Just joined (coprophagia )

Hi my name is Suzie, i have a 13 week old black lab, live near heather hill, a great place for walking and exercise, the only thing is she is obsessed with eating any sheep, cat, rabbit droppings, I think this is pretty normal...... how old till she gets out of the habit ? and will it do her any harm ?

Hello Suzie and welcome you may find this article by the Dogs Trust of help...

http://www.dogstrust.org.uk/az/c/cop...x#.T-t3Nxf2atY

Thanks for that Minihaha, the dogtrust info was very useful

You have a Labrador -- odds are she will never grow out of it. None of mine certainly ever have.

Just make sure you worm regularly and no harm will come of it. Apart from poo breath that is.....

I met a gorgeous lab last week. His owner told me he was very fond of eating poo and as a result wasn't allowed off lead. Apparently the lab had gotten quite sick through eating something nasty not long ago so his owner didn't want to risk it. A shame but they did go jogging off so he is exercised well.

Labrador = life support system for stomach.

Nothing is inedible, and I am afraid hoping a dog will grow out of it is somewhat ambitious.

Thanks for your comments guys,....... will keep you posted

The Dogs Trust info that Minnie gave is really good

I would add that ignoring any dog who is going for it can help a lot, as some dogs tend to try to gobble it up with one eye on their owner, convinced their owner also wants it due to their reaction

However that will only help if the dog is doing it party for attention/exploration - not so useful if the dog actually likes the taste!!!

I have also used distractions (but before the dog sees the droppings) and asking the dog to walk close to me and then ending with a game when dog is released.

My dog tends to ignore any horse manure etc but will take some if she is actualy hungry and I don't mind that to be honest. Other than that she never takes it, and I'm convinced it's because I never showed her as a pup that I was concerned about her doings
Wys
x

Another approach is to replace the buzz she gets from the poo with a different pleasure - play.
With her breeding she should be good at this. Try taking a ball with you and playing with her on her walks - intensively at first to break the habit. You may need two balls as she may dash off with one for a quick munch...

As a growing puppy Pereg used to stand behind Little One to catch it fresh - and short of staying outside and keeping her on a leash while LO performed, and then getting to it before Pereg did [both being a total impossibility], there was nothing I could do.

She does not eat anyone else's poo but she will still sometimes eat her own, once it has been nicely dried and "cooked" by the sun. She is not bored, not lacking in any vitamins or minerals, and has a very well thought-out raw diet.

Pereg just likes crunching dried out bits of her own poo.

Not all the time, just when she fancies it, and it has no connection whatsoever whether she is hungry or not as she is just as likely to seek out a dried-up tasty crunchy morsel when she goes out immediately after being fed.

I do clean up after her most of the time but waiting to pounce and pick up a poo is really not feasible, especially as since she has been totally on raw her poos are small and far less frequent. They do not pong either, and neither does her breath after having had a little munch.

So I have stopped worrying about it.