Last Updated on April 18, 2023 by Tabraiz
Whenever your dog is eating its own poop, there really isn’t much deeper meaning to it. This may come off as unusual, but dogs that are eating poop are actually normal. You could say that it is one of your dog’s habits, and it really shouldn’t startle you. Some people may say it is of canine nature due to some reasons that will be explained later.
You shouldn’t worry that your dog is doing it because it is not the only one that has this kind of habit. Study shows that one out of six dogs frequently eats their own poop. Even though this may be a normal occurrence to happen, you should still discuss it with your local veterinarian if there are health issues at play.
Why Do Dogs Eat Their Feces?
As per mentioned before, it is perfectly safe for them to eat their own poop, but sometimes they do it out of habit. One of the reasons why they do such things is because they are trying to get your attention. This is one of the common reasons why they eat it because, as your pets, they know that if you react strongly to whatever they do, you give your full attention to them, which is something that they strive for. An example of how they do this is by stealing something from you in order to initiate a chase between you and the dog.
Precautions to Take if Your Dog is Ingesting Their Stools
There are still some health risks if your dog is left to eat stool, especially from other dogs. There is still a possibility of it getting sick, so you need to pay attention if you see it attempting to eat stools from outside. The consequence of not doing so may lead to your dog acquiring internal parasites that could possibly pass from one dog to another. This is the same when you are walking outdoors with your pooch, and it accidentally steps on poop along the way. There is a possibility that it could catch a disease once it licks its own paws.
Training Your Pet to Stop Eating Poop
If there are no health issues that trigger your pet to do such habitual things, then these training tips might help fix this problem.
- Have it stay away from poop as much as possible – Dogs tend to prefer to ingest poop that is fresh, one easy way to solve this issue is to immediately pick up the waste and store it somewhere it will not have the ability to eat it.
- Making Use of Baby Gates – These are really useful if you are unable to keep the feces in a place where your dog can’t get to it. It blocks their entry to a certain place unless it has the ability to jump over it; this means that you should make sure that it is high enough for it to block your dog.
- Teaching it Commands – A good and positive way to train your dog to stop eating feces is verbally telling it not to do it. It should just be a simple phrase like “Leave It” it may take a few attempts, but once its animal instinct kicks in, it should be able to break its habit of ingesting feces.
Even though the consumption of feces for dogs is said to be normal, there are still some health risks that you should be well informed of. You should pay close attention if your dog eats another one’s feces, as there could be a potential risk of catching a disease that neither of you would want. The best way to avoid any of this from happening is by making sure you follow the steps mentioned in this article. Be a better pet owner and take care of your pet’s health, as well as yours.
