# Eating Poop!



## pihler (Dec 13, 2013)

We just brought home our Havanese puppy two weeks ago. She is now 12 weeks old and is doing pretty good with her potty training. We have to watch her really closely when she is outside because if we don't, she eats her poo. 

How do we correct this?


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## davetgabby (Dec 29, 2007)

food might have some bearing on it. here's more Coprophagia http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1680886/pdf/canvetj00575-0079.pdf


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## Pucks104 (Aug 16, 2012)

Go outside with her and clean up after her as soon as she goes? Work on "Leave it" and "Drop it" though the later is less effective as it's really hard to compete with a mouthful of poop! Go figure!


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## pihler (Dec 13, 2013)

*Eating Poop*

Thanks for the suggestions. We are outside with her at all times and when she does her business, we try to get to it before she decides to eat it. We tell her no, off and sometimes that works. I just don't want her to be an adult dog doing this as I would like to be able to let her out in our fenced in backyard without having to worry about her eating her poop!!

Will check out the link on the food. Right now she is on TLC as recommended by the breeder and seems to like it as she eats it okay. I'm wondering if the breeders set up had anything to do with it as I read somewhere that mother dogs eat their puppies poop to keep the area they are in clean. Do you think that she picked this up from the mother and thinks this is what she needs to do to keep her area clean??


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## davetgabby (Dec 29, 2007)

I ' read that too. Try feeding a freeze dried raw food for a month and see what happens.


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## Gibbs Mom and Dad (Jun 3, 2013)

pihler said:


> ...I read somewhere that mother dogs eat their puppies poop to keep the area they are in clean ...


A little anthropomorphic humor:

Dog Mother says: "Honey, you have to eat your poop to keep clean"

Puppy says: "Awe Mom, that's gross"

Dog Mother says: "I know dear, but the humans expect it and it's our job to make them happy"

Puppy says: "Mom, you're so wise, I'll do it"

Human Mom says: "That's gross, stop"

Puppy Hears: "Wa Wa Wa Wa Wa"

Human Mom says: "No no dear"

Puppy Hears: "Wa Wa Dear"

Human Thinks: "That's disgusting. I have to find a way to stop this"

Puppy Thinks: "That's disgusting, but I'm such a good girl. I hope mommy appreciates that I keep my area clean by eating my poop."


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

pihler said:


> Thanks for the suggestions. We are outside with her at all times and when she does her business, we try to get to it before she decides to eat it. We tell her no, off and sometimes that works. I just don't want her to be an adult dog doing this as I would like to be able to let her out in our fenced in backyard without having to worry about her eating her poop!!


For now, I would keep her ON LEASH at all times when she's out there for potting, so there is NO CHANCE she can even get it in her mouth and develop a taste for it. Instead, have really yummy treats to give her as a reward, et her away from the poop and then pick it up before she's out there again.

I was fanatical about this when Kodi was a pup, because I was so worried about him starting the habit. (as a first time dog owner, I thought that this was about the grossest thing about dogs!!! ) Dogs tend to repeat behaviors where they have been able to self-reward, so don't let it happen!!!

&#8230;and at the same time, do as Dave suggested and try a different food.


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## jabojenny (Sep 18, 2011)

davetgabby said:


> I ' read that too. Try feeding a freeze dried raw food for a month and see what happens.


Mae is a poop eater  but is getting much better so there is hope I think. I just wanted to comment on your suggestion Dave that Mae is on a raw diet and still seems intrigued with poop. I know all dogs are different and trying certainly can't hurt anything but you wallet. I keep on Mae consistently after she does her business, or checks out Tim's, she KNOWS it's a "no no" but she's also feisty.


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## Sparkle (May 17, 2012)

I think I could use poop as a training tool for Abby. Apparently she thinks it's the best thing ever. If I have Kallie & Abby outside playing/rlh mode, sometimes Kallie will stop to poop. Abby has her nose in Kallie's rear end immediately. Guess she thinks it's even better if you catch it as soon as it comes out, warm and all. I pick up the poop in the yard, but these instances I can't prevent. I've done the hot sauce thing, intentionally leaving some poop to put it on. It makes her mad. She stands there & barks at the poop, then gobbles it down real quick. That hot stuff burns your mouth! She's 8 months old & I'm at my wit's end.


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## Tom King (Aug 2, 2006)

I doubt it's anything to do with time with the Mother. The Moms always do all the cleanup duty until they start eating solid food. 

I don't think anyone really knows why some do it. The best you can do is break the habit 100% of the time. Quick cleanup, and the instant the mouth starts towards it, "LEAVIT" so they understand what it means. Words don't mean anything to them unless you mean what you say. Hopefully, soon, she will get out of the habit.


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## pihler (Dec 13, 2013)

Thanks everyone for your advice. We will work on keeping a close watch on her and maybe changing her food. The breeder gave us TLC as this is the food she uses. This is our first time with a puppy in years so I'm not familiar as to the brand of food to feed them. We went with the TLC as the breeder recommended it. Any suggestions out there re a better brand of food.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

pihler said:


> Thanks everyone for your advice. We will work on keeping a close watch on her and maybe changing her food. The breeder gave us TLC as this is the food she uses. This is our first time with a puppy in years so I'm not familiar as to the brand of food to feed them. We went with the TLC as the breeder recommended it. Any suggestions out there re a better brand of food.


I don't know anything about TLC, but I wanted to make it clear that that specific food isn't necessarily a problem for all or even MOST dogs. But sometimes, when you have a dog interested in eating poop, changing the food to something else can just break the cycle. So I don't think anyone here means to tell you that your breeder was WRONG to suggest this food, especially if that's what she starts all her puppies on.


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## Gibbs Mom and Dad (Jun 3, 2013)

pihler said:


> Any suggestions out there re a better brand of food.


This is a great site for reviewing dog foods.

http://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/

We feed Primal Raw Frozen. It's more expensive, but Dana and I don't have any human kids and therefore don't need to worry about college tuition and feeding a large family.


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## davetgabby (Dec 29, 2007)

go with Primal , freeze dried if you want to try something. It's worth a shot. yep , John its' not cheap but worth it.


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## Miss Rosa (Jan 22, 2014)

My daughter had the se problem with her dog. She had to watch her like a hawk, she had out grown it she is two years old. Now we she walks around it . Be patient !

Sent from Petguide.com Free App


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## Jan D (Mar 13, 2007)

Havee was a poop eater also. We went outside with him always and picked it up immediately all the time. We were consistent. This broke the habit thank goodness. Be patient!


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