# HELP!! Dogs won't stop eating cat poo



## LynnetteY (Oct 22, 2009)

Good Morning,

I have a real dilemma here and I am lost. I have two indoor/outdoor cats. In the nice weather we leave our back door open and let our two cats and two dogs wander in and out as they please. The back door opens into our wood room, which has a dirt floor and beyond that is the fenced in dog yard. Problem is that the wood room is only partially full right now leaving a lot of exposed dirt which the cat see as a lovely litter box. I prefer the cats to do their business outside so I don't mind as long as it is buried properly which they do. The problem is that the dogs find this way beyond temptation and have to "stop for a snack" on the way out to their yard. Both dogs are healthy, UTD on shots, eat quality food, but cat poo is their weakness. Is there anything I can put in the cats food to make it taste so nasty to the dogs that they will lose their taste for it or is their something I can put in the dirt to keep the cats from pottying there? I would prefer a food additive because it seems that the dogs will find it no matter where the cats go, as the dogs often have free run of our yard while we are able to supervise them. I don't want to shut the cats in the house because they enjoy being outside, and I have an outdoor cat already so either way the dogs will find "munchies"


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## mnn2501 (Apr 2, 2008)

not that I am aware of. We have a dog and 3 cats - all indoor animals and we finally put their litter boxes up on coffee tables so the dog can't get to them (dog is short).
Totally different situation than yours though. Dogs can pick up disease from eating cat poo, mine did once which is when we came up with this idea.


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## Oggie (May 29, 2003)

Have you been feeding them leftovers?

Some folks just aren't that good at cooking and perhaps they're trying to get the taste out of their mouths.


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## LynnetteY (Oct 22, 2009)

mnn2501 said:


> not that I am aware of. We have a dog and 3 cats - all indoor animals and we finally put their litter boxes up on coffee tables so the dog can't get to them (dog is short).
> Totally different situation than yours though. Dogs can pick up disease from eating cat poo, mine did once which is when we came up with this idea.


I have one litterbox in the house and it is inside the cupboard portion of the vanity. Lost as to what to do outside though.


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## LynnetteY (Oct 22, 2009)

Oggie said:


> Have you been feeding them leftovers?
> 
> Some folks just aren't that good at cooking and perhaps they're trying to get the taste out of their mouths.


Oggie,

LOL, no but nice try! Strictly kibble for the dogs


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## stamphappy (Jul 29, 2010)

We've gone 'round and 'round with our dog Maggie eating her own poo; she is 6 years old. Vet says not much you can do about the dog eating feces except to get it picked up as quickly as possible. Vet said that the dog with it's hypersenstive nose can smell the delicious leftovers, if you will, in the poo. 

Gosh, I remember when she was a puppy one time. She ate too much poo and then threw up in the house, so the smell was throw up and poo. Oh my goodness!!! You cannot imagine how horrific smelling that was to clean up.


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## suzyhomemaker09 (Sep 24, 2004)

http://www.entirelypets.com/forbid.html

This is designed to deter a dog from eating it's own feces...not sure if it would work in your situation.


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## Minelson (Oct 16, 2007)

suzyhomemaker09 said:


> http://www.entirelypets.com/forbid.html
> 
> This is designed to deter a dog from eating it's own feces...not sure if it would work in your situation.


Yes...feed the For-bid to your cats. It's an enzyme that your cats won't taste but the dogs will when they eat the poop. It makes it taste so bad that they will stop eating it. :1pig:


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## bluefish (Jan 27, 2006)

Or you could just resign yourself to helpful dogs that just want to help keep the place picked up.  And don't allow doggie kisses!

I had this issue with a dog, *nothing* would get him to stop. I tried that For-Bid thing, but it didn't work. I was just finally happy when he decided to confine himself to cat poo. He never threw that up, but would always throw up the dog poo that he ate and let me tell you EEEEEEEEWWWWWWWWW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


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## kimmom2five (Apr 19, 2009)

My dog seems to think that the litter box is full of Almond Roca. We've given up and just don't kiss him.


