Why Do Dogs Eat Poop?

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Why DO dogs eat poop?

This is the million dollar question isn’t it? The question on everyone’s mind? Ok, maybe it’s not a question on everyone’s mind, but it is certainly a question quite a few aghast dog guardians have pondered over the millenia I’m sure.

Technically Speaking

The technical term for poop eating is coprophagia, from the Greek words phagein (“to eat”) and copros (“feces”) ; to eat feces.

But Why Eat Poop?

As revolting as the thought of our dog eating poop is to us, there are a number possible reasons why he does.

There may be health problems such as pancreatitis, intestinal infections or other health problems. Some have theorized that dogs eat feces out of boredom or stress.

It Could Just Be Normal

Wolves and wild dogs eat the intestinal lining of their prey and in doing so ingest some of that animal’s fecal matter. For the domestic dog, eating the feces or another animal may very well be a part of normal carnivorous behaviour, and a nutritious one at that.

It is well know that feces can be a good source of;

• high quality protein
• essential fatty acids
• fat soluble vitamins (particularly vitamin K)
• full spectrum of B vitamins
• many minerals because of the soil in feces
• antioxidants
• enzymes
• fibre

Did You Know?

Dogs fed a predominately raw meaty bones diet have on average about 1/3 the fecal volume of their processed food fed cousins?

Dogs fed a raw diet more efficiently digest and utilize the food they eat and as a result have much smaller stools. In contrast, grain based, kibble fed dogs have a much more difficult time digesting the grains in their commercial dog food, and much of it passes straight through, incompletely digested. In this case the end result is a big steaming pile of sh*t. You know, the kind that you see out on the boulevard every day because the dog’s owners didn’t, or couldn’t pick it up!

Here’s What a Couple of Raw Feeding Vets Have to Say

“Many dogs that eat commercial dog food have to eat feces to stay healthy. Usually their own. The feces they eat is of far greater benefit to them than the product produced by the dog food companies.” – Dr. Ian Billinghurst B.V.Sc (Give Your Dog A Bone)

“Fecal matter contains enzymes, vitamins and is teeming with bacteria – in a sense teeming with tiny live prey. For dogs forced to eat factory-made food, the items they scavenge may be most nutritious.” – Dr. Tom Lonsdale (Work Wonders: Feed Your Dog Raw Meaty Bones)

How to Prevent OverPooPulation

I’m with Tom and Ian on this one. I think that the most likely reason(s) that a dog eats poop is because; it’s a natural carnivorous behaviour and a behaviour that is still observed in other carnivores (wolves and wild dogs) today. And because many modern grain based commercial dog foods lack digestibility, leaving behind a stool of partially digested material, that the dog then re-consumes in an effort to obtain more nutrition.

So is Eating Poop a Good Thing or a Bad Thing?

Now I know I had you (owners of poop eaters) all but convinced that allowing your dog to eat poop is a good thing, but if I were you I’d refrain. I’m just sayin’.

If not for the gross factor, for the most part eating the feces of a prey animal is probably a healthy activity with little, if any consequences. However, for domestic dogs that don’t hunt for prey, but do like to indulge in eating the neighbor dog’s poop, or poop at the dog park – some serious health risks could be presented by eating feces laden infectious organisms, some of which can lead to;

• Canine Distemper
• Canine Parvovirus (CPV)
• Infectious Canine Hepatitis

In all seriousness though, if your dog is in the habit of eating feces, you may want to get him or her checked out by a veterinarian and/or take a closer look at his diet, especially if the food she’s eating is grain (wheat, corn, rice) based. A higher quality, more easily digested food, will probably mean less poop eating.

Quiz: How many times has the word “poop” been mentioned in this post?

1. Does the World Have a Fascination With Poop?
2. Why it’s Not a Good Idea to Eat Dog Poop ~ A Salmonella Story: The Series
3. Raw Food Diets for Dogs: Yahoo Answer Gets Answered

Tagged as: canine distemper, canine parvovirus, coprophagia, infectious canine hepatitis, parvo