Eating poop is fairly common behavior among dogs. Read the article below to know how to stop dog from eating poop.

How To Stop A Dog From Eating Poop

In this dog, eat dog’s poop world, putting a muzzle onto your favorite pet sounds to be the only option. And who can blame you when you are at your wits end with your pet’s disgusting habit. With dogs becoming more of a fashion accessory rather than the simple function of being a pet, it is a desire to own the very best breed coupled with impeccable behavior. So, imagine the horror when you are showing off your mutt, gloating in the envy of your friends, when suddenly he dashes off and parks his snout in a pile of poop, freshly discarded by a diseased stray cat of questionable pedigree. This is not to say that you should accept your dog feasting on a dump by a healthy and royal cat. Or even more worse, if your dog starts salivating after his own poop. You can only give an embarrassed smile and possibly hand over the tissue to him. Well ‘recycling’ poop is not uncommon in dogs and even the best breeds are susceptible to this weakness. Instead of raving mad at the dog, you should identify the causes of this behavior and adopt measures to stop it. The good news is that poop eating is curable and it is more common among the younger dogs. A little bit of patience and some hands on training is all that is required. To know more on how you can control this disgusting habit, go through the article given below on tips on stopping dog from eating poop.
 
Tips On Stopping Dog From Eating Poop
  • The dog should be fed on well-balanced and nutritious diet. The diet should contain a good amount of protein sources. Sometimes due to the lack of some digestive enzymes, the dog will eat its own poop to conserve those enzymes. Insufficient vitamin B1 can also cause dogs to eat their own stool.
  • Try to add adequate fresh food supplement on a daily basis. Take care not to store the dog food for too long.
  • While feeding the dog maintain a regular timing. Also, try feeding it twice a day.
  • Keep your dog occupied by providing chew toys. Boredom can often lead to behavioral issues like eating poop.
  • Keep the living area of the dog clean of feces. Also, clean up as soon as the dog finishes or remove the dog from the area. In this way, you will deprive it the chance to eat poop.
  • Mental and physical well being is a must. So, give adequate exercise to stimulate the dog. Dogs also tend to eat poop to relieve the stress. Identify the stress triggers and the fears of your dog. This will also help you to control the poop eating behavior of your dog.
  • Another good way is to add a tablespoon of pineapple or pumpkin or garlic to the dog’s food. These make the poop taste awful and so the dogs desist from eating it.
  • If you keep your dog off leash, then fitting a muzzle is a good option.
  • Use the technique of ‘negative association’. Every time the dog eats poop leash it to a place without any freedom. This is a form of obedience training.
  • Don’t leave your dogs to laze around the whole day. Also, try to play with it as much as you can. Dogs are more likely to eat their poop when there is little human contact and nothing to do. So, don’t leave the dog alone the whole day.
  • Train your dog various commands like ‘leave it’ or ‘off’. When your dog is trained, you can order it to back off when you see it nosing poop.
  • Check with a vet. Sometimes many health problems like infection with parasites can lead to dogs eating their poop. So, it is better to go for regular health checkups.
  • Coating the stool with lemon juice or hot sauce is another good way to break the stool eating habit of the dog.

How to Cite

More from iloveindia.com