Dogs do many strange things. One of them is eating dirt. Granted not all dogs eat dirt, but some do!. Do you know why this is? If not, read on and find out :)
- Why do dogs eat dirt
- After reading this lens you can learn more about why dogs eat dirt here.
- dogs
- Got the hots for dogs? ´Lots of interesting information on breeds and behaviour. Do you know why dogs have dewclaws, why dogs have tails and why do dogs have whiskers? Well, this site has the answers to these questions.
Pica
Dogs eat just about anything; some breeds eat more than others. It was a common joke that a dog would eat even a drawing or a picture of dog food. Pica is the ingestion or eating of non-food materials and substances. These materials have no nutritive values. Dogs eat dirt. Apparently, there are underlying reasons for this abhorrent behavior of our four legged friends.
Hunger
Dogs that are not given enough food to eat may be forced to eat dirt to ease the gnawing in their bellies. This is most common in dogs that are given one meal a day. Scavenging stray dogs can be seen eating dirt.
Mineral Deficiency
Eating dirt is often associated with anemia. Low quality dog foods are most often deficient in nutrients. Dogs seem to have this amazing ability to solve their mineral deficiency concerns. If they don't get enough vitamins and minerals from their food they simply eat dirt to cope with the shortage.
Health Concerns
You may be giving the pet high quality nutrient rich food but the dog would still eat dirt. The dog may be dealing with a digestive system disorder. Gastrointestinal maldigestive as well as malabsorptive disorders hinders the nutrients of the ingested food from being absorbed by the body thus resulting to nutrient deficiency. Again, the dog will eat dirt to supplement the nutrient insufficiency.
A dog eating dirt may be coping with the increased appetite borne out of having an endocrine disorder. These dogs would crave for food and when none is available would resort to eating dirt.
A dog eating dirt may be coping with the increased appetite borne out of having an endocrine disorder. These dogs would crave for food and when none is available would resort to eating dirt.
Abnormal Behavior
Dogs have excellent olfactory capacity that is 40,000 times better than humans. They can smell something interesting in the dirt, they like what they smell and would therefore eat anything that is embedded in the dirt. Eating dirt is also a way by which the dog can gain the owner's attention. These are sensitive creatures that would crave human companionship especially when there are no other pets in the home. Eating dirt is also a way of manifesting boredom. Some dogs would be destructive when bored. Chewing furniture and carpets, digging and incessant barking are signs that the dog is bored. Some dogs however would eat dirt.
A wakeup call to the owner
If your dog is eating dirt it may be an indication that you need to get a higher quality dog food, you need to feed the dog more frequently and also to give more attention to your pet. Since dirt eating may also be a sign of an illness, visiting a vet may not come amiss.
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Reader Feedback
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- kimark421 kimark421 Nov 21, 2009 @ 5:27 am
- I wish Dog #2 of my pack ate dirt! She has picked up another digusting eating habit recently. Great lens! 5*'s
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- KonaGirl KonaGirl Jun 11, 2009 @ 1:02 pm
- Some good information here. Brief and to the point. Thanks for stopping by my Dogs Eating Chocolate lens. I lensrolled this lens to all of my dog lens.
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- aj2008 aj2008 May 10, 2009 @ 2:08 am
- Our dog does not eat dirt, butt she has been known to eat other more disgusting stuff!
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- Vladi Vladi May 2, 2009 @ 7:55 pm
- Who knows why dogs do anything?
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- WritingforYourWealth WritingforYourWealth Mar 23, 2009 @ 7:49 pm
- I had some snazzy dirt delivered for my garden and the dogs loooove it. Must be the steer manure mixed in with the compost. Good stuff. :P
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