[Clare]

Wolfgang LOVES to eat poop - his, his sisters... its really disgusting. I've been using Deter with no detering. I do my best to keep it picked up but there always seems to be some that alludes me.

Does meat tenderizer work? Any other suggestions?

Thanks!!!

 

[Halen]

Deter actually worked for Apollo. Or maybe he finally just outgrew it.

 

[Clare]

UGH - its just NOT working!!!! I WISH he'd outgrow it!!!!

 

[SunCzarina]

Yuck, I haven't seen a good poop eating in years. Then I bring home a puppy who gobbles it up before it's even cold. YUCK I mean just YUCK, I love this little mighty mite but don't kiss me with that mouth! At least he hasn't eaten his sister's yet...

 

[Clare]

I can sooo relate!

 

[acurajane]

Here too. I tried the meat tend. and it didn't work, I think it made it more appealing. LOL

 

[Clare]

 

[middleofnowhere]

Feed less & put some really yummy stuff in the feed. I know it doesn't seem likely but Bill Campbell claims that poop eating is caused by the pooper being fed too much & not digesting it completely. I find it ironic that as I started adding real chicken and not dog food to their kibble, stool eating practically vanished... And yes the scooper liked it literally "hot."

 

[GranvilleGSD]

There have been some veterinary studies done that suggested that poop eating was caused by the lack of some nutrients in the diet. You may want to try a diet change. I used to dog sit for a GSD that literally would spin around and eat her poop as it came out her backside. GROSS!

 

[Cassidy's Mom]

Keefer is a poop connoisseur.

He doesn't eat his own, he eats Dena's. And he prefers it fresh and warm.

I know it's not because of anything undigested because she's always been the queen of perfect poop - it practically bounces, lol! He had SIBO at one point, and his poop is good, but not as perfect as hers, so it would make more sense if he were eating his own.

The only thing that really helped is catching them in the act of pooping, and scooping it right away. If I'm out there with them and I see him head for her pile I can deter him verbally. Over time it's gotten better, and putting them both on a grain free food has helped too.

 

[Clare]

Oh man... thats soooo Wolfgang!!! Funny- I wanted their relationship to be just like Dena and Keefers - I guess you need to be careful what you wish for!!!

I'm definitely trying to stay on top of the scooping for sure! What food (grain free) do you give them?

 

[GSDOwner2008]

I've heard Pineapple works. I'd definately try the diet change, Apollo was a poop eater too until we changed his diet. Now he just sniffs... I still get nervous so I tell him "Leave It" but that's what works with us. Zeus isn't a poop eater.

 

[maya-newmama]

Hi Clare! I'm so glad I found someone with the same problem! I'm a new member, and a new mama to a 3 month old GSD. I caught Jager eating something that looked like poop a few weeks ago... and the vet told me it might be a vitamin deficiency. So I've been giving him vitamin supplements for the last 2 weeks... and I didnt catch him eating poop for awhile... he loves CHARCOAL and ROCKS now. (We have a sack of charcoal in the backyard.) I have since put away the sack of charcoal, but then, I just caught him this morning eating poop again! WHY?!!!! It cant be a vitamin deficiency right, since ive been giving him his vitamins regularly? I also feed him royal canin kibbles mixed with ground beef, OR sometimes i mix the kibbles with royal canin recovery (a concentrated mix for convalescing puppies). He's a very picky eater. He refuses to eat when its just kibbles. And sometimes he licks away the ground beef and leaves the kibbles. Do you have the same problem with picky-eating too? Does poop really taste that much better than his food?! :-O

 

[Cassidy's Mom]

Originally Posted By: ClareOh man... thats soooo Wolfgang!!! Funny- I wanted their relationship to be just like Dena and Keefers - I guess you need to be careful what you wish for!!!

Indeed!!! They're on Wellness Core.

 

[selzer]

I have a poo-eater. Heidi, who is PERFECT in every other way, eats poo. I do not want to be harsh with her because she will need to do this once she has puppies. But still......

My current management approach is to bring her in at night, clean all the poo. Then feed all the dogs and keep them in until after breakfast. After they have eaten, I take them one by one to the field, watch the drop their morning load, pick it up and kennel them. Most of them have eliminated again before I get to work, but there is only so much I can do.

If Heidi is out while I am picking poo up, she will even try to get some from my scooper, WHILE I AM USING IT!!!

Ah well, it is only a bit of poo.

 

[wesleyb]

First of all i kinda skimmed over the thread and didnt see this so im going to ask it.

How fast does your dog eat? Let him/her slow down so that they can taste the food and get the feeling of being full from the meal. Ever notice as a human if you eat fast you can eat more and are less likely to get that full feeling? Not to mention your pup is always exercising and active and needs those vitamins.

I'm not very versed at a lot of things dogs but this poop eating thing is not new to me. My moms dog did that. We did a diet change. Changed her over to hard kibbel, and nothing more. Made her slow down while eating. The dog is not as hungry as it used to be all the time and has subsided on the poop eating.

EDIT: And if it is a young puppy it is probably going off of what it has seen mommy do. I have heard of mother dogs eating the poop of her pups to keep the den clean. Just heard it tho, i dunno if its true. Alex did that when she was little but i think it was one of those things, "OH crap! Daddy came, better hide it before i get in trouble!!!!!!"

 

[selzer]

The bitch has to stimulate the pup to allow it to urinate and defacate. A good mom licks it all up, and keeps the whelping box clean. I imagine that this was a survival technique and instinctual. Eating the feces and all the afterbirth etc, was done because the bitch could not go and hunt so this provided nourishment and started the milk and all of that, it kept down the flies and disease, and also did not draw predators to the vulnerable bitch and her pups. I am guessing that even as the pups get older and the bitch is out hunting, keeping the den clean is important if the pups stay behind.

Yes, pups see the dam do this and will follow suit. There is only so much the breeder can do to keep after it. We put the food down, wait for them to eliminate and scoop it up immediately, but the occasional off-schedule poo will get by us and the puppies will have to try it.

My girl is nearly two though. She eats only hard kibble.