My puppy eats poop, dirt, and weird stuff. How can I stop it?

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your questions. Unfortunately for you, not all labs love the water. She may get used to the pool over time and use it more but she may just not be interested. As for the abnormal ingestion of stones, leaves, etc. I would recommend having a hose handy and whenever she goes to eat the stones or leaves, spray her with the hose and say "off!" to deter her from doing this further. Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further. Please take the time to mark this question as helpful or not as it helps us to improve on the quality of our answers to other pet owners. Thank you kindly!

I'm sorry you're having this problem. I wish I could help you to figure out what's causing Asta to eat rocks, but unfortunately we don't know - some of them just do it! She may grow out of it as she ages, but in the meantime you can place her in a basket muzzle when she's unattended outside. These are easy for dogs to wear, pretty comfortable, and will prevent her from eating anything while wearing it. At night I recommend putting her in a kennel - she's still young enough to train for this - so that she can't have access to the areas that have rocks. Best of luck!

This is a common problem in dogs, and it is gross but not abnormal. There are a few things you can do to stop this behavior, like feeding a supplement that sometimes makes the stool taste bitter (see a link below). The best prevention would be to keep the feces picked up so that Kala doesn't get the opportunity to eat them. https://www.petco.com/shop/en/petcostore/product/naturvet-coprophagia-stool-eating-deterrent-dog-chews Here is some more information on coprophagia: http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=1613

If he is on a high-quality, well-balanced, commercial dog food diet it is not likely to be a vitamin deficiency. In my opinion, he does this because he is a Lab and a puppy. Eating things is common for this breed. They do eat everything. They are bred for hunting and to grab things in their mouth. You need to give him things he is allowed to chew that will keep him busy. Honestly, the best thing to do is to consult with a professional dog trainer and get this problem corrected early before he gets too much older. You are extremely lucky that he passed that plastic bag and it didn't need to be surgically removed. You can try this training on you own but it is not recommended. I promise you will get quicker and better results by working with a trainer. ( https://www.thelabradorsite.com/stop-dog-eating-everything/ ) ( https://positively.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=14004 )

Some dogs will eat anything. I've even seen dogs eat glass. Unfortunately you can't train a dog out of this but you can protect them. Keep the house picked up and things kept out of Toy's reach. Kennel toy or keep him in a small room that is 'Toy-proofed" so he can't get into anything. Never leave Toy unattended as he could end up with an intestinal blockage that requires a surgical repair. lastly, one would think feces tasted bad enough BUT there is a supplement called Forbid that can make them taste worse. You feed it to the dog and then when he eats the feces he dislikes it. Some dogs don't respond to this. The other tough thing is most dogs will eventually taste the stool again and may resume the habit again. Forbid is not meant to be given a prolonged amount of time. I hope this is helpful and please feel free to post any additional questions.

Hello, and thanks for your question. Sounds like Alex is quite the trouble maker! You're right - the best way to prevent them from eating material is to simply keep the house as spotless as possible. Dogs naturally explore the world with their mouths, and some are more prone to eating what they find than others. Teaching Alex the "drop it" or "leave it" command will help when you see him getting into something he shouldn't. I would also recommend crate training Alex and keeping him safely confined when he's alone. In a few extreme cases, I have had patients wear basket muzzles to prevent them from eating what they shouldn't - but this is not usually necessary and is only something I usually consider after a dog has had multiple foreign body surgeries! If you are thinking about going this route with Alex, I would definitely touch base with your vet for guidance. It's important to make sure it's an appropriate fit so dogs can still pant, drink water, etc, and they need to be properly trained to wear the muzzle to minimize stress. Hope this helps!

Keeping Rocky away from anything poop-like is the best to keep him from eating it. That may mean keeping him on a leash when outside going potty in the yard, or keeping him in a laundry room or kitchen that is easy to clean so you can get to it quickly before he eats it. Anything remotely edible that isn't food, treat, or a chew toy should be moved out of reach. Crate training, which is useful for potty training can also help deter accidents in the house and chances for him to eat poop. For-bid and other products can also be given to all your pets to make the stool less tasty to him. If he's having diarrhea in addition to trying to eat everything, ruling out any issues such as parasites or GI problems with your vet is a good idea.