# Excessive grass and mulch eating



## jessme7 (May 29, 2006)

I was wondering if anyone else has or had a problem with their puppy eating big clumps of grass and dirt. I want to teach Marley and Maya how to use the doggie door soon and let them play in the yard. But it seems that everytime I let them run loose in the yard they dig up big holes with their mouths and eat up a big mouth full of dirt and grass:yuck: . It's not just the cosmetic reasons why I dont want them to pull out the grass and eating it but I had more than my fair share of diarrhea problems with them. They also love to chew and eat the wood mulch chips. Any suggestions on how to stop this? I really hope that this is just a puppy thing and they will get over this soon. 
Here are also some updated pics.
























Marley is becoming quite the big boy.








Maya loves to sleep in funny positions.
















It wouldn't be fair if I just showed embarrassing pics of Maya, so here is Marley's teething photo








And Marley still loves to lay like a frog.


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## Lucky's mom (Nov 4, 2005)

They grow so fast!!!!

I was real careful with Lucky when he was a pup. He was always on a leash. He had no judgement, and to him all things were edible noo matter how big or indigestible. And their little digestive systems are so sensitive.

Now that he's 11 months, I just roll my eyes as he "mows the lawn" like a cow. His teeth are strong enough to crush everything but the rocks I occassionally pull out of his mouth. I've noticed nothing problematic, except that he has extra fiber.


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## Lucky's mom (Nov 4, 2005)

I might add that when Lucky did manage to eat chunks of grass (when he was a puppy) he'd always get sick. Yuck


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## Maggies mom (Jan 6, 2006)

Maggie and Houdini still dig at 11 months old and 16 months old... they also eat dirt and grass often.......They also have a dog door...as for the digging ... the area that they do it in I really dont mind.... it was an old flower garden that I took everything out of there and never replaced ....Mine have never gotten sick from eating the dirt or grass....


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## jessme7 (May 29, 2006)

yes they do get sick! Marley is a little older now and his tummy is stronger, but Maya, I am still battling diarrhea with her. And you are right they eat CHUNKS of grass. When did you notice Lucky slowing down on the chunks of grass?


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## schleng (Feb 2, 2006)

What I want to know..is how you get them to pose for those great photos!!!
They are beautiful puppies.
Jerzey eats grass too. We have the area to let him off the leash and let him run, but we can't because of just that. Every now and then he gets another "chance" and he will be good for a "bit" and then he just can't resist that delicious munchy green stuff.


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## davebeech (Feb 11, 2006)

Tom still eats grass and dirt, as did Fred, Tom tends to try and eat more when he's on his lead but when he's off he'll just stop at a clump of lush green grass and have a munch and then off he goes. I leave him to it, there's obviously a reason for it, I have noticed though they'll also eat too much on purpose in order to make themselves sick, probably cleans the stomache out. Tom can be so bad when he's on his lead it's like taking a cow out for a walk, perhaps I should have called him Daisey


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## Lucky's mom (Nov 4, 2005)

jessme7 said:


> yes they do get sick! Marley is a little older now and his tummy is stronger, but Maya, I am still battling diarrhea with her. And you are right they eat CHUNKS of grass. When did you notice Lucky slowing down on the chunks of grass?


Each dog is different, but Lucky stopped eating "chunks" mixed with dirt and dead grass.... and started eating those delicious top blades of grass as he got taller and more off the ground. 5 or 6 months? At about 5 or 6 months he developed the digestive track that could just about handle anything.


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## jessme7 (May 29, 2006)

Well at least it sounds like it will get a little better. They seem to eat the dirt, weeds, flowers, dead grass, sod, and green grass. So Marley will be 5 months soon, I hope they will eventually slow down. 

Schleng: I take way too many pictures of them, so out of 20 I'll get 1 good one. I got more pics of them in 2 months than all the pics of me in my lifetime. But how can I resist!


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## schleng (Feb 2, 2006)

Ha! 
It seems to me that Jerzey is either:
1. moving around
2. has his head down
3. moves so that the good shot is lost
4. is VERY interested in the camera so comes to me and looks right in the lens
5. turns away from me so I could get a great shot of his behind
6. just starts being cute so I chuck the whole idea

So I only get a good one out of so many also!


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## katieanddusty (Feb 9, 2006)

My dogs eat grass all the time, but no dirt. I just laugh and call them cows.


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## Buffy & Abby's Mom (Nov 27, 2005)

Mine eat grass all the time too, especially Abby. I call them cows too cause it looks like they're constantly grazing! They don't seem to throw it up or it doesn't cause diarrhea. I just let them do their thing.


