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Calatria


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Yuck!
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Belle is about 17 months old and has the worst digestive system in any dog I've ever encountered.  She's our first greyhound, but I don't think she's representative of the breed.  The bottom line (no pun intended) is that she can eat nothing but Burns dried food, or will suffer diarrhoea for days on end.  And I mean nothing.  Not as much as a single doggy choc drop.  When she's well, we sometimes forget the problem - like the other week when I dropped three strands of spaghetti (lightly coated in sauce) on the floor and allowed her to eat it.  Next morning, I needed wellies before I could go into the kitchen.


The problem is she will eat anything she can reach.  She's always been this way, it's nothing new.  But over the past six or seven months, that "anything" includes faeces left in the yard by our other dog.  Result?  Apart from the yuck factor, it means she's getting food she cannot tolerate (albeit second hand) and diarrhoea follows as surely as night follows day.


Over the winter months, the problem is controllable.  The mess from both dogs is cleaned up as soon as possible, and they haven't been spending much time unattended in the back yard anyway.  But last week I caught Belle treating the other dog like some kind of bizarre dispensing machine.  She was actually waiting by his tail while he squatted in the yard (eyeing her warily over his shoulder at the same time), and I have no doubt she would have eaten whatever he produced before it even had a chance to hit the ground.


None of the usual remedies work for us, ie mixing pineapple (or other substances) in with the older dog's food, to make his faeces unpalatable.  Unlike Belle, the older dog is quite a picky eater and would starve before eating something with pineapple mixed in.  Even if he would eat pineapple, it certainly wouldn't stop Belle, who once pinched half a lemon from the kitchen worktop and chewed on it for a lot longer than I could have.


With the warmer weather on the way, I really need some help with this.  I want to be able to let the dogs wander in and out of the house at will, but all I can come up with is muzzling Belle.  She wears a muzzle for walks, but is it cruel to keep this on her for hours at a time?  It definitely helps, because I put the muzzle on her the other day, and both dogs trotted happily in and out for an hour.  Then Belle came in with the muzzle covered in the other dog's mess (ever tried cleaning a muzzle you'd rather not touch??).  Disgusting as it was, at least she hadn't been able to eat it, and was diarrhoea free the following day.


If anyone else has had this problem, I'd welcome any advice on how to stop the habit.  Failing this, advice on wearing the muzzle for a long period, would also be appreciated.


 


 


 


 


 


 



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Christine Young


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You poor thing! Belle is running you ragged - she's a real minx! Anyway I don't have the answer to your problem, but the GAL behaviourist, Vivian Silverstein, may be able to help you. You can ask her online for help with Belle at http://www.livewithyourdog.co.uk/.


If you stay near Glasgow, Vivian is currently holding dog obedience classes there. She can also be seen at any of the events throughout the year that GAL hold in various places.


Good luck and hope that things work out for you and Belle. (I couldn't help but smile though at the thought of Belle waiting for the other dog to perform)!


Christine



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FAJ


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Hi, Calatria - does your vet have anything to say about Belle and her ultra-sensitive tummy? It may be that she's such a scavenger (including the poop) because she's not absorbing the nutrients that she needs.
It's a bind for you, if this is the case, because where do you break the cycle? I'd have her checked by the vet, just to be on the safe side. Also, live natural yoghurt on her food can help with tummy problems, though probably best to try her with a tiny bit first as she sounds quite sensitive. Apols if you've already been-there-done-that-bought-the-teeshirt!

If it's any consolation to you, I've learned that poop eating can be quite common. Pearly does it very occasionally, if she's been given rich treats like a bit of beefburger or the like. It's as if she's having a second pass at extracting the goodness. Disgusting to us, of course, but perfectly sensible and logical to her.

Good luck,

Fiona

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greyflintstone


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Hi!


Our 3 year old girl, Wilma, also has a very sensitive tummy.  She has to be fed James Wellbeloved Lamb & Rice as she has a very severe white meat intolerance.  Like you, if she has anything she's not supposed to have you need your wellies on to go into the kitchen first thing (thank the Lord for lino!!).  However, she doesn't eat poo!  It may well be, as someone else suggested, that she is lacking in nutrients somewhere, or it could be a dominance thing.  If she is ok on the Burns food, then leave her on it; if not, then change it to something like the James Wellbeloved - it's hard, but it really is a case of trial and error.


