usual food and all the dogs are getting that mixture. That's the only thing I can think of that may be making the stools suddenly so enticing for my dogs, the different food. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SincereArtisan Posted March 20, 2007 Report Share Posted March 20, 2007 I hear a lot of dogs eat poo because they crave the extra protien. (Ew.) Specifically, cat poo, because cat food has more protien in it than dog food. Sprinkle some meat tenderizer in both their foods. It doesn't harm them, but it will make their poop undesirable to them. I don't know what it is, but it works. Worked like a charm with Rune, who used to eat her own. (Blegh.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toby the Puppy Posted March 20, 2007 Report Share Posted March 20, 2007 Toby does the same thing! Gross!! The vet gave us a powder to sprinkle on his food for six days, called Forbid. It didn't work! I have the meat tenderizer but it just seems like salt to me and I don't know if that is good to give a dog. I hope Toby grows out of this habit soon. I feel your pain. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laurie etc Posted March 20, 2007 Report Share Posted March 20, 2007 I have heard of people having some luck with adding a bit of pineapple juice to the dog food- it has enzymes in it similar to meat tenderizer, I believe, which break down the protein that might be making the dog's poop a desirable snack. On a positive training note, I have one girl who does this - I think it is more commom in females, from their maternal instinct to clean up after their puppies. I turned the tables on this girl...she is ball/toy obsessed, so we play "show me the poop". I walk around with my poop scoop, and she grabs her ball and drops it near a pile of poop. If she "show's me the poop", I scoop it and then throw the ball. She thinks of this as a job, and she is very happy to take me to the poop piles in order to get her ball thrown - if she eats the poop, well, no ball game. She learned the game pretty quickly. Laurie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bordercentrics Posted March 20, 2007 Report Share Posted March 20, 2007 Actually, it will help in the long haul if you dispose of poop immediately so it isn't there to be eaten. We did this after all other methods failed with one of our dogs, and now it is rare that she will do it. If poop is generally unavailable, eventually they will get out of the habit. At least that is what happened here. Kathy Robbins Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Krisztina Posted March 20, 2007 Report Share Posted March 20, 2007 Finn ate his own poop when he was 2-3 months old, he learned it from his mother. He did grow out of it. I tried the pineapple juice, it didn't do anything for us, but I'd give it a go, it's natural and can't see as it would hurt him to try. I've also heard of meat tenderizer. Finn has stopped altogether but I still clean up the poop pretty soon after just in case! I'm also astounded by the hotsauce! May be some chips to go with it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sluj Posted March 20, 2007 Report Share Posted March 20, 2007 I'd never had a problem with my Allie getting into poop until I gave her pineapple (just because I was cutting some up for myself). A chunk made it through her system mostly intact, which she retrieved for another go. So be careful trying that route if she especially likes fruit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flrpwr52 Posted March 20, 2007 Report Share Posted March 20, 2007 My males always ate each others poo but only in the winter months. I tries Forbid and pineapple and they didn't work for me. But what did work was a soda can with some pebbles inside. When one would go after some poo I'd toss the can in their direction and it would scare them. It only took a couple times each and they never tried it again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hoku's mum Posted March 20, 2007 Report Share Posted March 20, 2007 Hoku did that as a pup, but grew out of it by 5 months or so. We just cleaned up after the dogs, so there was no poop to eat ( oh yuck, it is just so gross!!!! ) Good luck!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.