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## greg bell (May 24, 2005)

watch that mulch.. some of it is bad stuff.. 
I dont think grass hurts them...i gave up a long time ago trying to stop that habit.


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## jessme7 (May 29, 2006)

greg bell said:


> watch that mulch.. some of it is bad stuff..
> I dont think grass hurts them...i gave up a long time ago trying to stop that habit.


I do try harder to keep them from putting mulch in their mouth but just yesterday I found a couple of pieces in Marley's poop. I guess I gotta try harder! I hope it is not that harmful.


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## ty823 (Feb 7, 2006)

I hope I don't get too much flack for this, but I found that the E-Collar worked great to stop digging. I would hide behind a tree or inside the house looking out the window, and wait for her to start digging or ripping up the grass, and give her a... um... 'Correction'. The key was to make them think that it was coming from the grass that they are ripping up, and not from You. It only took a handfull of times and the digging & eating sod stopped for good. 

P.S.- I use very low settings on the E-Collar, (3 of 10) which I also tested on myself first. It really only felt like a little pinch; just enough to be uncomfortable.


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## RickGibbs (Dec 16, 2005)

ty823 said:


> I hope I don't get too much flack for this, but I found that the E-Collar worked great to stop digging. I would hide behind a tree or inside the house looking out the window, and wait for her to start digging or ripping up the grass, and give her a... um... 'Correction'. The key was to make them think that it was coming from the grass that they are ripping up, and not from You. It only took a handfull of times and the digging & eating sod stopped for good.
> P.S.- I use very low settings on the E-Collar, (3 of 10) which I also tested on myself first. It really only felt like a little pinch; just enough to be uncomfortable.


Personally, I wouldn't use an e-collar, but I don't fault you for using it. But, my wife brought home this little tripod-hand massager the other night (I've been having back issues, so she went and got that) and just to see what Samson woud do, I started petting him with it. He loved it until I turned it on.... Startled him at first, but after a couple tries, I think he started liking it. But I would imagine his initial jump wouldn't be much different than your 3 of 10 e-caller, uh....correction....


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## greg bell (May 24, 2005)

I have and use an ecollar... wish i had had one with my kids..


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## PeggyK (Apr 16, 2005)

We have Ecollars for both of our guys and rarely have to use it-we narmally only have to give the warning beeps for bad behavior to stop. Years ago, I would have said that we would NEVER EVER use an Ecollar, but they really are remarkable traing tools. And, believe me, I think food rewards are wonderful training tools also-but, sometimes my guys will start wrestling and start to take it to the next level and refuse to listen!!! The funniest thing is that many times, all I have to say is, "Do you want to get zapped????" and they stop what they are doing.


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## jessme7 (May 29, 2006)

Hahaaha. The ecollar comments are so funny. I dont find using the ecollar as a bad thing. Hiding and giving them a correction seems like a great idea! I just started using a pinch collar on Marley a week ago and put it on Maya somtimes for training. What I want to ask is that do you think that they know when they have the collar on so they behave better when it is on then when its off they are back to mischief? I notice great obedience training results with the pinch collar but when it is off its a different story sometimes. I might look into getting them a ecollar, I got two dogs though are they pricey? And I hope I dont make a mistake and correct the wrong pup with the wrong remote.


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## ty823 (Feb 7, 2006)

jessme7 said:


> What I want to ask is that do you think that they know when they have the collar on so they behave better when it is on then when its off they are back to mischief?


Yes, they will learn to know when they are wearing it and behave better. In fact, I know someone that lost his e-collar after he had been using it for a year, so he took an empty tones spice can, painted it black, weighted it, and attached it to a spare collar to make the dog think that it was still the E-collar. His dog has been wearing the spice can on and off for years now, and still behaves better when its on. 


jessme7 said:


> I might look into getting them a ecollar, I got two dogs though are they pricey? And I hope I dont make a mistake and correct the wrong pup with the wrong remote.


They can range anywhere from $75-$500. If your just using it in your yard, I'm sure the cheap one will be adequate. They come with a training DVD that is really helpful too.
I know you can get them as a double-set (2 collars that run off of one remote), but I think I would get confused which button goes to which dog. Maybe you could just buy one, make a fake one, and rotate back and forth which dog is wearing the real one.


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## jessme7 (May 29, 2006)

Wow they are quite expensive. I will see if I can get around it first, with all their vet bills and all the stuff I get them, even my boyfriend says that I get them too much stuff. But the fake collar thing sounds like an idea I may take on if I get a ecollar.


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