Pet Forum / Miscellaneous / Animal Health / March 2004

Because they like it.

If you find a way to break the habit, please do let the rest of us know.
I've heard them all, tried them all, and gave up and decided to live with it
10 years ago.  The good news is sometimes they grow out of it.  The bad news
is sometimes they change their minds and go back to it again later.

Because he's a dog.  Dogs do that.

Keep him away from dogshit.

It's called coprophagia. I googled and came up with this. Good luck. Would
love to hear other's suggestions.

http://www.perfectpaws.com/copro.html

-Sharon

There is one 'trick'; to feed the dog a bit of zucchini. Apparently it's not
so tasty when it comes out the other end.

I always thought they defecated to mark their territory and attract
mates or show dominance, and figured they ate other dog's poop to get
rid of their territorial markings.  Makes sense to me.  But I am just
guessing.

My experience is a dog is much like their master ..

Do .. you take it .. or do you give it .. ?

You'll have to boost your testosterone and realize the 'buck DOES stop with
you' .. and .. voila ..

Who loves ya.
Tom

Jesus Was A Vegetarian! http://jesuswasavegetarian.7h.com
Man Is A Herbivore! http://pages.ivillage.com/ironjustice/manisaherbivore
DEAD PEOPLE WALKING http://pages.ivillage.com/ironjustice/deadpeoplewalking

I've had a puppy that used to recycle her food, I was not happy about it.
The more I tried to tell her no, the more fun it became for her. She would
do this even though she would drop other things, even treats sometimes, when
asked.

I told her vet about it, and he said that he had _heard_ that some dog
owners had had success giving their dog some stuff. He said he had no idea
if it actually worked, or if it did work how it worked. So he gave me no
guarantees but said that it wouldn't hurt my puppy to try it for a few
weeks.

The problem is that I am not sure what this stuff would be called in
english, It is however some sort of silica product. After googling a while I
came up with some possible names for it,  Terra silicea, silica, colloidal
silica etc.

The stuff I bought was made for people who wanted to try a "natural remedy"
to get stronger nails, hair etc stuff - no medical thing. I found this kind
of stuff both as a powder and in tablets, but thought the powder would be
easier to feed the puppy. I gave her a teaspoon or two per day and she
weighed 10-15 kg. Unfortunately I can't remember what was the recommended
dose for humans, so the amount I gave her isn't really very helpful I guess.

Anyway, within a week she stopped eating poop, I continued to give her this
stuff for a few more weeks and as far as I can remember the problem was
solved.

If you want to try this, please call your vet and ask what he/she thinks
would be a safe dose for your dog.

Rosa