My dog eats cow poop. Is it dangerous and how can I stop him?

Coprophagia (eating poop) occurs in some dogs for no particular reason. It is not an indication of hunger or something lacking in their diet. There is a product available (in the US at least) called For-Bid that can help prevent dogs from eating poop. There is certainly a risk that KC could get worms from ingesting feces including cow manure. I would suggest keeping her on a monthly preventative that would prevent worm infestation.

There is not way to get him to stop except to restrict his access to those areas. This does have potential to spread bacterial and intestinal parasite infections so I would make sure he is on a regular dewormer (most heartworm preventions already include this) and monitor for any vomiting or diarrhea.

Apparently something that the cows eat smells good to your dog and therefore Tofy eats it. It is not usually a problem if dogs eat cow poop, but sometimes there could be detrimental bacteria in the poop which could make your dog sick. So it would be better not to let her eat the cow poop.

While eating deer and goose feces is gross it is probably not going to cause any illness. Most parasites are specific to the host. I suppose Giardia could potentially be transmitted in either deer or goose feces but I think it would be unlikely. His diet sounds balanced as long as the raw food is a commercially available balanced diet or comprises <10% of his total calories. The only way I know to get him to stop would be to restrict access - for some reason dogs seem to find the feces of most other species irresistible.

Many puppies eat the poop of other animals when they get a chance - it's a gross habit, but very normal for dogs. In most cases, it won't cause any serious problems but you should be cautious if the pigs have been dewormed recently as many livestock dewormers are toxic to dogs and may still be present in the feces. I would recommend teaching your dog a reliable "leave it!" command using rewards (a trainer in your area should be able to help with this), and keeping him on-leash in any areas where pig feces are present in the meantime so that you can prevent him from having access to them.

Aside from preventing her from having access to the area, it is almost impossible to stop her. Deworming every 3 months with a broad spectrum deworming including praziquantel for tapeworm would be a good plan otherwise. Best of luck and thank you for using Pet Coach.

Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center! Stool eating, also known as coprophagy, is actually quite common in puppies and in many adult dogs too. In fact, if not addressed in a timely manner, there's a risk that this unwanted behavior may end up becoming a recurring habit. There are many theories and potential reasons why dogs decide to eat their feces. These include poor digestion, boredom, stress, attention seeking, and a lack of vitamins/minerals in the diet. The latter is highly unlikely if you're feeding your dog a high quality commercial food, since these generally provide all the nutrients your dog needs. The effective way to deal with this behavior depends on the exact cause. So, it's always recommended to consult with your veterinarian.