Description

Coprophagia is a lovely sounding word for a rather unpleasant habit - the habit of eating feces. While no dog owner likes to mention this embarrassing and disturbing activity, it is surprisingly common in canines, especially those eating commercial pet food and treats. There are many factors that can contribute to this behavior, so it's difficult to pinpoint an exact cause for every case or prescribe a single ingredient cure-all. Fortunately there are steps you can take to help curb this gross activity, including a daily dose of Stool Eating Deterrent, which contains vitamins, enzymes, and botanical ingredients to address factors that may be contributing to your dog's "adventurous snacking."

Only Natural Pet Stool Eating Deterrent is formulated to deter dogs from eating their own stool. It can also deter dogs from eating the stool of other dogs and/or cats in the household when administered to all of the family pets.* The formula includes ingredients that may aid digestion and address absorption difficulties and vitamin deficiencies known to be related to some cases of stool eating. We also included several botanical extracts that have deodorizing and stool taste/aroma altering qualities, which may help curb the behavior and keep your dog's breath fresher.

Carefully Selected Ingredients

• Digestive Enzymes (Amylase, Protease, and Lipase) - Enzymes break down food during digestion, and it's been suggested that stool eating may be induced by the presence of undigested material in the stool. Stool with a high amount of undigested food particles may smell and seem just like food to some dogs. It has also been suggested that some dogs may eat stool in order to get more digestive enzymes in their diet, as feces is often a good source of these enzymes. Research with enzyme support for coprophagous dogs suggests that administering enzymes may significantly reduce or eliminate stool eating in many dogs.
• Yucca - This botanical extract supports healthy digestive function and assimilation of nutrients. Yucca also reduces odor of the stool, which may reduce its appeal.
• Brewer’s Yeast - This food-based ingredient is a primary source of B-Complex vitamins and helps to make the taste and smell of the stool less appealing. Some research on coprophagous dogs suggests that brewer's yeast may help curb the behavior in conjunction with a lower carbohydrate, higher protein diet.
• Cayenne - This hot pepper synergizes the other ingredients in the formula, and makes the odor and taste of the stool hot and less appealing.
• B-Complex Vitamins - B Vitamin deficiencies have been frequently found in coprophagous dogs. B Vitamins are also critical for healthy digestion.
• Chlorophyll and Parsley - These two "super greens" help to freshen breath and reduce stool odor.

Additional Notes on Coprophagia

While stool eating is generally not considered by most veterinarians to be extremely serious in terms of health risk, there are several important issues to consider. If your dog begins eating stool and has not done so before, it is best to consult with your veterinarian, as the behavior may be driven by a vitamin deficiency, intestinal parasite infestation, or the development of pancreatic problems or other serious health issues. Coprophagia may also transmit feces-borne parasites, like tapeworm or other worms, from domesticated or wild animals, so consult with your vet if you believe this may be an issue for your dog.

It is quite common for puppies to engage in stool eating, and it is very often a phase that they grow out of by their first birthday. The behavior may be curbed by promptly picking up feces in the yard, and using positive reinforcement training to reward the pup for leaving feces alone and focusing their attention on you (with a treat and warm praise/petting). Punishment and scolding are generally ineffective, and can have unforeseen negative consequences that may make the problem worse. Consult with a qualified dog trainer or behavioral expert who uses positive reinforcement for help in curbing your puppy's stool eating behavior.

*Keep in mind that Only Natural Pet Stool Eating Deterrent is intended to stop dogs from consuming their own feces, and the feces of other dogs and cats in the household that are also being given the tablets. While it may help curb dogs' interest in eating other feces (e.g., from cat litter boxes, while out on walks, stool of wild animals), particularly if malabsorption or vitamin deficiency is the main cause, it is not guaranteed to produce these results. As with puppies, many adult dogs may be trained with positive reinforcement to stop eating other animals' stool, but other dogs may continue with this often hard-to-break habit.

Many factors other than health issues mentioned above may play a role in stool eating behavior, and often a multiple target approach works best in eliminating or reducing the habit in dogs. Many holistic vets believe that coprophagia is most likely caused by malabsorption or vitamin deficiency, so this is an important primary concern with coprophagous dogs. If your dog is already eating a high quality diet, consider adding a comprehensive health booster, like Only Natural Pet Kelp Boost, and digestive enzymes to the diet. For more information on a healthy natural diet, please see our articles, "What You Need to Know About Your Pet's Food," and "Daily Supplements for Healthy Companions." For more information on coprophagia, please see our website blog article, "Why Do Dogs Eat Poop?"

This product was made in a FDA-approved US facility using human-grade ingredients.

Available in 90 Chewable Tablets.

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