A Strange Appetite

[Mozart's Mom]

I am new to this list. It looks like a great source, and I'll probably be visiting often. I have a 9 month old male (my 5th Rott in the last 20 years) who has eating habits I've never seen in ANY of my dogs before. Maybe someone can help me either tell me what's wrong with him, or how to break him of this habit. HE EATS ROCKS! As a pup, he started out with little pebbles, now he eats stones the size of marbles (bunkers)! For the past few days, he's been regergetating them back up, but usually they just pass and end up in his stools. I tried covering them with cayan pepper today, but he just licked off the pepper and continued to want to eat the rocks! (Obviously he likes spicey food) I'm concerned that this will affect his health in a very negative manner, but I'm at a loss as to how to stop him. Just need to let you know, I live in Vegas and have desert landscaping, so my whole backyard is stone and cactus, so getting rid of the stone would be out of the question. Please help!!

[Darseeuh]

My Rott Pookie did this for a while when he was a pup too. I don't know if yours is an indoor dog or outdoor, but Pookie is strictly indoors, so we just watched him real close when he went outside to do his business or whatever. And when he picked one up we would say "drop it" ( a command we taught him so we could get things out of his mouth easily) and then a firm "no" After a while of this I think he finally got tired of it cause he stopped doing it and hasn't since.

I'm not an expert by any means, but I hope it helps :)

[K-9Girl]

Welcome to the forum, good to have you aboard!

I know what you mean when you say that your backyard is stone and cactus....I too live in New Mexico (Albuq.).

Unfortunatly, my Rottin' boy :D does not eat rocks so I can not help you there. I am sure you will get plenty of advice and help from others....Good luck and Welcome!

[ladawn]

Daisy does this too! She is an indoor dog. I have to watch her like a hawk. I don't know why she does it, but I fish it out of her mouth (I need to learn how to teach drop it!). I'm glad to know someone else has a dog who does that though.

[godfreyc]

I don't know how others teach drop it, but it's one of the easiest for me. When they are really small 10-12 weeks and I want something they have I get next to them hold the back of their neck and say really loud DROP IT! I even give a shake if I have to. The minute, and I do mean the very second, the object hits the floor I praise and love and tell them what a good baby they are and pet. Then before I stop petting I pick it up so their not tempted to grab it again. It usually only takes a couple of times and since it's a command used often with puppies, when they've got it they've got it.:D Hope that helped

[alexav]

Get ready to call me a big meanie but this could be a life threatening behavior called "Pica" that needs to be stopped NOW! If a dog is just carrying the rocks that is one thing but this dog is repeatedly swallowing rocks and that is a big problem!

Yes, I'm talking major aversion therapy. If this was my dog and I loved him enough to keep him alive, I'd buy or borrow a remote training collar. Chances are that he does his best dining when he thinks no'one is looking. If not now, as soon as you start scolding him for something he obviously enjoys, he'll start to sneak and eat. The beauty of the remote collar is that you can make the dog think that the correction came from the environment, not you.

I would put this dog out in the yard and watch from a window. When he starts to put a rock in his mouth, (Timing is crucial here) I would hit the strongest correction button. My goal would be to make him think that all rocks are bad and can deliver a big bee sting if you pick them up. Depending on how strong his desire is you will have to watch him constantly and be ready to correct him for at least a week. If you are not sure you can do it, or if you are unclear on the precise timing required, please enlist the help of an experienced trainer to show you.

Sure, the other less drastic methods might work just fine but IMO will take longer to work. The very next rock he eats could be the one that kills him or at the very least, costs you upwards of a thousand dollars to surgically remove and costs him alot of pain and recovery time. Ask yourself if it is worth the risk. I would rather my dog feel a little sting with a big surprise than a huge burning pain in his belly and the subsequent 12 inch incision that it will take to save his life. I have seen it time and time again at the hospital and many come in for repeat surgeries for the same bad habit. (One Dachshund has had 4 surgeries to remove rocks and an ABD 3 for cloth specific pica) The owners of these dogs had tried everything from medication, major renovation of thier yards and muzzling them every time they went outside. The remote trainer method above worked very well for those willing to try it.

