Can anybody help? My 16 week old puppy is eating his own poo, and has done for a few weeks now, we have tried our best to catch him before he eats it but it is difficult to get him everytime, (he poos several times a day) . Why does he do this and how do i stop it????

Hi, although it looks disgusting it wont do him any harm. Sometimes a chunk or two of tinned pineapple chopped up into the food might stop him. If you do try it, could you posts the results lease, as I would be interested to know if it works for you.

Courgette chunks have the same effect

Theresa :)

Jessie

My younger boy did this too - it is perfectly natural for them - but disgusting al the same.

You can try the suggestions above. The main thing is to be fastidious in cleaining up after him. If it's not there he can't eat it. My boy did stop when he was about 6 months old, if I rememebr rightly.

Good luck - and avoid those puppy kisses for a while;)

Pam n the boys

My dog also did this when he was a puppy and often brought it all back up again in the house an hour or so later, which was doubly revolting ! The only way to avoid it was to pick the poo up immediately before he could get to it. Eventually this became a habit we just got into and continued with - T.J. is six now (years not months !) and would probably still eat it if we let him. Thankfully our second dog has a more discerning palette !!

Joyce

You can get tablets from the pet shop which you give to the dog which makes the poo taste nasty to them and therefore they wont eat it. I can't remember what they were called though but I am sure the pet shop will help.

This title always makes me smile ... its a bit like 'man eating sharks' :D

Thanks Leigh, you have given me my first bit of humour all morning just imagining lumps of poo chasing a dog around and eating chunks out of it or coming out of their rear-ends and promptly jumping up and biting the b*m that produced them.

Christine

Thanks Leigh :) - you've just brightened what is an otherwise completely miserable day.

Fiona
x x x

That's good Leigh! :D
And it brings me in mind of a really odd dream my Hubby had the other night.
He dreampt that he went to visit his Dad who was very angry and just about to make a phone call to a company that supplied boxed collections of dog poo. He had evidently ordered 6 types and had only been sent 5 and he wanted to know why!
Now I know our lot generate quite a bit of poo each day and that Hubby does take his turn on *poo patrol* but I really didn't know he was becoming obsessed by it to the point where it plays on his sub-concious mind! :D
Nicky

Hi Jessie
It's not a pleasant subject but I think it is a relatively common problem.
My little Black & Tan terrier did it as a pup and I got her some tablets from the pet shop they are called *Deter* Coprophagia Treatment for Dogs, made by a Co called *8 in 1*. A box of 60 tabs was £4.98.
They were very sucessful and it only took a week or so of dosing for her to break the *habit*. :D
Nicky

I used Deter on Thistle and they weren't successful. What I do is keep her on the lead until she's performed and pick it up immediately. She is a lot better now , but she is 15 months old!!
Jane

Mine eats the cat's poo, digs it up herself, or helps herself from the tray! Also fresh cow pats are tasty to lick - aren't they disgusting??!!