Why does my Yorkshire Terrier eat cat poop, and how can I stop it?

Unfortunately, dogs love eating poop! They find it tasty, and while that is completely gross, it's not uncommon. My own dogs try to treat the cat's litter box like a buffet. Eating the poop can at most cause them some GI upset in the form of vomiting. You can try elevating the litter box so your cat can jump up to it, but Farrah can't reach it. You can layer baby gates on top of each other, one with the bottom touching the ground and the other right on top of it. That should prevent her from wriggling under the gate and jumping over it. You might also consider keeping the door shut to the room where the litter box is, and installing a cat door in the door. That way, your cat can get in the room, but your dog cannot. I hope one of these suggestions help.

Cat feces are unfortunately very attractive to dogs - I have never known a dog who would pass up a chance to eat some, if they're available. The only real way to prevent Kacey from doing this is to keep her from having access to the feces. I would put the litter box in a separate room and use a baby gate to keep her out - this way, the cat can still get to the box by jumping over the gate, but Kacey won't be able to reach it. Outside, if you have stray cats defecating in your flowerbeds, you may need to use a sprinkler system or some other method of deterring them. Alternatively, you could put up a barrier so that Kacey can't reach the flowerbeds, or keep her on-leash outside so that you can control where she goes.

You can try either mixing 1 tsp of meat tenderizer in your cats food for a couple of weeks or a medicaiton called Forbid which will cause the cats poop to taste bad. Hopefully this is enough to deter Odie from eating the cat poop in the future. Also placing barriers around the litter box or a lid can also be tried. Best of luck. Take care.

Unfortunately the only way to prevent it is either keep a strict eye on Bailey during his walks and try to distract him with treats and toys or use a muzzle to prevent the ingestion. You could use the muzzle for a limited time just to break this habit. Sometimes they lose the habit while growing. Please post again on the forum if you would like to discuss it further. I hope my answer was helpful.

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.

Dogs will eat stool out of boredom, curiosity or in an attempt to correct a nutritional deficiency. She may outgrow the behavior eventually. Pick up stool immediately after she goes. Keep her occupied and engaged with toys and tasks to distract her from stool. Review her diet with your veterinarian to identify and correct any potential deficiencies. There are also food additives, such as For-Bid, that may deter her from eating feces.

Sadly, there isn't a great way to stop this gross behavior. There are products that are just really high amounts of MSG, that sometimes make the stool less appealing to dogs, but I don't love that idea for puppies (or really any dog). For the litter box, you need to block Gretchen's assess to it and for eating her own stool, try to take her for walks for her bowel movements whatever possible so you can pick it up right away. You can offer a high value treat right after a bowel movement when walking so she learns to look for that special treat instead of turning around to instantly eat the feces. To be honest, it's not a habit that is easy to break. As far as the diet question, there is actually increasing evidence that grain-free diets may be harmful, so I recommend staying away from them and feeding a regular high quality puppy diet. Royal Canin, Hills, and Purina are all good brands.