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Old February 18th, 2013, 10:50 PM
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VIOLET0019 VIOLET0019 is offline
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Question OMG My little doggie is eating her feces!YECH!(and also cat vomit!)

My cute little rescued doggie, whom I love very much, (part Yorkshire Terrier and part Papillion), and is approx. 11 years old, (have had her 10 years)has recently begun to EAT HER OWN FECES in the house! It is very difficult to catch her doing it as she is sneaky and while I am doing something, she will sneak off and go and have her recycled snack! I know that she is hungry ALL OF THE TIME. She just wants to eat eat eat...... i.e. if one of the cat vomits, she will get there before me just to be able to lap it up! There are NO crumbs on the floor ever....she is a little vacum cleaner. I need to watch her carefully as she will try to eat the cats leftovers the moment they walk away from their plate, ie if they leave a few crunchies. SHE LOVES FOOD. LOVES LOVES LOVES FOOD! I admit that I have to be quite strict, no people food, just two meals a day and in between she gets some snacks and also at bedtime. Her weight is ok approx. 13 lbs.
(She has a terrible history of being beaten and kept in a cage, but I doubt this has anything to do with it.)
Are there any products that members have used, that are natural, and which they have had success with, that I can use as a deterrent - I saw one by Four Paws called Potty Mouth Tablets, but did not purchase them as I wanted to hear your opinions first. She has had a history of gastro problems when I first rescued her. Because of gastro problems, I tried MANY MANY brands of holistic foods....some caused diarrhea, some caused constipation, some caused pain. Then I tried cooking for her for awhile, and trying pumpkin etc. etc.. After several years of difficulties with her stomach, due to her being fed only MILK BONES as pet food when she was being abused, before I rescued her! I finally found a food which she is very stable on, although I wish I did not have to buy this one as it is from the Vet, and the ingredients etc. It is canned Purina EN. But I am grateful as it keeps her without pain, gas, diarrhea, constipation....and it took alot of trial and error until finally having her stable.
Aside from this yechy behaviour, she is very clean (perhaps having taken on cat cleanliness from living with her two feline friends). I doubt that she is lacking in any vitamins.....I truly believe it is because she is HUNGRY
If it was up to her, I am quite positive she would eat all day and night. I do understand ...... she just loves food, and I think her feces smells like dog food, and as I am so mean because I don't feed her all day long....she has resorted to desperation.....and thus eats her feces! This began approx. 2 months ago.
I would greatly appreciate any experiences, information, suggestions. Thanks.
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Old February 18th, 2013, 11:49 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by VIOLET0019 View Post
This began approx. 2 months ago.
Have you taken her to the vet for a check-up? If not, that would be a good place to start. If she's so hungry that she'll eat poop, she might have some sort of metabolic disorder.
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Old February 19th, 2013, 01:56 AM
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VIOLET0019 VIOLET0019 is offline
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OMG My little doggie is eating her feces!YECH!(and also cat vomit!)

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Originally Posted by sugarcatmom View Post
Have you taken her to the vet for a check-up? If not, that would be a good place to start. If she's so hungry that she'll eat poop, she might have some sort of metabolic disorder.
Thank you for your opinion. No, she is really medically fine ......she just loves food and wants more and more and more......she loves to eat. She is metabolically fine. Thanks anyway.
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Old February 19th, 2013, 03:03 AM
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Loki Love Loki Love is offline
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Some dogs just enjoy eating their own poops - doesn't mean anything is lacking in their diet. You could try the pills and see if they help. I've also heard that adding pineapple to their food will act as a deterrent.

My question is why is she going in the house at all? I would be more concerned about that..? (unless that is a normal behaviour)
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Old February 19th, 2013, 08:18 AM
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Originally Posted by Loki Love View Post
Some dogs just enjoy eating their own poops - doesn't mean anything is lacking in their diet.
I would be concerned that this is a new behaviour, at 11 yrs old.

Violet0019, has she had a senior work-up (with blood and urinalysis) at the vets in the last few months?
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Old February 19th, 2013, 08:21 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by sugarcatmom View Post
I would be concerned that this is a new behaviour, at 11 yrs old.
Well, any drastic change of behaviour should always have a vet rule out anything medical - of course.

It's not uncommon for our pets to change their behaviours as they get older though.

I would be curious if poop eating has ever been linked back to a medical reason - everything I've read has always indicated it's a self-rewarding behaviour.
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Old February 19th, 2013, 08:28 AM
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We usually hear about this with puppies.

I'm with the others, have you asked your vet about this and when was the last time dooger saw the vet?

It could be behavioural but it could also be the sign of a medical problem. Vet time imo.
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Old February 19th, 2013, 10:38 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by sugarcatmom View Post
I would be concerned that this is a new behaviour, at 11 yrs old.