As for the muzzle ....... personally I don't think it would harm her to wear it for extended periods - as long as its not on too tight.  I think the plastic "cage" type ones (that GAL sell!) enable the dog to still drink, open their mouth to pant, but will stop food/poo from being eaten.  I'm sure someone will correct me if I'm wrong! !


The only other thing I can suggest ...... is it possible to put your other dog on the Burns food?  That way, if he's passing it and she eats it, she's not getting anything "dodgy". 


Keep us all informed of what you do and how Belle gets on!


Sharon



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Calatria


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Belle was checked out by the vet a few months ago and pronounced healthy.  I think he was at a loss to suggest something that might help, since we'd already been down the yogurt route (and the BCK granules!), and nothing made much difference.  He said we could try those yogurt drinks that come in the wee plastic bottles, so we did that for a while - all that achieved, was that nobody else in the house could take one of those drinks without being glared at by Belle, who considered them her property.


We tried several different foods for sensitive tums (James Wellbeloved was one of them) before being advised, by GAL people, to try Burns.  It really did help.  She went from having diarrhoea five or six times a day, to only getting it when she's eaten something other than the Burns food.  I contacted the Burns people about the faeces-eating, but they were puzzled by it, since they claim their food has all the nutrients a dog could possibly need.  They recommend dogs with this habit start eating Burns - I don't think they'd ever heard of a dog who only developed the habit some months after being fed exclusively on Burns food.


Changing the older dog's diet to a Burns-only diet may be a problem due to his pickiness. He likes the food (his morning meal is Burns) but he wouldn't accept the same food all the time, as Belle does.  Unless he gets some variety, he simply ignores the contents of his food bowl.


I will certainly be contacting the GAL behaviourist.  At the moment, it looks like Belle will be wearing her muzzle a lot more than usual.  It's nice to get some sympathy,  though.  My non-dog-owning friends find it all quite amusing



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Dave


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Hi Elaine, I posted about Belle on another forum for Greyhound trainers, they suggested trying something called SLIPPERY ELM which is apparently a white powder available at Chemists which can be put in food or MEBEVERINE tablets. They reckon these are very good for the treatment of sensitive stomachs or irritable bowels. I'm figuring if you can get thr stomach under control she might stop eating poo!


Not had any experience of any of these 'remedies' so I'll leave it up to if you want to give them a go...


cheers


Dave


 


 



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Calatria


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At the moment, Belle's tummy is fine.  The diarrhoea is nowhere near the problem it was before we started feeding her on Burns, and it only seems to crop up from time to time.  Unfortunately, the poo-eating continues whether her tummy is OK or not.  Since (according to Burns) she doesn't need the nutrients, I guess she just likes it.  Ewww.

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Dave


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OK, another tip then! Try adding Rock Sulphur to the dogs water bowl (another one from the Greyhound trainers forum) you can buy it here - www.petplanet.co.uk


cheers


Dave



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Calatria


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Thanks for the tip, Dave.  I'll let you know how it goes.

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Calatria


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I tried pet planet, but they don't stock rock sulphur.  It's available at www.petsplaytime.co.uk though.


Does anybody know what it is, or what it does?  According to the above website it's "refreshing" when added to the dog's drinking water, but they don't give any other details


 


 



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sha


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Hi


I have a 5.5 month old pup who eats dog poo. This doesn`t seem to upset her tummy in any way, but it makes me want to throw up! She prefers to eat other dogs but i`ve saw her eating her own. She has a well balanced diet, so i`m pretty sure she is not nutrient deficient. She has a shiny coat and is in good health. I`ve looked this up and the info said that it can simply be "a pup thing" and she may grow out of it. Never before have i owned a dog who does this, has anyone else? Please tell me they grew out of it! She is not hungry in fact she is a wee bit tubby! Our garden is very clean, i always pick up after the dogs but she waits till a dog "squats" and quickly grabs it!! Taking her out is a nightmare as she finds strange dog poo, i hate to think what bugs she could pick up let alone worms! Yuck Yuck Yuck!!!


Sharon



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Christine Young


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Hi Sharon


You could maybe try muzzling her when you're out and let her off the lead where other dogs poo. It would certainly prevent her from eating it. But like Calatria in the first posting you might have to wash the muzzle a few times at first and that's pretty yucky too.


Hopefully your little pup will grow out of it especially when she realises she can't get to it through the muzzle. When she's a bit older she might have lost the interest.


Christine



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