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Discouraging Hole Digging by putting his poop in the hole?

3K views 31 replies 17 participants last post by  Frisco19 
#1 · (Edited)
Someone recommended this to me. Anyone have any experience? He repeatedly tries to dig the same hole in the same place.
 
#4 ·
I've put poop in holes before. I figured the reason the dogs were digging is because they were chasing moles / voles. I hoped putting poop in the holes would help deter the critters from returning to that spot. The best way to reduce digging is to deal with why the dog is digging. Some causes are easier to fix than others.
 
#9 ·
I was having the same issue. But it was 2yr old. Just random 4 inch holes all around the backyard. Not the common long shallow digging they do to lay in cool dirt. My backyard was a mine field of tripping hazards. I did put poop in the holes, and those holes were left alone. The ones I didn’t put poop in were dug up again.

What finally stopped the digging? Constantly being out with him (thank god for the mobility chair!) and corrected him with a verbal “attt” when he would start. I also gave him an area he could dig in, and he doesn’t seem all that interested anymore and dug there maybe once or twice. But I also started giving him jobs outside, but I think your pup is too young for that yet. We’d put his backpack on him with weights, or let him pull his sled around with weights.

He typically goes back to digging if he isn’t worked enough, so I’m not sure about it working on a pup, but could t hurt to try! My pups don’t dig.

I don’t know about the mulch, we have heavy river rock. The dogs would race through it chasing each other and knock the rocks out, and then we had a mine field of rocks and holes. We just fenced off that area (which also has access to the pool) and now no more holes or rocks everywhere. And the grass is finally starting to come back in too. That was a combo of upping mental/physical stimulation, constant watching when he was outside with verbal corrections, and the fence, but the fence was just so they couldn’t go swimming whenever they wanted to.
 
#11 ·
There are places my dogs can dig and places I'd rather they not. If I work with soil, I try to "work" a "Dig Here" area last. In homes with less property accessible (aka places in town) my dog liked a spot against the foundation so she got to do a self-selection on the "spot".



Poop to discourage digging? No I pick up the dog crap as soon as I see it. I've had dogs that would think I was putting a snack in the hole for them.
 
#12 ·
Great feedback, thank you. Yes, I discourage it and tell him no and pull him away. It's not out of control, but in a month or two (when he is too big for coyotes to mess with) he will be allowed to go out unsupervised a bit and from experience, I'd rather get ahead of the digging to China.
 
#13 ·
The most effective way to deal with a puppy digging is to always be outside when your puppy is out so you can prevent it/stop it immediately and not let them get used to engaging in the behavior. The more times they are able to dig, the harder it will be to stop. Just always be outside with your dog, especially when they are a puppy
 
#15 ·
If there's an obsession with one spot, some cayenne powder or red pepper flakes cause most dogs to leave that spot alone. You may not have to buy anything special beyond what's already in your spice cabinet. (However, I say "most dogs," because I have one "Cajun" Shepherd that likes it and basically says "bring it" to spicy stuff. He's weird.)
 
#17 · (Edited)
Maybe it will encourage poop eating. Give him something better to do, prevent it or not giving them the opportunity. The only times my dogs have been digging was when they were by themselves or when I gave them the command when they smelled or heard something interesting underground.
I do put dog poop in gopher holes as retaliation for digging up my lawn from underneath but even they don't seem to care.
 
#18 ·
I haven’t had a poop eater yet, and you don’t leave the hole open with poop just at the surface. One pile in each hole, and cover it back up. Didn’t turn any of ours into poop eaters.

I’d look up reviews on the stuff you want to put near your mulch.
 
#21 ·
I never use it because it would be my luck that they would dig up the poop and I would walk in it. We get night critters and my dogs try to dig them up. All they dug were craters in what is left of my lawn. I stay outside with them, and either do yard work, or throw toys, or sit and read a book. If they started to dig, I squired the hole with a water bottle. They don’t like being squirted, which is what happens if their heads are in the hole at the same time, and they leave it alone. I also said Leave it. They have pretty much stopped digging the lawn, but they dug up and then pooped all over my vegetable garden instead. So I gave up on that. It wasn’t growing very well anyway.
 
#25 ·
We had an annoying small dog that was part terrier. Good at digging, but a small amount of jalapeno juice for canned peppers stopped her. She was so sneaky about it, little stinker.
 
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#26 ·
Yes, it does not prevent them from digging elsewhere. Just in the hole with poop in it. But dogs are attracted to areas with looser moist soil, so it prevents them from constantly digging back in the same spot you keep covering. Then watch the dog like a hawk when it goes out, and correct then. In my case, my Husky was digging when DH wasn’t monitoring them or giving them much exercise. So we ended up with a yard full of ankle breaking holes. He would cover, then would let the dogs out, and Crios would redig the holes. Poop in holes, wouldn’t dig. Poop not in holes, constant battle of refilling for him to go dig the same holes up again.

He doesn’t dig now. But I don’t give them free reign of the doggy door either after I got my motorized chair. Makes it easy for me to take the dogs out for bathroom breaks, and free time, without worrying about them knocking me off my feet. And I can verbally correct if he starts the pre-dig behavior. So for us, it was a win with the poop for already existing holes. To each his own. OP asked if anyone had success with poop, I answered. ?‍♀
 
#30 ·
My German Shepherd is nine months old and he still use to dig at the fence constantly he drove me crazy. I have since started to bury his poop I don’t know why it just kills the odor and less mess for me to clean LOL. He is smarter than you think, he no longer digs because he knows mama digs and buries his stinky poop. He is a genius!
 
#27 ·
The only way I've been able to stop digging was by supervising the dogs outside 100% and stopping them the instant they thought about it. Then it does not become a habit. When not digging is the habitual outdoor behavior you can leave them alone. There was a time I could never leave my one out alone for a minute but now he can sit out in his kingdom and he won't do anything wrong, no digging, no nothing. He is 4 now and probably been trustworthy since 3 or maybe a little younger, not sure. 1-2 I don't think I ever let him be in the yard alone.
 
#31 ·
No, he will still dig if given the chance, I just don’t give it to him anymore. The poop helped for digging up the same hole over and over, but he has no problem going to a new place to dig.

The only thing that has stopped the behavior is constant supervision while outside. But he’s a GSD/Husky, Husky live to dig, and he was allowed to dig for the first 9 months of his life before I got him, so it was a real challenge in the beginning, but, it’s getting better. I have no doubt that if he was left unattended in the yard, I would easily find 20+ shallow holes everywhere he has access to in the backyard. So it wasn’t a cure, or him being smart, it was literally just not giving him an opportunity to dig.
 
#32 ·
Had the Canine Invisible Fence installed Saturday. There isn't much mulch area he will be allowed in once I expose the prongs. This particular area is where there are a ton of rabbit burrows. Hopefully he will dig in the woods now!
 
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