What is Coprophagia? The Dangers of Your Dog Eating Its Own Poop

You love your pet, even when they sometimes eat their own poop. While coprophagia is said to be purely behavioral, there are many medical reasons that can cause or contribute to it. That’s right. Canines often develop a habit of eating their own poop, which is called coprophagia.

Research conducted by Dr. Benjamin Hart suggests nearly 16% of the canines are serious poop eaters; and 24% of dogs are one-time eaters. It’s a habit that can stem from both physiological and behavioral issues.

Why Does Your Dog Eat Poop?
According to the American Kennel Club, there are several reasons why dogs indulge in this kind of behavior. It could be due to:

Environmental Stress
Triggers like Restrictive Confinement
Anxiety
Isolation
Urge to Seek Attention
Sometimes, mother dogs regurgitate food that’s mixed with fecal matter to its pups. Due to this appetitive inoculation, pups may then develop coprophagia.

Another potential cause is lack of nutrition in a dog’s diet. If they have worms or parasites that consume most of the nutrients from their normal food, they may try to re-digest the food to get these nutrients.

Things You Can Do to Stop Your Dog from Eating Poop
Proper training and environmental management are the best ways to stop your dog from eating its own feces.

You can start with supplementation, particularly that of Vitamin B. The modern canine food has higher content of carbohydrates with lesser proteins and fats. So, a meat tenderizer with an enzyme called Papain is a beneficial supplement.

Another way is to get them to taste food like garlic, parsley, chamomile, or yucca to create an aversion for fecal matter.

A friendly environment for your canine requires you to have a clean backyard, patio, and home. More so, keep an eye out when walking your pet and pick up immediately after it’s done.

Coprophagia is a sign of some underlying problem faced by your canine companion. For this reason, proper management is necessary to turn away your dog from this repulsive act.

Deterrents That You Can Use
If you’re looking for some effective and quick-fix solutions, try off-the-shelf products like Potty Mouth, Forbid, or Deter that makes feces taste horrible for the dogs.

You can also give your dog Bentonite or Kelp to reduce deficiency of any trace minerals.

Are There Any DIY Solutions?
Home remedies are effective to control your stool-eating pooch. To get started, coat the dog poop with lemon juice. Its acidic flavor will fend off your pup from consuming feces.

Additionally, if deficiency of hydrochloric acid is the cause of coprophagia in your dog, add apple cider vinegar to its daily diet. A teaspoon of vinegar for each 25 pounds of its weight is perfect.

Pineapple snacks are also effective when it comes to controlling it. Mix a spoonful of canned pineapple to your pooch’s daily food. Other options include pumpkin and anise seeds.

The Bottom Line
Coprophagia is a disorder that can be cured by their owners through proper intervention. In addition to keeping your surroundings clean, follow these tips to make your dog a healthy eater.

If you are looking to hire a pooper scooper company to help clean your pups poop so it isn’t sitting around in the backyard, contact POOP 911 today!