It seems some researchers in California decided to try and figure out why we dogs eat poop. No offense, but I wonder how much funding they got to do this research. And who funded it - the poop bag companies? Anyway, seems that they surveyed 3,000 dog owners. And they found no evidence to suggest any coorelations with age, specific diet, or obsessive behaviors like tail-chasing. But here's the interesting part. We poop aficionados won't eat stale poop. We like our poop less than 2 days old. They say it goes back to our wolf-ancestors - who would essentially clean-up poop that was left too close to the den, to avoid the infection of parasites that hatch on poop after a few days. I'm not kidding. This is what they said. They also found that most poop eaters tend to be greedy eaters. So it might suggest some dietary motivation. Given that not all of our food may be fully digested, we see the poop as a secondary food source. I call it recycling. And we poop eaters also like to eat dirt. And cat poop. Personally I'm not a BIG fan of dirt, but if given the chance to sample some feline products, I'm thinking I would give it a shot. I certainly liked sheep poop.
Oh and you know those "solutions" like putting pepper or chilis on the poop to discourage us from eating it? And those products that are supposed to make our poop taste bad? I hate to tell you - but the success rate is pretty poopy at less than 2%.
But the good news, the next phase of the research will be looking at solutions. Thank goodness. In the big scheme of world problems, this IS a big one.
So that's the poop on poop. And lest you shake you heads and think that we dogs have some disgusting habits, perhaps I should remind you that on this day in 1982, Ozzy Osbourne, the heavy metal musician, ate the head off a bat on stage in Iowa. Really. And you are disgusted by a little poop eating...
Have a good one! Peace a paws up!
Seizure -free days: 8
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