Coprophagia (poo eating)

What is it?

Coprophagia is the technical term for poo eating in dogs. This can refer to dogs who eat their own poo or other animals’ poo.

Poo eating is an unpleasant habit to crack and there are obvious health considerations for your dog but also for humans if there are small children in the household. This can become an extreme behaviour problem if not addressed early, so we would strongly recommend contacting a qualified behaviourist or trainer for advice if the issue persists.

In the first instance, we always recommend asking your vet to check over your dog to ensure there is no clinical reason for the behaviour.

Advice about this problem is frequently asked for but it’s worth mentioning that this isn’t an exclusive beagle problem – all types and breeds of dog do it too.

Why they do it?

There are a number of reasons why a dog may eat poo and understanding why is important to overcoming this nasty habit:

• Initial curiosity, followed by our behaviour inadvertently rewarding the behaviour. For example, if your dog realises that snacking on poo gets your (horrified) undivided attention and starts a game of chase, this can make the behaviour (and poo!) more rewarding to them.
• Stress: If your dog is under any kind of stress, this could lead to poo eating.
• Attention seeking (see our advice page on this).
• Taste: Unfortunately, some dogs just like the taste of it. This can be exacerbated by a poor-quality diet.
• Hunger: If you only feed your dog once a day, and your dog eats poo, it could be an indication they need to eat more frequently.
• Previous learning: In homes where food has been scarce, dogs can see this as a viable food source.
• Fear: When a dog has been punished for toileting in the wrong place, they can eat poo to hide the evidence.
• Boredom & lack of mental stimulation: This can occur if your dog’s needs are not being met and they are left outside to their own devices.
• Medications and medical conditions: These can make your dog hungrier and more likely to engage in this behaviour.
• Cleaning up: If your bitch has puppies, she will instinctually eat their poo to hide their presence from predators and keep the den clean. Young dogs and puppies will often copy, having seen mum doing it. Most will grow out of it, as long as the owners have not reacted in a way that rewards the behaviour.

The role of diet

If the reason is not immediately obvious to you, a good place to start is by assessing your dog’s diet. There are now plenty of independent websites that can give you a nutrition score for your dog’s diet. www.allaboutdogfood.co.uk is a good starting point!

Very often, the modern, convenient, and highly processed foods that most dogs are fed on pass through the digestive system so quickly that it’s still appealing to them when it comes out the other end.

Whilst there is no widely held view on the role of diet and Coprophagia, some studies have argued that nutrient deficiencies could be to blame. What we do know is that fresh, diverse diets can promote a healthy microbiome, and that this is essential for good gut health.

Changing your dog to a “raw” or “fresh” (minimally processed, cooked) diet can help eliminate the problem. As well as pooing considerably less, the majority of these diets are digested, leaving only true (less appealing) waste products leftover.