How to Help My Dog Not Eat Feces

If your dog has taken a liking to eating feces, rest assured you are not alone. This stool-eating habit is actually known by the name of ''coprophagia'' and is quite common in canines. Whether your dog is eating its own feces, the feces of another dog, or some other animal's feces, there are several steps you can take to deter your dog from this annoying and repulsive behavior. Generally, coprophagia can be curtailed by managing the dog's environment and enforcing some changes to nip this behavior in the bud.

Things You'll Need

  • High-fiber dog food
  • Forbid
  • Adolf's meat tenderizer
  • Tabasco sauce
  • Poop scooper
  • Collar and leash
  • Muzzle
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Instructions

    • 1
      A vet check will ensure everything is well with Fido.

      Have your dog seen by a veterinarian to rule out any underlying medical condition that may be at the base of this problem. Coprophagia may be caused or worsened by medical conditions such as hormonal disorders, digestive problems, intestinal parasites or nutritional deficiencies, explain veterinarians John A. Bukowski and Susan E. Aiello, in an article for Webvet.

    • 2
      Dry food works better than wet food in reducing coprophagia.

      Feed your dog a high-quality fiber dog food if your dog is tempted to eat its own stools. High-fiber diets keep the dog satiated without gaining weight, and alter the texture of the dog's stools, ultimately making them less palatable, explains Dr. Nicholas Dodman, a veterinarian and animal behaviorist at Tufts University Veterinary Medical School.

    • 3

      Invest in a package of ''Forbid'' to add to a dog's food. This product is an edible product that can be added to a dog's food and can be found in large pet stores. Alternatively, you can add Adolf's meat tenderizer to the dog's food. Both these products will change the odor and taste of the feces, making them less palatable to your dog.

    • 4

      Pour some hot Tabasco sauce over the feces to make them unattractive, or cut a stool in half and stuff it with some hot sauce and put it back together so your dog will be unaware of it and eat the stool, recommends veterinarian Mike Richards. Your dog will soon learn that feces no longer are palatable and the behavior will eventually stop if you are persistent enough.

    • 5
      Use a pooper scooper to limit access to the feces.

      Use the poop scooper to remove as many stools as you can if you must keep your dog unattended for some time. By denying access, you remove the temptation to eat stool. The more your dog will have access to the stools, the more the behavior will reinforce itself.

    • 6
      Teaching the ''leave it'' command will be helpful.

      Teach your dog the ''leave it'' command. Put the collar and leash on him and bring along some tasty treats. Right when your dog is about to sniff and possibly eat the stools, give the leash a tug, say ''leave it'' and give a treat right after. As you progress, try saying ''leave it'' without the leash tug and give the treat.

    • 7

      Put a muzzle on your dog if your dog still engages in eating stools despite all your efforts. Eating stools of other dogs and other animals may cause your dog to be exposed to parasites such as giardia, coccidia, roundworms and whipworms, explains veterinarian Holly Nash. Play it safe by managing your dog's environment by limiting exposure and using the muzzle as a last resort.