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Why is my dog eating dirt after deworming and a recent diet change?

Updated on September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Border Collie | Male | neutered | 44 lbs

My dog's started eating dirt from the floor and licking the shower basin over the past few days. His diet has just been changed and he was wormed after he begun showing these symptoms. Could this be due to a lack of nutrients and how can it be solved?

1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

Answered By Destini R. Holloway, DVM

Veterinarian

Published on May 13th, 2017

Eating diet can indicate that Red isn't getting enough nutrients, and if he was recently dewormed he may have just loss a lot of nutrients from his parasite load. I am not sure what parasites he was treated for or how bad his parasite infection was, but it can take several week to rid all the worms out of his system. Worms attach the intestines and eat all the nutrients in the pets diet, leaving most pets malnourished or even mildly anemic to some degree, which can in turn lead to dirt eating behavior. Once the parasites are gone most pets will discontinue this behavior. You can also supplement with a daily pet multivitamin (i.e. Hivite, Nutrical) for a few weeks until things go back to normal. Visit your local pet store to see what is available in your area. If there aren't any over the counter options suitable for you, then your vet should be able to prescribe something to help and also determine if his current diet is the best choice for him moving forward. I hope Red returns to his normal self soon. Take care.

1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

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