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## LynnetteY (Oct 22, 2009)

Thanks Everyone, I will try the forbid and see if it works. My husky was all to anxious to kiss me when I got home from work last night, all I smelled was poo, and knew exactly what she had been doing, it was so bad I had to throw out her cow hoof she was chewing on, it reeked of poo after being wollered in her mouth, then she came in the house with some hanging out of her mouth like a cigarette. EWWWWWWWW!


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## motdaugrnds (Jul 3, 2002)

Our dogs would eat the cat poo as well. We trained them to not eat it the same way we trained them not to eat our fowl, i.e. with verbal directives. We still have to remain alert to our dogs when we let them in the house; but a little noise of "uh uh" will cause them to stop heading in the direction of the litterbox. We do the same thing when we are outdoors with them and notice them sniffing at their own or each other's poo. (I am guessing they probably still eat some when we are not around; but doubt we can stop it all.)


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## Harry Chickpea (Dec 19, 2008)

A covered litterbox might solve the indoor problems. Ours is made from a rubbermade tote with a cat sized hole in one side. You could then take some of that Kitty Roca and inject it with hot sauce and leave it outside. The dog might start to look strangely at the cat though...


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## Roamschooler (Mar 29, 2008)

uggg cat cookies. my least favorite doggy habit. I second the covered box, its the only thing that sorta worked for us. Now I have a 4 mo old pug that will just climb on up into the box...but the verbal "uh uh" seems to be clicking now, so hopefully it wont continue. I have no patience for cat cookie snackers so I feel your pain!!


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## watcher (Sep 4, 2006)

You can buy collars with which you can set up areas where the dogs can't go w/o getting a shock. Set the transmitter on the cat box. After a while I'm betting the dog won't even go in the same room.


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## Oggie (May 29, 2003)

If you put enough cayenne pepper and Tabasco sauce in the cats' food, the dogs will stop eating their poo.


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## TRAILRIDER (Apr 16, 2007)

Minelson said:


> Yes...feed the For-bid to your cats. It's an enzyme that your cats won't taste but the dogs will when they eat the poop. It makes it taste so bad that they will stop eating it. :1pig:


Actually its sodium glutamate and veg. protein. Don't give it to elderly dogs or cats, or any with heart or kidney issues. Too much sodium. Years ago people used Adolf's Meat Tenderizer (which is mostly salt) in dog feed to prevent stool eating. It worked for some, not for others. I wouldn't use it on a dog or cats food though, my animals are all oldsters!


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## Grandmotherbear (May 15, 2002)

I actually watched TV about a year ago, "It's me or the Dog". A poo eater had pineapple mized with its food- makes really too nasty to eat doggy poo. If the cats will eat pineapple, I don't know, althou Yuki-cat ate some of my Cheerios this morning.


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## DamnearaFarm (Sep 27, 2007)

Minelson said:


> Yes...feed the For-bid to your cats. It's an enzyme that your cats won't taste but the dogs will when they eat the poop. It makes it taste so bad that they will stop eating it. :1pig:


I'm sorry, i'm laughing here. We have to add things to POOP to make it taste bad? So what the heck does it taste like? I just kinda assumed that poop was the worst flavor out there....


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## Minelson (Oct 16, 2007)

RamblinRoseRanc said:


> I'm sorry, i'm laughing here. We have to add things to POOP to make it taste bad? So what the heck does it taste like? I just kinda assumed that poop was the worst flavor out there....


Hahaha! I know! it's crazy isn't it! I guess it taste pretty darn good in it's natural form to dogs...GROSS!!:huh:


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## taylorlambert (Jul 4, 2010)

I cant say what would cure a dog from eating cat scat.  THe main reason why the dog ate the cat. One of my friends used hot pepper sprinkled on cat crap to break his collie.


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## Ravenlost (Jul 20, 2004)

I'm rolling laughing here! With 16 dogs and nine cats you can imagine my daily trials and tribulations with the dogs munching on kitty poo treats (chewy on the inside...crunchy on the outside). SIGH...I'm at my wits end.

But, I can beat all your stories. My dog Katie once threw up an ENTIRE partly rotted deer intestine with contents on the bedroom carpet. Oh my...you can not imagine how bad it smelled! Hubby was trying to clean it up, but when he started gagging I sent him out of the room and finished it myself. I didn't want to clean up TWO messes!


