Eating Poop

I have a Rottweiler puppy he is 10 weeks old. He eats his poop sometimes is that normal?? Please help.






Hi
It sounds disgusting, but yes, puppies often do eat poop - their own, other dogs, the cats, you name it and they'll probably try it!

Actually, to them it seems perfectly natural. Their mom cleaned the 'nest' when they were tiny by eating their poop and licking up their pee, and as they got older sometimes they 'helped' clean up too.

Most often by the time they're weaned and ready to move onto their new home, puppies have already forgotten about this behavior. But a lot of pups don't forget, and continue to do it for some time. It's pretty unusual though for a dog to continue to do this into adulthood.

Apart from being 'icky' there are certain health dangers posed by this habit, so it's a good idea to discourage it as much as possible. If your pup licks or eats any poop left by a dog who's sick with one of a number of contagious diseases, he could get sick too. Worms and other parasites are also transferred in this way.

The first and easiest way to discourage this is to pick up your puppy's poop right away. DOn't leave it lying out in the yard where he can snack on it later! When you walk your pup, always have him on his leash and give it a sharp tug, and a stern "No" whenever he tries to sniff, lick or eat another animals poop.

There are certain dietary supplements that you can add to your puppy's food that will make his stools taste really bitter and nasty to him. This usually works pretty well on his own poop, but of course won't stop him trying to eat someone else's.

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