How to stop my dog eating poo? When we receive emails from our lovely readers asking dog training questions, they often begin with 'how do I stop my dog….' doing something.
Now, when it comes to a dog eating poo, that's a particularly nasty one. I mean, who after all wants a poo eating dog to give them a big, smelly kiss on the chops (learn why dogs lick people).
Firstly – and let's establish this one off the bat – yelling at your dog to stop him from eating poo is not going to be ineffective. Instead, be calm and seek to redirect the behaviour to something positive. You do need to act quickly and a short, sharp 'no' with an immediate redirection followed by a reward is going to bring greater results.
Learn why do dogs eat poop?
Teach your dog the "Leave it!" command. This command is very important in day-to-day situations. Use it if your dog tries to grab food off a table or if he tries to eat poo when you are out for a walk. To get the dog to follow your command, hold a treat in your hand (have one in the other hand, also). Hold your hand open, and when he goes for the treat, close your hand as you say the command "Leave it!" Then offer him the other treat, and discard the one you told him to leave. Repeat this step a few times, and he will learn to "Leave it!" when you tell him to. This is classic redirection. Think of it as your way of saying to do the dog "don't do that, it's bad, do this, it's good!".
Certain dogs tend to eat, nay, positively devour poo. Poo of all different types – dog poo, cow poo, sheep poo, rabbit poo, the lot. This is either because it tastes good and they are finding certain nutrients in the faeces of other animals or because it is compulsive behaviour. One thing we all know, dogs LOVE to eat stuff that smells and, I don't know about you, but poo is just about the smelliest of the smelly.
By using the basic 'leave it' command and redirecting the unwanted behaviour toward desired behaviour you can stop your dog eating poo. If your dog already knows this command, it will work immediately. Reward desired behavior.
One last thing, as Columbo might say, most dogs do eventually grow out of this habit on their own, so whilst you should always act to stop the behaviour, don't fret too much about it. Believe me, your dog is not unique – judging by our in-box there are lots of poo eating dogs all over the world.
Now, when it comes to a dog eating poo, that's a particularly nasty one. I mean, who after all wants a poo eating dog to give them a big, smelly kiss on the chops (learn why dogs lick people).
Firstly – and let's establish this one off the bat – yelling at your dog to stop him from eating poo is not going to be ineffective. Instead, be calm and seek to redirect the behaviour to something positive. You do need to act quickly and a short, sharp 'no' with an immediate redirection followed by a reward is going to bring greater results.
Learn why do dogs eat poop?
Teach your dog the "Leave it!" command. This command is very important in day-to-day situations. Use it if your dog tries to grab food off a table or if he tries to eat poo when you are out for a walk. To get the dog to follow your command, hold a treat in your hand (have one in the other hand, also). Hold your hand open, and when he goes for the treat, close your hand as you say the command "Leave it!" Then offer him the other treat, and discard the one you told him to leave. Repeat this step a few times, and he will learn to "Leave it!" when you tell him to. This is classic redirection. Think of it as your way of saying to do the dog "don't do that, it's bad, do this, it's good!".
Certain dogs tend to eat, nay, positively devour poo. Poo of all different types – dog poo, cow poo, sheep poo, rabbit poo, the lot. This is either because it tastes good and they are finding certain nutrients in the faeces of other animals or because it is compulsive behaviour. One thing we all know, dogs LOVE to eat stuff that smells and, I don't know about you, but poo is just about the smelliest of the smelly.
By using the basic 'leave it' command and redirecting the unwanted behaviour toward desired behaviour you can stop your dog eating poo. If your dog already knows this command, it will work immediately. Reward desired behavior.
One last thing, as Columbo might say, most dogs do eventually grow out of this habit on their own, so whilst you should always act to stop the behaviour, don't fret too much about it. Believe me, your dog is not unique – judging by our in-box there are lots of poo eating dogs all over the world.
Get Our Best Dog Magazine Articles
Enter your email address below and never miss out on our very best dog content
Enter your email address below and never miss out on our very best dog content
I would like to write an article about “Reversing Abuse” and get it published. Any help you can give me. My dog was abused and it took 4 months to reverse most of the abuse and I want to share how I did it.