# puppy eating dirt



## Calla (Feb 5, 2012)

Hello:
I'm a newbie here and am sooo glad to have found this great forum!

I have a 3 month old border collie puppy who eats dirt, which I really want him to stop. He's been dewormed 3x, has a negative fecal, and is at a healthy weight and looks great. His vet told me to give him a puppy vitamin since maybe he's eating dirt because he's lacking some nutrient. Well, he's getting a vitamin and still eating dirt. :shrug: 

I try to supervise him all the time when he's outside, but its tough. I have a big yard and 8 dogs total. There are going to be times when he's outside alone so he has to learn this is not okay. 

Any suggestions on how to stop this or why he might be doing it??? 

Thanks, 
Calla


----------



## Ross (May 9, 2002)

Not sure why I had to approve that sorry! The system does get picky now and then maybe it's our new host?


----------



## Maura (Jun 6, 2004)

It would seem to be minerals, not vitamins. If it is only in one spot, there is something there that is interesting to him. If it's all over, could be a nutrition problem. What are you feeding him?


----------



## Haven (Aug 16, 2010)

I wouldnt worry about it unless he starts eating larger stones. Healthy dogs that eat a varied diet have guts of steel, and there are some good minerals he is getting from the soil.


----------



## akane (Jul 19, 2011)

Yes you need a good mineral supplement or a better dog food (I vote for that one depending what you have him on) not vitamins. Personally I like missing link brand supplements for both dog and horse. Animals eat dirt for minerals they are missing and you'll see it a lot in livestock fed mostly hay or pasture without processed feed if you don't provide mineral blocks. It could also be a bacterial problem in his digestive tract. Animals will eat dirt and even feces of other animals looking for the correct bacteria to help their digestive tract digest what they are eating if they never got that strain from their parents growing up. I would give a probiotic. Again a good dog food could help as well because it won't have a whole bunch of stuff the digestive tract isn't designed to digest.


----------



## Calla (Feb 5, 2012)

Thanks for the replies! Minerals certainly make sense since he's now getting a vitamin. 

Right now he is eating Iams Healthy Naturals which is what the rescue I got him from recommended. I was already thinking of switching him to something better like Blue Buffalo or Wellness to see if that helps. 

I figured it wasn't something to be _too _worried about...my other dogs eat all kinds of icky things like dead bugs, donkey poop, deer poop, each other's poop on occasion. But this little guy is so intent on it, and yes it is just one spot off my back patio that he likes to eat. 

~Calla


----------



## pancho (Oct 23, 2006)

You might look at the area where he is eating dirt. 
There may have been something spilled or dripped there that he likes.


----------



## Maura (Jun 6, 2004)

If he is a rescue, he may have not been getting proper nutrition before he was rescued. This could mean he has a vitamin or mineral deficit. In this case, he needs a supplement.

I would switch to a better food, as well.


----------



## gapeach (Dec 23, 2011)

My dog eats dirt all the time along with sticks, rocks, pine needles. You name it, she eats it. She is still a pup.

My 8 yr old German Shepherd started eating rocks last year and he had never done that in his whole life. He died soon after of a stroke. 

I would not worry that much about a pup eating dirt.


----------



## Calla (Feb 5, 2012)

I thought puppy was just eating dirt in one spot...today caught him having a dirt snack in a new corner of the yard. :yuck: I think partly he's just being a puppy as today he also discovered mulch (so exciting when you're three months old...) so we got in lots of practice on "leave it - don't you dare swallow that!" :grin: 

going to try some new things, one at one so as to see what helps. i bought a bag of blue buffalo puppy food today and will start him on that. 

Thanks again for everyone's comments.
~Calla


----------



## SilverFlame819 (Aug 24, 2010)

Eek. Make sure if you're switching from a lower quality food (Iams) to Blue that you gradually switch the newer food in until the pup is on it 100%... I know lots of people whose dogs have never managed to switch over to Blue 100% because it's just so rich. So try to do it gradually, to help lessen tummyache and diarrhea issues!

My BC's eat Wellness, but back in the day (before all this high-tech food was around), they ate Pedigree, and never ate dirt then... I'm wondering if perhaps it's a leftover habit from where you got him from... Could be a million different reasons. Good luck! Sounds like you're getting the food change down, you just need to work on the behavior now!


----------



## Caitedid (Jun 2, 2004)

Calla- I would wonder if it's a combo of food and dumb pup behavior. My Aussie is almost three, but he still occasionally eats things just to see if he can. Is he maybe eating dirt from where the other dogs are peeing?


----------



## Maura (Jun 6, 2004)

When I switch food I just have them skip a meal then start on the new food. I think it's actually easier on their system. But make it a small meal.


----------



## Calla (Feb 5, 2012)

Maura - this is what I've always done with my other dogs too. In fact I tend to change brands of food every 3-4 months with my dogs. 

SilverFlame - I tried a couple of my huskies on blue buffalo when it first come on the market and found it was too rich for them. I had to mix it 50-50 with pedigree dry. then i found 4health at tractor supply and that agrees with all my adult dogs. :thumb:


----------



## oregon woodsmok (Dec 19, 2010)

Go down to the health food store and buy a bottle of trace seabed minerals. The brand I use is called Mezo-trace.

Put the tablets out in a bowl and leave them available free choice. The pup will eat a bunch of them, and then slow down to where he only eats one every now and again.

There are 100 and something different minerals in there. It seems to hit the spot because it will stop rock eating.


----------



## akane (Jul 19, 2011)

Blue is known to be hard to switch to. A lot of dogs get digestive upset beyond average for switching foods.


----------



## Dutch 106 (Feb 12, 2008)

Hey, 
I'm on my 5 th golden retiver right now 7 months and 85 pounds of wriggling goof. His dad at 6 years is an extremly good dad.
With 8 dogs could it be that he gets attention when he does it? mine got into scrapping at the grass when he is on walks, I put him on a nose lead and that seems to be gone.
Just a thought,
Dutch


----------



## Ruby (May 10, 2002)

Do you have any cats? Could he be digging up cat poo and eating it. Seems to be candy for some dogs.


----------



## akane (Jul 19, 2011)

> mine got into scrapping at the grass when he is on walks, I put him on a nose lead and that seems to be gone.


The opposite happened for mine. With a head halter on she spends all her time scraping the ground. It hasn't come loose in a year but I think it's just become habit by now. Lately aside from when letting her have lead to go potty I've been tying her to my waist at heel position too short to rub on the ground so she has to keep walking nicely next to me and I can concentrate on training my other dog to pull my mountain bike safely.


----------