I wish you and Mozart the best!

[ladawn]

Alexav,

Do you know why they do it or is it like the grass (I still can't find out for sure why dogs eat grass).

[alexav]

Originally posted by ladawn
Alexav,

Do you know why they do it or is it like the grass (I still can't find out for sure why dogs eat grass).

There is a huge difference between dogs who eat grass (a natural behavior) and dogs who rutinely seek out non food items and swallow them (usually whole) just as it is normal for puppies to chew or investigate items with their mouths but not normal at all for an otherwise healthy adult dog to consume the same items.

There is a big debate as to why these habits develop. One theory is an imbalance in the diet but in all the cases I have been involved with that has never been the cause. A more plausable theory is that it is boredom or loneliness that starts the behavior and if the dog is rewarded inadvertantly by attention from the owner or simply by the comforting feeling of a very full stomach the behavior is reinforced. Any discomfort or vomiting that results later is not associated by the dog so doesn't act to teach the dog to avoid the behavior. This theory makes alot more sense to me. Most Veterinary reference books say to increase human interaction and exercise and supervise the affected dog whenever the prefered material is available.

My beliefs on the grass question: Many times, a dog that has nausea will seek out grass or if grass is not available, it will eat something that resembles grass. I don't think that the grass MAKES the dog vomit, if grass is inaccessable, the dog will vomit anyway. I believe that the consumption of grass in this situation is instinctual, not behavioral. Also, grass simply tastes good to them. Ever tried it? ;) :p Even dogs who are fed a BARF diet will still eat grass occasionally, so we know it's not the lack of veggies in the diet. :)

[ladawn]

Mine is a 3 1/2 mo who eats the rocks and the grass. I haven't found rocks in her stool but I wouldn't swear that she hasn't swallowed them. She usually collects one in her mouth when we go out to pottie, then she brings it in the house and drops it on the floor and picks it up again. I discourage her from eating both rocks and grass. I'm now sufficiently frightened about the rocks and I suspect I am overeacting on the grass. Is it OK to let her eat grass? I try not to let her eat the grass.

[godfreyc]

I don't think you're gonna stop the grass thing all my dogs do it, and it isn't harmful. Even when the eat normally they eat grass. Sometimes they poop only grass. All I can say is they probably have very clean bowels

[rottmommie]

if the theory is that something is missing in their diet, i wonder why mine likes cat poop!!??
he must be missing cat poop from his diet????
some wonderful nutritious value in cat poop???
cat poop has lots of vitamin kitty in it??
it makes his breath smell so good???
WHAT!!??????

[alexav]

ladawn,
At 3 1/2 months, your pup is exploring. Grass is OK as long as she's not consuming MASS quantities.:)
Try your very best to keep her from swallowing rocks, though. Anytime she picks one up, act like she has grabbed something disgusting. Make sure your voice is convincingly discouraging when you say, "OH! YUCK! ICK! LEAVE IT!" then get her something she is supposed to have and praise her in a happy voice.
If you take her out on a leash you can use the YUCK speech and prevent her from picking it up at the same time. Try to make sure she has appropriate toys to choose instead of rocks so you can avoid the whole scene and just get her happy playing with safe things.

In a way, I miss having a little "learning sponge" around but I sure am glad my grrrls are all out of their puppy troubles.:D

Have fun with your learning sponge!

[alexav]

Originally posted by rottmommie
if the theory is that something is missing in their diet, i wonder why mine likes cat poop!!??
he must be missing cat poop from his diet????
some wonderful nutritious value in cat poop???
cat poop has lots of vitamin kitty in it??
it makes his breath smell so good???
WHAT!!??????

LOL, Your dog must have a CLAY deficiency!:D

The REAL reason dogs like cat feces is that cats only digest a small portion of the protein that they consume. So it's like predigested roadkill. mmmmMMMMMMmmmm!

At my house, the "Kitty's Almond Rocca" is OFF LIMITS! Makes me sick! (darn, where's that puking smiley that Sansano posted?)