• My dog breezy is 1.5 years old. In the last 3 weeks she started eating her own poop and my other puppy (4months old) Maeve’s poop. She’s also been clingy-er than normal and going into her crate a lot to sleep which is not normal at all for her. Should I bring her in or is this something that will pass? Other things to note- we got our puppy almost 7 weeks ago and she acted normal the first 4 weeks. She started fish oil for dry skin sometime around when the stool eating started (recommended by our vet).

  Hi Peter,
  There are several possibilities for the symptoms you are describing in Breezy which is referred to as coprophagia. The addition of the fish oil to the diet could be the cause as it can cause changes in the GI process as well. Another possible concern would be GI parasites that could have come from the new puppy. Maeve is also most likely on a puppy food and sometimes the difference in food can cause a dog to be interested in another pet’s feces. I would recommend calling to discuss with your veterinarian and they can discuss the best treatment plan to prevent Breezy from eating the feces. It would be best to go outside with both pets and to clean up the feces from the yard immediately to help discourage this behavior.

Answered by:

John Smith, DVM
Veterinarian

Dr. John Smith is a graduate of LSU, Class of 1998. He has over 10 years of experience...

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