Why do dogs eat poop and how to stop it?
Dear Cathy,  Last night, my brother mentioned that his new puppy has a thing about eating poop. Linda  Dear Linda,  When a dog eats poop its called coprophagia (cop-row-fage-ee-uh), which is a Greek word that basically means feces-eating. While not uncommon for our canine friends to partake in this behavior, it does remain somewhat of a mystery to the veterinary world. Theories range from possible nutritional deficits and compulsive behavior disorders to the dogs genetic beginnings as mankinds trash collector. But no definitive reason has ever been established as to why dogs sometimes eat poop. While it can be challenging for pet owners to break dogs of this habit, there are things a pet owner can and should do to address the issue. First, tell your brother to take the puppy to the vet to rule out any health issues. Second, your brother should pick up his puppys poop, and that of any other dog, immediately after defection. Removing the temptation helps deter the habit. You cant eat cake if there is no cake. Third, your bother can teach his puppy to leave it. Dogs should be trained to never eat things off the ground anyway, and to only accept treats from the hand. To train them, drop a treat to the ground and say, leave it. When the dog leaves it, say a reward word like bingo so the dog knows he got the command right and is about to get a treat for it. Then pick the treat up and start the process again. When the puppy is trained to leave it, he can begin training him to stay away from poop. When your brother sees the puppy sniffing poop, he needs to interrupt the behavior and get the puppys attention. He can do this by calling his name, shaking a can of coins, or spraying condensed air (theres a product called ). When the puppy looks up, he then involves the leave it command. Finally, your brother can try some of the new, over-the counter products that are designed to discourage a dog from eating poop. Some veterinarians recommend putting meat tenderizer (monosodium glutamate) onto the food of all the dogs in the home, which has been known to discourage dogs from eating poop by making it taste fouler. Suggest these things to him and let him determine what works best to halt or greatly reduce his dogs behavior. Even though a puppy may grow out of it, its important to stay on top of this so it doesnt become a lifelong habit. Send your pet questions, tips, and stories to cathy@petpundit.com. You can read the Animals Matter blog at http://blog.mysanantonio.com/animals and follow her at @cathymrosenthal.