Welcome Guest Login or Signup LANGUAGE:
CHAT
IM LIST
BOOKMARK
FORUM
New Posts | My Topics | Profile Forum | User Settings | Subscriptions
Post Reply
Coprophagia and rolling in dead stuff
Total Views: 2489 - Total Replies: 9
Jan 07 2009, 9:19 pm - By Hammersquash


Hey Everyone

  I have a 2 year old female beagle named Copper and she is a great dog but suffers from two completely disgusting habits.

First off and worst off she suffers from Coprophagia (poop eater) and often comes in with the vilest of burbs.  It also makes her sick and if left unattended with a belly full she might very well void it in the house.  I have read that the best way to attack this problem is to make sure there is no poop for her to eat.  It is a constant battle to keep her out of the catbox and picking up all the poop in our large yard would be impossible to get, especially in the winter months when covered with snow.
  Second is rolling in dead and or rotting things.  She seems to  like getting disgusting scents on her.  If there is a dead mouse or mole in the yard she will find it and roll in it untill her neck and back are covered.  I understand that dogs do this to hide their own scent but how can you break a dog of this habit?
 To add a third question does anyone else have a beagle that regurgitates alot?  I can't help but wonder if the Cprophagia is the root of this problem but I notice she does it if she drinks water too fast or gets excited.

Thanks for the info!
Wayne


Jan 08 2009, 11:27 am - Replied by: BeagleBabe


Poop eating is common, though completely disgusting. The bile could also be a sign of anxiety. It could also be due to hunger. Do you notice particular pattern to her vomiting?

Some dogs eat poop out of anxiety. Do you think that could be the issue with her? That being said if you can rule out anxiety Cooper is probably eating poop for nutrients/ out of hunger. Try giving your dog a higher quality food, make sure your pup is getting enough to eat and poop eating should stop. This theory goes waaay back to dog's ancestors and is based on wolves eating poop of other animals in food shortages for whatever nutrients it provided.

With Abby (our beagle) she use to looove littler box treats. She stopped eating once I started giving her a higher quality food.

Whatever the case as hard as it is don't let your dog eat poop. The poop can be filled with parasites that can make your dog SICK.
Jamie: fur mom to Abby-dabby-doo (red and white beag), Ace (tri-color beag) and Dandy the doxie too.


PitaPata - Personal picturePitaPata Dog tickersPitaPata - Personal picturePitaPata Dog tickers

PitaPata Dog tickers
Jan 22 2009, 10:04 am - Replied by: luv4beagles


My beagle, Bailey, also enjoys what we call "kitty-roca".  it seems he always knows right when the cat is done and sneaks in when we aren't aware.  He gets plenty of food, but I hadn't heard of the high quality food that might make it stop.  I'm looking for training for my 3yr old as it seems he didn't get this from his last owner and my husband isn't happy with is first dog ever.  We have issues where he is protective of his food or if he finds something on our walks I can't get it from him as he growls at me and actually bit me the other day.  I know he wasn't meaning to hurt me as he immediately laid down and rolled over to say sorry, but this makes me afraid that he may do it again or to someone else.

Any training classes in the Seattle/Tacoma area you may recommend for beagles?

Jan 22 2009, 11:46 am - Replied by: Hammersquash


*UPDATE on my poopfiend*

  Well after a date with the vet on monday of this week the prognosis although not dire it was most certainly dim.
  The Vet pretty much said Beagles just love there poop.  If the animal has been eating feces since puppyhood there are really only two ways to prevent it from happening and there could be a plethora of reasons for eating it.
  Puppies from a breeder or not are generally left to their own resources and watching mommy eat their poop combined with irregular cleaning of the kennel can be the root of this behavior.  It is quite natural for a dog to remove his feces for fear of predators or scolding from an owner.  If a dog thinks pooping is bad they mnight just consume it for fear of scolding.

Things that will work:

-  Follow dog and pick up poop religiously.  No poop, no poop eating.  In my case that is not reasonable.  I leave her outside for hours at a time to play and I have a large property.  Combine that with 2 feet of snow on the ground and all of the poop can't be found. I don't have a dogs nose.
-  Deter, Forbid, Pineapple.  Additives to diet will change state once digested and taste aweful to a dogs palette.  My question here is: Hey, does it get any worse than poop?
- Sprinkle poopy with cajun peeper, vinagar, lime etc.  See first example.  I can't find the poop.  I don't want it as much as my dog does anyways.  If I could find it to put some garneshis on it I would just pick the crap up. Besides, its not like she is coming in the house with some dried up white poop that has been in the sun for 2 weeks.  Its basically still steaming on her muzzle when she comes in the door.
-  Food.  Cheap food does not get digested properly and it tastes similar coming out as it does going in.  I should try this some day with McDonalds or Taco Bell.  It certainly all looks the same the next day. I buy the best food for Copper money can buy.  I might not get her a 200 dollar plate at dinner but its good dry dog food.  If it comes in a can or people eat it she doesnt.

