I have seriously had it with the beagle eating cat poop!

[Critters2]

Tonight, she KNOCKED DOWN the baby gate to get to the poop!! I'm going to put the litter boxes up on the work bench in the basement, an old microwave stand I no longer use, and, well, I'll find some way to elevate the other one!!! Next I have to deal with the problem caused by a disabled cat who has trouble jumping being able to get to a litter box not on the floor!!

But killing the beagle would be wrong...someone keep reminding me. Thank you.

[Connonym]

1. wrong but you'd probably get away with justifiable homicide

I love dogs but the beagle is the grossest dog I've ever had to live with

[Critters2]

2. My first beagle never did this.

It is about 12 steps beyond disgusting!!

[Maine-ah]

23. my choco lab did

it's friggin gross. we ended up putting the box in a closet and rigged it open only wide enough for the cat to get through and something infront of it the dog couldn't move. Good luck.

we call 'em kitty chocolates btw....

[Mobius]

3. ewww

I would be too.

[dropkickpa]

4. You mean it ISN'T a snack bar just for her????

[quakerboy]

5. I was at a teachers house once

Their beagle kept moving to the middle of the room, the center of attention for our meeting, and nursing the cat. Poop eating is disgusting, but not that abnormal for a dog, in my experience. Beagles are definitely odd creatures, however. This ends my aimless comment. Hope you have luck in solving your problem.

[Lil Missy]

6. It's not just Beagles, my dog is disgusting like that too. As are many other breeds.

I don't understand it, I really don't. My dog cannot navigate the basement steps, so I put the kitty litter pans in the basement.

I don't allow my dog to lick me, but sometimes he gives a little kisser. At least now I know he doesn't have cat shit in his mouth. Why do they like that anyway? BARF!

Hey! When are you headed to Omaha anyway? I'll take you to the local lesbian bar and you won't feel any of that back pain by the end of the night, LOL! I think we should invite OmahaBlueDog too!

[MonkeyFunk]

7. my dog LOVES cat poop

evidently cats poop dog-licorice. And my tortoise loves to eat dog poop.

If I could just get the cats to eat tortoise poop, I'd have a perfect Circle of Poop going and I'd never have to buy food again.

[zanne]

12. You'd never have to buy a litter box, either. nt

[MrsBrady]

8. I changed to this kind of cat box to keep my dog out...

http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2754439
(If somebody could tell me how to insert a picture, I'll avoid the corporate link next time)

This solved my problem.

We have two cats and a border collie. I have no other place I can put my cat boxes, but in the living room.

I have two of these boxes. These keep the dog out, because...even if he sticks his head in, he can't get to the poop.

Otherwise, ewwww...it's a snack for him!

[libnnc]

18. i have one of those too

they are wonderful

Best cat box I've ever had.



(click on the image to save it and download to your photobucket account and then use the direct link)

[Doug.Goodall]

9. It could be worse, the beagle could try eating the cat

Try giving the beagle cat food. If the dog wants the taste of what ever is in the food, just send it the source and skip the cat box.

[malta blue]

10. Get a rectangular storage bin - deep and long

and put the litter box inside....the kitty jumps in the bin, uses the box, and dog can't get there....

[zanne]

11. I don't know if this helps any...

Eating cat poop probably won't make your dog sick. When they eat dog poop from other dogs, it's relatively safe for them to do so.

[Wcross]

13. I solved that problem with my six dogs.

They really work. My dogs were cat poop aficionados. When I bought these litter boxes they stopped eating the poop.

[Catch22Dem]

14. Your cats didn't mind the new box?

I might have to take a look at that for our house.

[Wcross]

15. They took a few seconds to figure it out.

Now they seem to like it, lots of privacy & all that.

[EstimatedProphet]

16. There's cat poop that eats beagles?

[Bombero1956]

17. ummm

I would avoid face licking at all costs.

[Lars39]

19. Buy a big rubbermaid bin.

Cut a square opening in the side,down low for the cat to enter.
Set the litter box in the bin as far from the opening as it will go.
Put the lid on firmly, and the dog shouldn't be able to get to the poop.

