Why Does My Dog Eat Poop? Understanding Coprophagia in Dogs

Finding out your dog has been eating poop — their own or another animal's — is a deeply unpleasant discovery. But it's also a very common one. Coprophagia (the technical term for poop-eating in animals) affects a meaningful percentage of dogs, and the reasons behind it range from instinctual to medical. Here's what you need to know.

How Common Is It?

Research presented at the American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior found that 16% of dogs are classified as "serious" poop eaters (observed eating feces more than 5 times), and about 24% were seen doing it at least once (AAHA Canine Life Stage Guidelines, 2019). You are definitely not alone.

Why Do Dogs Eat Poop? The Real Reasons

Evolutionary/Instinctual

Dogs are descended from scavenging ancestors for whom eating feces was a natural survival behavior. In a den environment, consuming the feces of pack members also reduced the presence of intestinal parasites — feces that have been sitting for more than a day harbor more parasites than fresh stools, so pack animals who promptly consumed fresh waste were at a survival advantage.

Attention-Seeking

Dogs who have been punished for accidents during house training may eat their feces to eliminate the "evidence." This is a maladaptive response to punishment-based training. It's one of the strongest arguments for positive-reinforcement housebreaking.

Boredom and Confinement

Dogs who spend significant time confined in small spaces — crates, kennels, or small rooms — often develop coprophagia. It's a boredom-related and anxiety-related behavior.

Anxiety and Stress

Coprophagia can be a displacement behavior in dogs who are anxious — something they do when they don't know what else to do with their stress.

Medical Causes

When an adult dog suddenly starts eating poop without prior history, a medical cause should be considered:

• Intestinal parasites — can trigger nutrient malabsorption that the dog attempts to compensate for
• Enzyme deficiencies — some dogs lack the digestive enzymes to fully absorb nutrients, leading to incompletely digested food in feces that smells appetizing to them
• Nutritional deficiencies — low levels of B vitamins, trace minerals, or other nutrients
• Malabsorptive diseases — conditions like EPI (exocrine pancreatic insufficiency) or IBD
• Medications — steroids can increase appetite and reduce inhibition; hypothyroidism may be a factor

How to Stop Your Dog From Eating Poop

Management First

• Pick up immediately after your dog defecates — removing the resource eliminates the opportunity
• Keep your dog on leash in areas where animal waste is present
• Supervise outdoor time

Training

• "Leave it" is the single most valuable command for this behavior. Train a strong "leave it" that your dog responds to reliably
• Call your dog to you immediately after they defecate and reward them for coming — this creates a competing habit that replaces the foraging behavior
• Never punish after the fact — this is ineffective and counterproductive

Address Root Causes

• Rule out medical causes with a vet visit, especially for adult-onset coprophagia
• Increase exercise and mental stimulation
• If anxiety-driven, address the anxiety with training and, if needed, veterinary support

Food Additives

Certain supplements added to a dog's food are designed to make feces unappealing to eat (e.g., products containing monosodium glutamate or yucca). These work for some dogs but not all.

Still Not Sure if Your Dog Needs a Vet?

When you're not sure if this is wait-and-see or call-tonight, Voyage AI Vet triages in under 2 minutes. Describe what you're seeing in chat, share photos of your dog's droppings (or lack of) and their belly, or hop on a live video call if you want a second pair of eyes. Every answer comes with citations to the actual veterinary literature it's pulling from — so you see exactly where the guidance comes from, not just a chatbot's word.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Is it dangerous for my dog to eat their own poop? For the dog themselves, occasional coprophagia poses limited immediate danger — but it does carry the risk of ingesting intestinal parasites or bacteria present in the stool, potentially including organisms passed by other animals if eating feces from different species. It's also, understandably, an issue for the human-animal bond. Addressing it is worthwhile.

Why does my dog eat cat poop from the litter box? Cat feces are particularly appealing to dogs because cat food is higher in protein and fat than dog food — meaning cat stool contains more residual nutrients. This is extremely common. Solutions include placing the litter box somewhere the dog cannot access (baby gate, cat door in a closed room), or using a litter box with a lid the dog can't open.

Should I be concerned if my puppy eats poop but my adult dog doesn't? Coprophagia is much more common in puppies, who explore the world orally and haven't yet developed the social inhibitions against it. Many puppies naturally stop the behavior as they mature. If it persists past 6–12 months, or if your adult dog develops it suddenly, that's when closer attention — and a vet visit — is warranted.

This article is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional veterinary advice.