  Something I am going to experiment with is feeding intervals and times.  I have read that digestion is a big part of feces being tastefull.  Feces still high in carbs and fats look and smell good to her. (ohhh ick)  I can't help but wonder if I change her feeding times and span them out she will digest better and not produce yummi waste.  On the other hand waste of any kind can't be yummi can it?

  And last but not least: A cage muzzle.  The vet said it himself so dno't go thinking I am a big meanie.

  I went to the local petsmart to look at muzzles.  They had some mesh light ones that seem roomy and light.  I picked one up for 20.00 and bought one of those motor driven toenail sanders for 15.00.  Not to get off on a tangent here but those things are retarded.  It does a great job on the nailsand there is no fear of the quick of the nail being damaged but holy crap I thought I was going ot have to nail copper to a board to keep her still. 
  The muzzle seemed to work for about as long as it took for her to destroy it.

Good Luck


Feb 04 2009, 10:33 am - Replied by: Hallie


Also make sure she doesn't eat too fast. Eating fast prevents all the food from digesting meaning it's the same when it comes out as when it went in, and unfortunately taste the same. I'm blessed to not have this problem with my beagle, she will steal from the litter box but all we had to do is put a baby gate up so she can't get to that part of the house.
Feb 23 2009, 11:03 pm - Replied by: Vyxxan


Huh.  Well, almost all dogs will roll in smelly things if they are able.  The list includes dead things, garbage and feces of other animals.

Ours have started rolling in something, on walkies.  It smells good to them, but I haven't actually noticed any extra smells on the dogs.  It must be something very dry that they've taken a liking to.  :)

The poop eating is different.  The beagle kids don't eat their own poop, but they DO love cat poop or deer poop.  Both of which we have plenty of here.  They don't usually raid the litter box, with outside cats they find plenty in the grass.  Jasmine especially will eat deer droppings until she is literally foaming at the mouth from it.  Augh.  I have been able to train them all to drop it with the cat treats, but not with the deer treats.

My worst problem is Sadie and drinking water.  She can't drink more than about a cup of water at a time or she spits it all back up.  Might not be anything else in her tummy, but letting her drink all she wants in the house is not a good idea.  I've never noticed her do this outside, but she will do it all the time in the house.   Since I rescued her from being dumped I don't know if it's something she's always done or what.

Oh, one last thing for the poop eaters:  they sell something that you mix with your dogs food that will make them stop that if they are eating their own feces.  I've never used it myself, just understand that it's something available.  No help if your dogs like to eat other poops!

Feb 25 2009, 5:04 pm - Replied by: zowie101


My 11 month old beagle eats poop and her dad is 6 and yes everytime he drinks water to fast he vomits to. you are not the only one out there.
Feb 25 2009, 5:09 pm - Replied by: zowie101


Zowie ate poop alot of times and she ate to much and vomited and she has not touched it since. When my other dog goes #2 she sniffs it now but I say no and zowie walks away from it. I watched her yesturday and kaylee went #2 she went over to it sniffed it and walked away. I think she learned her lesson from getting so sick.
May 25 2010, 7:00 pm - Replied by: abyssal20


LOL...welcome to Beaglehood!!!  I have a Kentucky "blue tick" Beagle. She out grew the poop thing around 2 years. As far as the rolling in dead stuff, totally normal and you will not train him to stop. It's as instintive as her need to track. We live in FL so Snickers rolls in dead lizards, frogs, and grubs. I don't think their trying to mask their scent, but rather marking themselves after the hunt. If Snickers kills a lizard, she'll roll in it until she is covered with the scent. Oh, and if Cooper is still chewing...good luck with that one too. Digging...forget even trying. All these traits are part of owning a Beagle. You mind as well try to stop them from howling...that's not going to happen. Live with it, enjoy it, and admire it. They are fascinating breeds and I must say, the most loving, personable, and fun to be around dog I've ever had bar none!!! As Snickers likes to say, "it's a Beagle thing...you wouldn't understand".
May 19 2011, 9:03 am - Replied by: Trynidax


No Comments
Post Reply

I Luv Beagles | Beagles Sitemap