Added bonus...keeps odors down to a minimum and stray litter and accidents are confined. :)

[NewEnglandGirl]

20. There is supposedly something you

can get from your vet to put in the dog's food so they won't eat their own poop but I don't know if it would work if you put it in the cat's food. It seems unfair to do that to the cat anyway even though it's supposed to be harmless, it just makes it taste in a way that they won't like it.

My friend's dog used to sit there and watch the cat go so he could then get to the poop right away. I'm making myself sick here so I'll stop.

:puke:

The unaccessible litter boxes sound like the way to go. Good luck. :hi:

[davsand]

21. I would suggest Greenies for the dog's breath. Doggy Scope at a minimum.

Dogs are not noted for a "fresh mouth" anyway, but in this particular case I'd think the dog would be kind tough to hang out with...

:puke:


Just sayin...



Laura

[MonkeyFunk]

25. ixnay on the Greenies

they've killed a number of dogs. Seems they're crumbly in just the right way to lodge a piece in a dog's intestines causing an obstruction - especially smaller dogs.

[latebloomer]

22. Yum- Fudge!!!

[Whoa_Nelly]

24. Good Q&A re: Coprophagia

Also, one site I read suggests plaeing litter box where ats an reah it anc dog annot. :hi:

http://en.allexperts.com/q/Ask-Veterinarian-700/Dog-eating-cat-feces.htm


Topic: Ask the Veterinarian

Expert: Caglar Kondu, D.V.M.
Date: 4/4/2006
Subject: Dog eating cat feces

Question
Our 10 month old Boston Terrier has the awful habit of eating cat feces. After going outside and having his "snack" he comes into the house and throws it all up. This can't be good for him, since our cats are outside cats and have never had any vet service, we keep them just to keep the mice population down on our farm. He started this behavior when he was about 5 months old.
He doesn't eat his own feces as far as we can tell, just the cats. We would like to know how to get him to stop this behavior, since the neighbors will be using our pasture for their horses soon, and we don't want him to start eating that too! We have tried watching him outside and have yelled at him when we catch him in the act, but we can't watch him the entire time he's outside, We don't want to get rid of the cats either since we live on a farm and they are good mousers. I have heard about some type of powder to put on their food to make the taste of the feces unpleasant (as if it wasn't already) does that work? and what is the name of the product? How long would we need to feed this to the cats, and what if they didn't eat it? We were thinking of trying a shock collar, to deter him from it, is that recommended?
Any suggestions are greatly appreciated,Thank you



Answer
Hello!

I personally don't like shock collars. Plus this would only work if you see him doing the behaviour, on times you don't see him he may still keep doing it. I think that we should first consider ''why'' he is doing it, rather than how to stop it. This problem referred as coprophagia is usually caused by nutritional deficiencies among with some other likely problems of course. It may be sometimes considered natural, although not normal, behaviour for dogs to consume the feces of ungulates containing large amounts of nutrients remaining after large intestinal fermentation, which may helped to sustain dogs in the wild when no other food source was available. Dogs also commonly eat the feces of cats with whom they share a household. If he is eating his own feces, this may also be a behaviour problem responding to punishment for defecating in inappropriate locations by removing the evidence and imitating the owner's behaviour of removing feces. It may sometimes be caused by medical causes such as hyperadrenocorticism, intestinal parasitism, etc. So the treatment would vary depending on the underlying cause. You may want to first try and see if he has nutritional deficiencies. Are you feeding him an appropriate nutritionally well balanced diet? If not, please try to adjust on that. Another you may try is coprophagia tablets available from many brands, one I know is 8 in 1's Pet Deter Coprophagic Treatment, but I am sure you may find it in other brands too. This may help, but you have to be patient,it's not going to stop the behaviour right away. It would also be a good idea of getting him dewormed if it is not being done regularly, since he may have gotten lots of intestinal parasites. Please keep me informed on how it goes.

Kind Regards,
Caglar Kondu Erkip,DVM