Hi I was hoping somebody would have some advice for us. We adopted our puppy about a month ago and everything has been going great except one thing. Norman (our puppy) had been eating his own feces. We do not know what to do. We try to go out with him everytime, but even then he will try to get it as we clean it up, like it's a game. He also finds other animal feces while we are out on walks and eats that as well. We are worried that he will get sick. Maybe we aren't feeding him enough?? We really want to find a solution to this problem because we have had to keep Norman seperate from his best friend,our son Jody. His mouth is so yucky and he likes to lick Jody. Any suggestions? Thanks, Sara and Adam

What type of food are you feeding?



Often this behavior will just go away when the pup matures. In the mean time, keep the pup's toilet area as clean as possible. Be sure that the puppy is checked for worms and other possible problems such as something lacking in the dog's diet. It is a good idea to have the dog's diet approved by your vet, or switch to a nutritionally complete dog food sold by your vet or pet store.

Many owners have had success in stopping this behavior by supplementing their dog's diet with one spoonful of canned pineapple or a teaspoon of spinach. There are products on the market such as 'Forbid' that can also be added to the dog's food to help stop the problem.

If the dog is still fond of feces, try teaching your dog not to touch it using the command 'Off.' Put your dog on leash and walk him by some feces. If he shows any interest in it, tell him, 'No, off.' If he continues to go for it, then loudly scold him, 'OFF!!!' and pull him away from it with a short, sharp tug on the leash. When he stops, praise him. Continue walking and keep returning to different piles of feces over and over, repeating the off procedure until he gets the idea that you disapprove of his dietary interests. Whenever he shows no interest in the feces, be sure to tell him how happy you are through praise and reward.

It is also possible to make the feces unappetizing by sprinkling them with hot sauce, lemon juice or anything the dog finds distasteful. Some dogs like hot sauce and will consider it a garnish, so find out what your dog does not like before using it. Be sure to clean up your dog's feces immediately after he defecates so as to prevent the problem in the first place. Do not give him the opportunity to indulge himself.