There are numerous reasons why dogs eat their feces. The medical term for the act is called coprophagy. Reasons can include:

• A dog is ashamed for defecating and eats it to “hide the evidence”.

• A dog is bored and knows eating fecal matter gets an owner’s attention, which is what they’re really after.

• The dog is not getting full nutritional value from their food, and feces contain undigested food that the dog finds appetizing.

How to get your pet to stop:

• Add enzyme supplements to their diet, or purchase a higher grade dog food to promote digestion and prevent feces from containing “appetizing”, undigested portions.

• Add pumpkin, spinach, or pineapple to the dog’s diet. These foods are believed to taste horrible the second time around. • Clean up after your dog on a daily basis, limiting their access to pet waste.

• Cover the fecal matter with a repulsive substance such as Tobasco sauce or cayenne pepper.