Puppy eats his poo??
by Rob n Sacha
ORIGINAL MESSAGE:
We have a 2 yr old male Maltese [Calvin] & recently acquired a 10 wk old male Maltese [Hobbes]. We've had Hobbes for about 10 days now & he's fairly good w/ pottying on the paper. The only problem is that if he is left unattended, he will eat his poo. This is not only gross, but can't be too good for him either. In most cases, we're diligent enough to get rid of the poo right away, but what happens when we're away & can't get to it right away? The older dog gladly has never had this problem and takes no interest in the younger one's poo. Also, Hobbes had been diagnosed with coccidia and is currently on medication. Would that have any bearing on this problem? Any suggestions or comments?
DISCUSSION:
My Chiclet used to eat only Gizmo's stool! I can tell you what worked for me. I sprayed the stool with bitter apple & left it there for awhile. I had tried picking it up when Chiclet wasnt looking; cuz they sometimes do it thinking they're helping! Also, thats what their mother did when they were very young :) That didnt work because too many times I wouldnt be right there to get it out of the way. The spraying with something distasteful, like hot pepper sauce or bitter apple, worked. She did try it twice & sneezed & hopped around for a bit! Now, she doesnt even think about it!!!! There are also oral products, one is called Dis-Taste, but I was reluctant to use it. I understand its a hard behavior to correct if it is allowed to continue too long. Good luck! :)
BeeGee
My Puff also used to do this, and the advice from the vet was to pour tabasco sauce on it. Of course, if your not around you can't do that very well. The best you can do is what you are doing now, clean it up when you do see it and keep an eye out while you are home. As gross as it may seem, a lot of puppies do this and they usually grow out of it. Puff did, so try not to worry :)
Sandy and Puff
HI Rob and Sacha, Most puppies eat their own feces. They do it mostly because its there, sometimes some undigested food can be passed and they eat it for that reason, also, i've been told, that they do it because their digestion isn't perfect and they can get extra vitamins and minerals out of it. (YUCK!) I don't know how true that last fact is. What I do know is most pet stores sell products that you sprinkle on the puppies food and when this product is digested an comes out it makes the feces very unpalletable(sp). Some product names: deter or forbid. Hopefully this will help you.
Jade
I would definitely recommend you using one of the products made just for this habit. You put it in both dogs feed and it makes the poos unpalatable. After a while you don't need to use it because it just breaks the habit. If you are right there then putting the hot stuff on it will be great, but as noted we can't always be there. It is certainly disgusting but to dogs it is completely natural as was pointed out they learn the behavior from their mothers sometimes. Most male pups soon drop the habit but bitches can carry it on longer. It's their nature. But it is controlable.
Mary Lou
My Sasha sometimes eats her poop and she used to eat Sophie's too. We tried the bitter apple, but that didn't seem to work. We tried the For-Bid for a few days and that seemed to be working , but then she got sick and we had to place her on a prescrip. diet for a few days. She seems to be growing out of it - decides to have an occasional snacking session. I've read that most of them do grow out of it during the first year. But in the mean-time, instead of Sasha-Pru (Prudence was the name her breeder called her), she is affectionately referred to as Sasha-Poo-Poo!
Carrie, Sophie & Sasha
You think you have trouble? Try this, not only does Misha eat her own stool, but she is finding little Sara's stool tasty as well!!! Gross!!! I looked down at her this morning and much to my horror, I saw Misha gobbling up a piece of Sara's droppings! I reached down to stop her but it was too late. I have tried distaste but it didn't work. My vet said to try a little meat tenderizer. I'll let you know how it turns out... Wish me luck! :0)
Stacey
I recently went through 6 months of poop eating with my Golden Retriever. It's supposed to be a puppy thing but my Golden is 9 Years old. He started this out of the blue. I tried Forbid, Deter, Dis-Taste, Meat Tenderizer, Tabasco sauce. Nothing helped. I was getting more frustrated by the day. Suddenly a vet friend told me again to sprinkle Meat Tenderizer on the food an not just any kind but Adolph's Meat Tenderizer. It comes in Sodium Free and no MSG. It worked. He has no desire to even sniff at his feces anymore. If you have 2 dogs you'll have to put it on both of their foods. Good Luck
Claudia
HI, i have 2 poodles and a maltese. my oldest one,gisette, does this all the time i don't pick it up right away. i used to scold her but it did not stop her. then the maltese, tiffany, came in the household and she started doing it also. i tried everything but nothing seemed to work. my third baby, joy, is not interested at all. it seems that tiffany and gisette only do this when they poo in the house on paper. they don't do it when outside. i asked the vet about this behavior and he said it was harmless but a dirty habit. he suggested the tobasco sauce but i think it made it better tasting for them as they still continued. i call it "recycling". sometimes i think they are helping in cleaning it up. i know when gissette was a puppy and pooped on the carpet i used to scold her so i think in a way that might have contributed. best of luck in trying to stop your little one. it seems that a lot of people i talk to have the same problem. oh well at least they won' t starve. good luck.
TERRY
| Please bear in mind when reading topics pertaining to health issues, that most of these questions were answered by helpful Maltese owners with no formal education in veterinary medicine. When in doubt seek a professionals advise. |
|
1996-1998© Maltese Only Discussion Created by Jay Bianco All rights reserved |
