New Pug puppy help please

I have a four month old Pug named Pugsy. He is consistantly eating other dogs feces and grass in large amounts. I have set him up an appointment with a new vet as the last one was not providing me with any answers. I am worried that its tummy problems even though I have read a few places that its normal. I have actually found myself inspecting his feces to be sure that I dont see anything in it. He was in a bad home before I brought him to my home. He was being kept locked in a puppy kennel with a large varying of temperature in the house. He was left alone all the time and didnt recieve any attention. He is now maybe even overwhwelming so smothered with love and affection and toys and sleeping with me every night. I take him everywhere with me and I dont know even if that is a bad thing. Please someone give me some advice as I want him to be happy and healthy in all the right ways. I have heard that his bread has didnt hereditary problems and it scares me, but I fell in love with him and would not leave him in that unhealthy enviroment. I am new to owning any pets (although I have a three year old that....lol) Any and all advice would be greatly appreciated.

Tina (aka Pugsy's mom) :o)

If your main concern is the eating of poop, I can tell you there are many pugs on this board who, unfortunately, have the same habit. In my house, the only solution is to pick poop up as soon as it is produced to prevent any consumption.

I think it's good that you are getting a second opinion, just in case, but chances are the poop eating and grass eating may just be behavioral. (Inspecting his poop is not a bad idea either-you'll find as a pug parent you may be doing many things you'd never thought "normal" before, but trust me, you're not alone!)

My Pug Imi would like to welcome Pugsy to the esteemed organisation, the I.T.T.A. (International Turd Tasters Association). And we would all like to welcome Tina and Pugsy to Pug Authority.

Okay, I treated Pugsy's coprophagia (so common it has a name) lightly, but it IS a disgusting habit. My Imi went at it with gusto when she first came to me as a senior rescue at 9 (4 years ago) but it is a rare occurence nowadays. She has become more discerning in her standards of consistency and freshness, I believe. Also, my younger Pug, Pearl, practiced the gentle art of coprophagia as a puppy but thankfully grew out of it as an adult.

I wouldn't be overly concerned about the grass or poo, it's not unusual with puppies and he is still very young. I would absolutely get him given a THOROUGH going over by a vet, including blood and pee, to make sure everything is fine. I assume he's had all his shots and the boosters? I would just be eternally vigilant when you take him for walks and make sure you clean up his own instantly he does any. Give him time and hopefully it will be left in puppyhood!

Welcome!

There are some theories on coprophagia that mention certain foods can make a dog more prone to eating its feces. What goes in, must come out. Are you feeding a higher quality kibble versus something like a low quality wet food (which would be equivalent to us eating junk food or spaghettios every day)?

A big suggestion I have is to get him into puppy classes. The benefits are endless. It teaches him to listen with distractions, teaches you how to communicate with him and vice versa, free puppy socialization, teaches him confidence so you don't end up with a dog with separation anxiety, and also, then you have a trainer who personally knows your dog that you can ask questions to, and other puppy owners. I cannot stress enough how beneficial classes would be, especially if you've never had a dog in your adult life and have a young kid in the house.

Good luck with your little one and remember we love pictures!

I have a couple of friends with long term poop eaters and they have found that giving the dog some banana every day has stopped the poop eating or at least significantly reduced it. The theory is that the potassium is what does the trick.

However, I also ditto the recommendation for top quality food and puppy classes.

northernwitch wrote:I have a couple of friends with long term poop eaters and they have found that giving the dog some banana every day has stopped the poop eating or at least significantly reduced it. The theory is that the potassium is what does the trick.

However, I also ditto the recommendation for top quality food and puppy classes.

The banana is a pretty cool trick-- it would be nice for some of the devoted poop-eaters here if it works!

GingerSnap wrote:

northernwitch wrote:I have a couple of friends with long term poop eaters and they have found that giving the dog some banana every day has stopped the poop eating or at least significantly reduced it. The theory is that the potassium is what does the trick.

However, I also ditto the recommendation for top quality food and puppy classes.

The banana is a pretty cool trick-- it would be nice for some of the devoted poop-eaters here if it works!

I wish it did for us. I'd never heard of this before, but my 3 split a banana every night around 9 and I haven't noticed a decrease in Tyson's poop-eating desires.

The banana only works if the dog eating the poop has a potassium craving. Pineapple only works if fed to the dog pooping, not the dog eating it...(sometimes they are, of course, one and the same )

Where the dog has developed a habit, only re-training and diligence, will correct them.

Some poops (of other species) are normal for dogs to eat in the wild, and no amount of training will convince my otherwise well behaved male that wallaby poop is a not delicious trail food and that cat poop from the litter box is not a yummy treat (of course I try to beat him to the litter box but lately the cat has been overly generous...)

Welcome to PA, Tina, and welcome to the ranks of the Totally Pugged. Thank Dog, that is one habit that Penny has never had, although a former dog of mine (husky/shepherd mix) loved kitty Almond Rocas. You've been given some wonderful advice, especially the puppy classes. And yes, we would all love to see some pics of the little guy!