Disgusting Dog Behaviors

There are two very disgusting dog behaviors that our pets seem to gravitate to and those are eating poop and raiding the garbage. Dogs of all ages tend to find garbage appealing and irresistible while young dogs are the ones that usually find eating poop appealing. Most of us would rather our dogs be less animal and more human, but the truth is that they are animals and animal instinctive behavior is going to happen.

Dogs eating poop has got to be the most disgusting dog behavior that humans find uttering revolting. As disturbing as it might be to humans, it is a behavior that is rather common for dogs. Dogs may eat their own poop, poop of other dogs or even cat poop. The eating of poop is called, “coprophagia”, or at least that is the scientific name for eating poop. Eating poop is a common behavior with young dogs. Thank goodness most dogs will outgrow this behavior within a few weeks. If your household contains cats, you will no doubt notice that your dog will raid the litter box just as often as adults raid the refrigerator. To discourage the litter box raids, keep the box up high or place a gate or other barrio between the dog and the box, that will still allow the cat to have access to the box.

Vets and other pet authorities have different ideas about why dogs eat poop. One popular thought is that a dog eats poop when he’s missing something in his diet. There are some health ailments that may lead a dog to eat poop -- such as intestinal disorders, parasitic infestations or starvation -- that if a dog is suffering from these situations might lead to malnutrition, and therefore poop eating. Another thought is that, dogs are attracted to poop because it smells like it might be good to eat. If you catch your dog heading for a pile when you’re out for a walk, simply remove either the dog or the poop. Offer your dog a tasty alternative like his favorite doggie treat instead of the poop and that should take his mind off of that nasty habit.

Garbage raiding is another disgusting dog behavior, and a messy one too. Who doesn't gag, when they come home to coffee grinds, shredded paper wrappers, and disgusting wet blobs that who knows what it used to be; all over your carpeting, and perhaps your kitchen floor? It doesn't take much imagination to guess why dogs do this behavior...they want what we throw out...left over food and other garbage. Some pet experts think that this behavior is your dog's way of telling you that he is extremely upset with you for leaving him alone at home so much.

One way of decreasing the smells that attract your dog to the garbage can is to wrap food scraps and smelly garbage into plastic bags and tying the bag before tossing it into the garbage. Other than that, there isn't much you can do about this behavior, except to secure every garbage can in your house and to dispose of garbage bags as soon as you can in a secure covered garbage can outside of the house and away from the dog. Put a locking mechanism on the can outside to be sure that the dog doesn’t repeat the behavior outside.  Yelling at the dog when you discover the mess isn’t going to stop the behavior as the dog won’t know why you are yelling and will only become fearful of you.