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## Minelson (Oct 16, 2007)

Ravenlost said:


> I'm rolling laughing here! With 16 dogs and nine cats you can imagine my daily trials and tribulations with the dogs munching on kitty poo treats (chewy on the inside...crunchy on the outside). SIGH...I'm at my wits end.
> 
> But, I can beat all your stories. My dog Katie once threw up an ENTIRE partly rotted deer intestine with contents on the bedroom carpet. Oh my...you can not imagine how bad it smelled! Hubby was trying to clean it up, but when he started gagging I sent him out of the room and finished it myself. I didn't want to clean up TWO messes!


OMG! I can just imagine how horrible that was YUCKERS BIG TIME!!!!!


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## Joshie (Dec 8, 2008)

Keep a motion operated litter box inside and out where they're going in the dirt. Dogs like those tasty treats.


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## JasoninMN (Feb 24, 2006)

> But, I can beat all your stories. My dog Katie once threw up an ENTIRE partly rotted deer intestine with contents on the bedroom carpet. Oh my...you can not imagine how bad it smelled! Hubby was trying to clean it up, but when he started gagging I sent him out of the room and finished it myself. I didn't want to clean up TWO messes!


Oh I think Ace has Katie beat. A few nights ago he rolled in something dead so I gave him a bath before bed time. I get done with work at 10:30 and went to bed around midnight. I wake up at 5 am to that horrid smell of rotting flesh and there Ace is standing next to my bed. I look down and see he puked on his bed, gross! I put my glasses on and its moving, upon closer inspection its moving because its full of MAGGOTS! Apparently maggots can survive in a dogs stomach for 5 hours or more, that there sent me over the edge. His dog bed went straight into the trash.


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## Ravenlost (Jul 20, 2004)

EWWWW....you win Jason!


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## HOTW (Jul 3, 2007)

The trials & tribulations of owning turdburglers! Sitting here LOL with y morning cuppa. Too funny Oggie!


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## farmmom (Jan 4, 2009)

Try a product called Forbid mixed in the cat food. I broke mine of cleaning out the litter box with this.


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## swollen tongue (Mar 9, 2006)

maybe they read the book "Going Green" I think it was written by some politician. Recently they have been doing it all the time!


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## horsepoor21 (Mar 14, 2007)

JasoninMN said:


> Oh I think Ace has Katie beat. A few nights ago he rolled in something dead so I gave him a bath before bed time. I get done with work at 10:30 and went to bed around midnight. I wake up at 5 am to that horrid smell of rotting flesh and there Ace is standing next to my bed. I look down and see he puked on his bed, gross! I put my glasses on and its moving, upon closer inspection its moving because its full of MAGGOTS! Apparently maggots can survive in a dogs stomach for 5 hours or more, that there sent me over the edge. His dog bed went straight into the trash.


Oh my goodness ,I think that is by far the nastiest thing I have ever heard ! YOU WIN ! LOL


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## Joshie (Dec 8, 2008)

We've tried pineapple. We've tried pumpkin. Don't work. The only two things that really work are 1) Take the dog out on a leash or 2) pick up all signs of any poop before allowing dogs in the area.


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## Ode (Sep 20, 2006)

Urk, Gritty Kitty treats...

The only thing that really works without fail is controlling their access to the poo. Cut off all access by a physical barrier, walking the dogs on a leash, or removing the poo. The easiest way is a physical barrier that the cats can get through and the dogs can't. Some kind of fencing material, or a cat door perhaps?


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## Guest (Aug 19, 2010)

Looks like you've gotten a lot of suggestions. I hope it helps. Just a friendly reminder that until you curb the problem, when you deworm the cats, make sure you deworm the dogs at the same time. Otherwise, they'll just pass them back and forth.


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## farmmom (Jan 4, 2009)

Ode said:


> Urk, Gritty Kitty treats...
> 
> The only thing that really works without fail is controlling their access to the poo. Cut off all access by a physical barrier, walking the dogs on a leash, or removing the poo. The easiest way is a physical barrier that the cats can get through and the dogs can't. Some kind of fencing material, or a cat door perhaps?


Cattle panels would be great for this.


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