Violet0019, has she had a senior work-up (with blood and urinalysis) at the vets in the last few months?
I was thinking this too as Marty was eating rabbit poop like crazy when had struvite crystals in his urine . He does not seem to so obsessed with rabbit poop any more.
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Old September 14th, 2013, 11:19 AM
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VIOLET0019 VIOLET0019 is offline
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Question Does feeding raw carrots to dogs: 1.Dissuade feces eating? + 2.Cause gastritis?

Quote:
Originally Posted by VIOLET0019 View Post
My cute little rescued doggie, whom I love very much, (part Yorkshire Terrier and part Papillion), and is approx. 11 years old, (have had her 10 years)has recently begun to EAT HER OWN FECES in the house! It is very difficult to catch her doing it, as she is sneaky, and while I am doing something, she will sneak off and go and have her recycled snack! I know that she is hungry ALL OF THE TIME. She just wants to eat eat eat...... i.e. if one of the cats vomits, she will get there before me just to be able to lap it up! There are NO crumbs on the floor ever....she is a little vacum cleaner. I need to watch her carefully as she will try to eat the cats leftovers the moment they walk away from their plate, ie if they leave a few crunchies. SHE LOVES FOOD. LOVES LOVES LOVES FOOD! I admit that I have to be quite strict, no people food, just two meals a day and in between she gets some snacks and also at bedtime. Her weight is ok approx. 13 lbs.
(She has a terrible history of being beaten and kept in a cage, but I doubt this has anything to do with it.)
Are there any products that members have used, that are natural, and which they have had success with, that I can use as a deterrent - I saw one by Four Paws called Potty Mouth Tablets, but did not purchase them as I wanted to hear your opinions first. She has had a history of gastro problems when I first rescued her. Because of gastro problems, I tried MANY MANY brands of holistic foods....some caused diarrhea, some caused constipation, some caused pain. Then I tried cooking for her for awhile, and trying pumpkin etc. etc.. After several years of difficulties with her stomach, due to her being fed only MILK BONES as pet food when she was being abused, before I rescued her! I finally found a food which she is very stable on, although I wish I did not have to buy this one as it is from the Vet, and the ingredients etc. It is canned Purina EN. But I am grateful as it keeps her without pain, gas, diarrhea, constipation....and it took alot of trial and error until finally having her stable.
Aside from this yechy behaviour, she is very clean (perhaps having taken on cat cleanliness from living with her two feline friends). I doubt that she is lacking in any vitamins.....I truly believe it is because she is HUNGRY
If it was up to her, I am quite positive she would eat all day and night. I do understand ...... she just loves food, and I think that her feces smells like dog food, to her, and as I am so mean because I don't feed her all day long....she has resorted to desperation.....and thus eats her own feces! This began approx. 2 months ago. I would greatly appreciate any experiences, information, suggestions.Thanks.
I neglected to mention that Baby has an indoor "dog potty box" (as I am ill and unfortunately, I am not always able to take her outside for a walk). When I first rescued her, I taught her how to use this indoor box that I rigged up for her (a very low plastic box lined with layers of newspaper). So, this is the reason she makes in the house in the first place! I just wanted to clarify that it is not that she is doing it all over the house sporadically. She is quite clever - i.e. when I know that I am unable to go out and walk her, I will bring her to her box, and ask her to make (I have taught her "special" vocabulary specifically for this request: "Baby go make a peepee kaka in the box"!) and then - HURRAY! she goes on command! But ..... sometimes, when I am tending to something else, she will sneak off to the potty box, and eat her own feces. I have never actually caught her in the act, but I see traces of feces left on the newspaper - that is how I know. (And I do not believe in "reprimanding" pets(vocally), after the fact!)

??> I met a lady walking her dog, who "heard" that if one gives their dog raw carrots, it will dissuade them from eating their own feces.

I would appreciate comments from any members who may have tried this? but I need to know, if raw carrots cause gastro intestinal issues for dogs who have very sensitive stomachs? (pain, diarrhea, etc.?)

Thank you for your opinions!
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  #10  
Old September 14th, 2013, 11:01 PM
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Yes it's nasty. No raw carrots won't stop the behaviour. My two 9 month old malamute pups eat raw carrots all the time and the male loves to eat poop! It's hit and miss with him, and is not diet or health related. A friend who is a trainer assures me it's boredom, and she may be right.

I also heard that pineapple may help, and I tried some canned but it didn't help. I did read that it had to be fresh afterwards. Haven't bothered though.

I agree that at 11 a senior workup is in order to rule everything out as it is a sudden change in behaviour, but also consider the boredom thing.
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  #11  
Old September 15th, 2013, 10:23 AM
Barkingdog Barkingdog is offline
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My last dog loves to eat horse poop and he ate carrots all the time. He also liked to eat the horse hoof that was trimmed off my neighbor's horses .
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