You can often find a puppy that eats its excrement. Such an activity seems not aesthetic and even nasty. But you can not scold the pet for this, because he is driven solely by instincts, which he is not subject to manage.
Why a puppy has its excrement
Many dogs eat feces. Such behavior is scientifically called coprophagy.
The desire to use excrement in a pet arises exclusively on an instinctive level. They can occur for several reasons.
1. The pet’s small age, up to three months, when the formation of the gastrointestinal tract occurs. Usually by four months the habit disappears, and the puppy no longer eats feces;
2. Lack of vitamins. If the owner feeds the dog an unbalanced food, in which there are very few useful substances, then the pet's body requires them to be restored, so the puppy begins to eat excrement;
3. Feeding low-calorie foods. If the puppy consumes feces, it is possible that he lacks nutrients. This happens when the owner feeds the pet with low-calorie foods or completely forgets about feeding the dog;
4. Instinct in keeping your place clean, as well as copying the behavior of other dogs. This can happen if an adult dog, mother, eats baby's excrement in order to clean the doghouse from contamination. The baby sees this and simply begins to imitate the mother;
5. Feeding too fatty foods, when the dog’s body simply can’t cope with its digestion and calls for help useful substances that are just in the excrement;
6. The disease of helminths. In this case, the dog constantly wants to eat, therefore, nutritious feces become its usual diet;
7. With diseases of the stomach and liver, the puppy may want to eat his excrement. But not always eating them signals such a big problem.
Other reasons why a puppy eats its feces
The situation when a puppy eats its feces may not be related to the development of physical diseases in the animal's body. It is possible that his instincts are transmitted from his ancestors. The so-called hereditary coprophagy. If the mom or dad of the pet used to be addicted to the use of excrement, then the descendant can inherit this bad habit.
In addition, the puppy can suffer catastrophically lack of attention from the owner, and to attract him, it can make ridiculous pranks, not always pleasant. If the pet lives in the house, then to clean up after itself it can eat excrement. This happens especially when the owner scolds the dog for what he had spoiled in the house, and also pokes him in a bunch.
Stress can also be a causative eating of excrement by a puppy. A pet can get it during a walk when other dogs are aggressive towards it or if the owner has left the animal for a long time. As a rule, after a few weeks the bad habit disappears.
Danger in puppy eating its excrement
In general, there is no danger that the puppy is eating, there is no excrement. In some cases, it is even useful when the dog is lacking in nutrients, vitamins, and micronutrients. But still, eating feces as a puppy is not a pleasant sight. In addition, the pet and its owner may find some trouble:
1. Parvovirus (hemorrhagic) enteritis. Such a disease is severe in dogs, and for a puppy it can even turn into death. The pet will get such an infection if it eats the feces of an animal infected with a similar virus;
2. Infectious disease of leptospirosis, which affects the kidneys, liver of an animal. It can also be picked up from an infected dog;
3. Toxoplasmosis is a very common disease in pets. In some cases, it can proceed unnoticed, and can lead to death. The greatest danger is that it can be transmitted to humans;
5. Infection with helminths. If the puppy eats the feces of a dog that is a carrier of worms, the pet will get some of it for itself and it will be extremely difficult to get rid of them.
In general, if a puppy eats exclusively its own feces, and the owner carefully monitors its diet and cares for it, then there is no danger in eating feces.
What to do if a puppy eats its excrement
If the puppy eats its excrement, preventive procedures are necessary.
1. If the owner does not know the reason why his puppy eats feces, then it is better to consult a veterinarian to exclude the presence of serious diseases;
2. You can use to add special biological additives to pet food, which contain many useful vitamins and minerals needed by animals at any age;
3. Try to cleanse the puppy's body from the presence of helminths, using special medicines and traditional medicine recipes. Good in this situation helps garlic and simple pumpkin seeds. If even the animal is not infected with worms, this procedure does not pose a danger, and prevention has not done harm to anyone;
4. Train the puppy with the necessary commands, especially “Fu”. When the owner sees that the puppy absorbs excrement, he must say this word to him. Over time, the pet will develop a conditioned reflex that will push him away from the use of feces;
5. When walking, you can use a muzzle so that the pet does not eat unpleasant food at a time when the owner has turned away;
6. Change the puppy's diet. Maybe he does not get the right amount of nutrients or consumes food that the body can not digest. If the owner does not know how to change the diet, it is better to contact the veterinarian for advice;
7. Well, and most importantly, it is care, attention and affection on the part of the owner. Often, pets begin to eat feces simply because they want to attract the attention of a person.
