Getting really fed up

[waggytails]

I have Hattie and Darcy who are both poo eaters. But if I tell Darcy leave he does do what I say most of the time Hattie the older one of them,is a different matter she just completely switches is off, weather it's poo or food, I know cockers love food but she just takes it to a different level and I'm getting fed up and stressed walking her, I have thought about a muzzle but to be honest I don't think I would be able to get her to move with one on, she wont move with a harness or a coat. At home she is good with leave, I put her bowl down and she waits until I say take, we do leave training at home and she is good, but I just don't no what to do now. If she is eating it I try to get hold of her but she runs away and then goes back when I move back.  Today she found some poo I managed to distract her which is very rare, I buried the poo under leaves and walked a loop but not passing the poo area, we walked for around 30mins and walked back next thing she was back there eating the poo, I could not get to her quick enough to stop her so I thought I would walk away and call her but the little  carried on eating and only came to me when she had finished, eating what was a big pile of poo.  If anyone as advice I would be very grateful.

[Ben's mum]

We were at this stage with Ben, we had 6 years of poo eating and scavenging and in the end it was ruinig walks as he was just 'looking' all the time for things to eat.
A quick trip to Top Barks, and a couple of weeks really solid recall training along with me starting to make some yummy treats and he was cured    I didn't think it was possible he used to be obsessive about it, but he soon picked it up and now he will still sometimes look for poo (but not all the time anymore) but if he finds it he will hesitate and look up at me, if I call him back at that point he always comes as he knows he will be rewarded with something good.

good luck 

[ClaireH]

One of my collies does this, obsessively so, I tried literally everything but in the end he was making himself ill with it so I muzzled him. Even then I had to cable tie the front and sides of the muzzle as he was still squishing the poo through it!  He has the racing type muzzle from CountryMun which are softer and more comfortable than the hard plastic ones you buy in pet shops. He accepted it straight away and walks are back to being fun. Now he rolls in it instead! 

Here he is wearing it.

[waggytails]

Thanks Bens mum, it's so nice to here the maybe away to get past this, I do take treats out with me, today was ham pieces, but she totally ignores me, her recall is very good unless there is food or poo and then it's none existant, not sure how to correct this but am willing to try anything.

ClaireH I would use a muzzle but I really don't think she would move, it has taken me 3 years to get her out of the door with no hassle on a lead and still sometimes she hides, if I even try a harness or a coat she won't move and this makes it difficult for the next time as she is afraid I will put them on her again. So I don't think a harness is the way to go with her, but thank you for your reply

[minimoo]

you are not alone, Ella has always been a poo eater since ive had her and it really annoys me when i say leave and she looks at me and gulps it down (sorry too graphic  ) and then will run off looking guilty (yes she does before im shot down) ive posted many a moan on here about her but ive accepted now that sometimes shes just going to do it 

[Maria]

Our 2 became manic poo eaters for a while , so I can empathise with the fed up feeling. As soon as they were let offlead they would search it out , and every walk was a manic poo hunt 
In their case though, it was due to the food they were on at the time - it turned out it was too low in protein for their needs. As soon as I changed their food, the searching for it literally stopped overnight - though there was still the occasional tasty morsel that they could resist ........

[Ben's mum]

Thanks Bens mum, it's so nice to here the maybe away to get past this, I do take treats out with me, today was ham pieces, but she totally ignores me, her recall is very good unless there is food or poo and then it's none existant, not sure how to correct this but am willing to try anything.

If you look at the info on this section about teaching a reliable recall it is easy to follow.  Alternatively if you are close enough to Top Barks why don't you do what we did and book a session, I learn better by practicing and being told face to face, and I also wanted to ensure OH took it all on board as well as I knew we both had to be consistant to make it work so it was easier to have us both there to learn together.  We started on a long line and did the exercises every day increasing the difficulty for Ben until he was coming instinctively as soon as he heard the whistle.  I experimented with different food: warm chicken, cheese, liver treats and tuna or sardine bites, corn beef etc etc until I knew what worked really well for Ben.  He just can not resist warm chicken   

We also learnt to be irresistible to Ben    We are both by nature very quiet so it came as a bit of a shock to have to get really enthusiastic and vocally reward Ben (sorry Mark  ). however now neither of us thinks anything of getting all excited when either does a really good recall, Harry loves it if you give him a round of applause - don't ask why  But he loves it if we start clapping and cheering as he gets close, particularly if he has been called away from a distraction like another dog or something on the floor.  We may look like Muppet's sometimes, but I no longer care as it works for us and our dogs .

[max2011]

Hi, I was told to muzzle Max who is nearly 6 months as he ate everything he could find on the ground - poo, leaves, berries, rubbish etc. He permanently had a poorly tummy. I really didn't want to do this and the way we have got round it is for him to carry a ball in his mouth. I'm not saying this stops him completely as there are times the ball gets dropped when he smells something tasty but it has improved things no end and the ball has become increasingly important to him so much so that if he starts munching something and I say where is your ball it distracts him enough to stop and find the ball.

Hope you find something that works for you.

[waggytails]

Hi, I was told to muzzle Max who is nearly 6 months as he ate everything he could find on the ground - poo, leaves, berries, rubbish etc. He permanently had a poorly tummy. I really didn't want to do this and the way we have got round it is for him to carry a ball in his mouth. I'm not saying this stops him completely as there are times the ball gets dropped when he smells something tasty but it has improved things no end and the ball has become increasingly important to him so much so that if he starts munching something and I say where is your ball it distracts him enough to stop and find the ball.

Hope you find something that works for you.

I already do this with Hattie as she is also ball obsessed, I have to watch like a hawk and if she drops the ball then I no its either food or poo. Sometimes it works if I say get your ball, other times I manage to pick it up and walk away with it and she will follow but I have to walk a distance a way from were the food is before she gets it back or she will just run past me and back to the food/poo.

[Sarah.H]

It sounds like you need to take your recall and leave training back to basics with a more structured programme. Have you ever tried a one to one session with someone similar to Top Barks?

If you can't use a muzzle then your only other option would be to keep her on lead.

[waggytails]

It sounds like you need to take your recall and leave training back to basics with a more structured programme. Have you ever tried a one to one session with someone similar to Top Barks?

If you can't use a muzzle then your only other option would be to keep her on lead.

Yes I also think I am going to go back to basics and do the recall and leave training again, no I have not used a behaviourist, but that maybe an option, I really don't want to have her on lead walks as we go on off lead walks most days and I love seeing them running around.