Lhasa Apso Problem

[driverdale1]

We have a 5 year old Lhasa Apso...very healthy with all up to date jags etc..our problem is that she is really greedy and in the last year has turned to eating her own , the cats, and our other dogs poos. The vet says shes the right weight for her type and we have tried various deterrents such as pineapple in her food... nothing seems to work...poos are cleaned up almost immediately but there are times we just cant get to them soon enough and she was caught in the hooded cat litter tray yesterday....well u can imagine, its now got to the stage where we were thinking of getting rid of her as the thought of it is making us sick. She is fed half a tin a day plus a mix of complete meal ( the hard stuff ) plus the occasional crust etc......dogs are fed apart so there is no need for her to rush her food but she gulps it down..any help will be much appreciated.

[Islay]

It is a common issue for dogs to eat cat and other animal poo, my labs given half the chance do, I have the litter tray at the top of the stairs with a baby gate to stop that happening.
It is now a habit for her, there was a very good dog training program on last year where a dog trainer 'cured' a dog from doing the same as yours.
Google it and you may find it - I am sorry but I disagree with you getting rid of her because of this.

[Islay]

http://www.paw-rescue.org/PAW/PETTIPS/DogTip_PoopEating.php
http://www.dog-obedience-training-review.com/stop-dogs-eating-dog-poop.html

[hereIam]

I disagree with you getting rid of her too.

[hereIam]

Do you think you are feeding her enough ?

[Islay]

I think it is the wrong type of food personally, some dogs need more than tinned food.
I have recently changed my dogs to hilife moist dried food, the difference is amazing, more energy their eyes are brighter and their poops are firmer.

[Sycamore3House]

My lab did this when he reached the age of 10 approx. The vet said due to his age he may not have been digesting his food properly (dry & tinned mixed) and he could still smell food in the pooh. Then I think it just became a habit. I changed his food to complete dry food and he became better and stopped it. Don't get rid of the dog for this reason though.

[Ratty2E]

This is, according to a vet I know, very common. She seemed to think that a sprinkle of Tabasco on the poo was the way to go. I can tell you are at the end of your tether but I don't think it warrants rehoming the poor thing. Animals do have some pretty revolting (to us) habits if you want to keep them you just have to cultivate a strong stomach.

[Tilly2]

I don't know how you could consider getting rid of your dog for what is, really, quite a trivial reason. How sad.

[Boto]

One of my Labradors does this - not because he doesn't get good quality food or not enough but he obviously likes it and is greedy. He doesn't eat my other dog's poo but only some he comes across when on walks - he's quite fussy about which he will eat! I certainly would not get rid of a dog for such a minor problem. The vet just said that it won't do him any harm.

[chrissa1]

My daughter's new Lab pup does this and like others have said, it's not a rare occurrence. Very hot chilli powder sprinkled on the offending pile has helped a bit.

It's certainly not a reason to "get rid of her." How could you do that?

Think of what you're saving on poop bags. :)

I'm assuming the dog is walked regularly and is not allowed just to "do" it in the garden.

[jambutty]

What do you think of the help offered so far driverdale ?

[driverdale1]

Yes thanks for all the answers, couple things i didn't add in original post....the dog actually isn't ours ..its my granddaughters...but she lost interest and we took her as we didn't want her anywhere else....i think if it really came to the crunch we definitely would NOT re home her ..just as Ratty2E says...we are at the end of our tether...its totally disgusting the way she goes out and hunts for poo to eat. She is fed correctly with Chappie and another supplement and anything else gives her the skitters, so we have to stick to this. If we had the time to put Tabasco on the poo then we would just lift it. The dogs are well exercised and are very fit and healthy with every jag since birth, we are not novice dog owners, merely wanting to find out if anyone had found a solution to this awful habit. Thanks to everyone who has taken the time to reply and be assured the dogs not going anywhere.

[tamborine]

i think its territorial & under pressure from other pets. Outdoor space at/after feeding might sort it.

[chrissa1]

What about a soft muzzle so that she can't eat it?

[woofgang]

Chrissa first from what the OP has said, this would mean muzzling the dog pretty much permanently which is just wrong...secondly its not safe to leave a dog unsupervised and muzzled. Thirdly the kind of muzzle that stops a dog opening its mouth is dangerous if used for more than very short periods with close supervision as the dog cannot pant or vomit. If the dog was muzzled with a muzzle that allowed it to open its mouth then it could just ear the poo through the muzzle!

[driverdale1]

we went down to pets at home and they let us try a few muzzles on but because of her face shape none were suitable, and to be honest i think a muzzle gives out the wrong impression of a dog.

[chrissa1]

Woofgang, where did I say to wear a muzzle, unsupervised? The only time it would be needed would be on a walk when the OP would be in attendance.

As it appears, this option is not feasible because of the shape of the dog's head.

[woofgang]

sorry chrissa, my misunderstanding.....if she’s only doing it on onlead walks, then its not difficult to stop prevent....I was thinking of the problems that the OP was having around the house.

[lankeela]

I wonder if she is not getting the correct nutrition from her food - Chappie is often recommended by vets as it is very bland and suits dogs that are recovering from illness. Try a good quality dry food and only add a small bit of meat to give it some flavour and I think you will find she gets more nutrition from it, will do less poos and will be less inclined to search out poo. To be honest though, provided the animals around her are wormed regularly then there is not a lot of harm in eating poo, it is what they would do in the wild no matter how much we think it is disgusting. Its often because the food the other animal has eaten is still evident as it has not been digested properly.