Eating Everything (!!) Outside -- Pica

[Shannon & Lily]

Does anyone have a puppy that either has Pica or you wonder if he/she might?

Lily is 12 weeks old and our trainer said that she eats WAY more non-food items than other puppies.  We have a hard time taking her outside because she has her head down the entire time and just sucks up acorns, dirt, leaves, grass and rocks (yes, rocks!).

It's not just sniffing or mouthing -- she is EATING all of this stuff despite our best efforts (on a leash, working on "leave it", bring treats to trade with her, "touch" to get her head up, name game to get her head up), etc.

It's exhausting... just wondering if anyone else is going through this or made it to the other side.

Thanks!

Shannon

[John and Finn]

Your trainer doesn't know what he/she is talking about.  My dog (Finn 9 mnths) eats everything he can fit in his mouth and I know many others have had the same issue on here.  Finn just this week ate a leather glove and threw it up all over the place.  A day doesn't go by where we aren't pulling something out of his mouth.  The leave it command works if they decide to listen to it and as long as you have a treat available every sec of everyday until they grow out of it.  Regardless most dogs learn to eventually snatch and grab or sneak around.  Half the time we don't know Finn ate something until he throws it up and we go "that's where that was".  Offering plenty of chewing alternatives does help, some.

[Shannon & Lily]

Oh, goodness!  A leather glove!  I'm sure that we'd be there too but Lily is still confined to the kitchen.  How old is Finn?  Hope that they outgrow this.

[John and Finn]

9 months.  My friends dog eats man sized leather shoes and has for like 13 years.

[John and Finn]

btw, Finn has eaten his share of rocks, concrete, and ashpalt.  Not saying it is normal just that it isn't as abnormal as your trainer suggests.

[Shannon & Lily]

Just to be clear... she didn't say that it's abnormal to eat things that are not food.  She just said that Lily does it constantly when she's outside and that seemed abnormal to her... she keeps her head down the entire time, sucks up anything and everything around her (even when we try to take her to clear areas, she finds stuff, digs, etc.).  We can't even take her for walks b/c her face is on the ground constantly.  So, I think that in fairness to the trainer, she was talking in degrees... and she felt that Lily is on the extreme end.

[John and Finn]

Well the only thing you can really do is just keep things away from her, constantly supervise, verbally correct, give timeouts, and offer plenty of chew alternatives.  Finn started destroying our wood furniture, newly installed base molding, and wool rugs (had to remove these).  The things i listed have at least minimized his damage.  As they get older they can go thru an object in minutes.  Good news is Finn has has gotten better.  I am only speaking from experience so hopefully someone has more to offer.

[Linda And Loo]

We had the same problem with Loo. She grazed on anything and everything outside! It resulted in trips to the Vet for puppy diarrhea! I didn't think it would ever get better! It does. It took a lot of No,drop it and much praise when she complied! On our walks when her head went down, I would say walk and we would pick up the pace! Now if she picks something up and I do not notice she makes sure I do, so she can drop it on command and get a good girl from me! Be patient it will get better!

[Evelyn Sorensen]

Hi Sharon ,,,,,,, Lexy is 4 months now and does the same thing . drives me nuts . really watch out for the rocks as you don't want to end up having surgergy . In the beginning it was bad and frustrating but now it getting a little better as she gets older . She never drops it so I'm always digging things out of her mouth , sometimes I think she thinks it's a game . hang in there it will get better .

 

[Libby Stinson]

We have two dogs, one an island mini doodle, 5 months old and one a Cavachon, 24 months old. Both enjoy the rabbit poop in the yard. The Cavachon also likes sticks, leaves etc..

The Cavachon chewed and ate everything you can imagine. We just did not puppy proof it well enough, as he reached things we never would have imagined.

The island doodle, cannot reach most things, so there is less chewing inside items.

But the rabbit poop is a problem as tapeworms have appeared on the scene. I try to stay with them when the are outside. But it is fall in Minnesota and getting colder here. So I frequently will watch at the back door and bring them in when I see them eating outside.

The Cavachon is old enough now that the chewing and eating behavior has greatly decreased. 

I think they eventually grow out of it.

[Jen, Lachlan, and Declan]

You're definitely not alone. As the emergency vet who performed the rock-ectomy on Lachlan put it, "he's a bloody retriever, isn't he?" Both of my boys are as bad as the other, although Lachlan seems to be becoming less compulsive about it at 18 months. For a while there the poor guy was running up to me when I called him and cranking his mouth wide open before I could even reach for him to do the "what's in your throat this time" check. The only answer I've been able to come up with so far is constant supervision and lots and lots and LOTS of "leave it" practice.

[Nicky, Riley & Boris]

I do think this is 'normal' behavior.   I would carry high value tiny treats with you on all walks and keep moving while getting her to keep her attention on you and feed those treats as you go along.  Riley used to pick up everything and it was just lots of vigilance and training the 'leave it' command that worked.  He doesn't do it at all now so there is hope.  The most worrying aspect is the safety issues regarding ingesting something that causes an obstruction.