Dogs may crave paper because they are missing crucial minerals, like iron, in their diet. Dogs lacking proper nutrition or enough caloric content for their size often try to ingest other substances to satisfy their appetites. Other medical conditions could be to blame as well, as dogs dealing with gastrointestinal problems, diabetes, or worms turn to toilet paper out of hunger. Dogs may also eat toilet paper simply because they are bored. To a dog, even negative reactions count as attention.
The first step to eliminating this dangerous habit is by ensuring toilet paper is not easily accessible for your dog. Hide all extra toilet paper rolls and tissues behind baby-locked cabinets or keep them out of reach. Keep the bathroom door closed at all times. Since dogs are often attracted to toilet paper rolls because they spin around, it may be helpful to invest in a special toilet paper dispenser that prevents dogs from accessing toilet paper.
If your canine companion is munching toilet paper straight out of the trash can, keep cans securely sealed and out of reach. If your pup is an avid dumpster diver, try keeping the trash can behind a closed door. Routine exercise and ample playtime provide dogs with outlets for all their extra energy. Since dogs require both physical and mental stimulation, Zeigenfuse recommends getting canines involved in AKC dog sports like Agility , Retrieving, and Scent Work so highly energetic dogs can use their hunting instincts and obedience skills.
When a dog attracts your attention because they have toilet paper, dogs see toilet paper as a prize, making it a high-value toy. Giving dogs an alternative toy, positively redirects their attention, and therefore their behavior. Eating toilet paper can lead to serious digestive issues. At the very least, your pup may experience an upset stomach as the toilet paper passes through their system.
According to Forrest Wickman the popular excuse "my dog ate my homework" possibly originates from as early as , when a clergyman pulled his clerk aside after a service to ask him whether his sermon seemed long enough. As seen, tissue paper, toilet rolls, newspapers and paper dishes are appealing to dogs, but they may be particularly appealing to bored dogs in search of something to do to keep occupied.
And for those attention-seeking dogs, picking up some paper from a wastebasket or stealing a roll of toilet paper may be a way to grab their owner's attention when they are feeling bored and socially deprived. A word of caution though is needed here. Many people are aware of the popular adage " a tired dog, is a good dog. No, exercise will not automatically grant your dog a halo over his head and magically transform him into a dog who says "no, I won't shred this tissue paper, cause all my energy has been drained.
Just as you would enjoy doing crossword puzzles or read a book after going to the gym, your dog is entitled to still feel like shredding paper after going for a hike.
Shredding paper can actually be a relaxing way to end the day and most dogs do it when they are comfortably lying down. Sure, exercise may cause your dog to calm down and want to sleep more, but don't expect exercise to cause him to become apathetic and disinterested in his surroundings, that's a depressed dog or a sick dog, not a tired dog!
Warning: while your dog may just have fun shredding paper, consider that if the paper has remnants of something tasty on it, your dog may feel compelled to ingest it.
There are countless stories of dogs ingesting napkins with pizza sauce or cupcake wrappers. Owners of pregnant dogs may witness their dogs shredding paper and other objects to pieces as whelping day gets closer. This behavior stems from instinct; mother dog is simply replicating what she would have done out of a domestic setting, which is building a maternal den.
Basically, when getting ready to give birth, a dog's ancestors would have dug up a place to raise their puppies so they were safe, warm and dry. Puppies, being altricial , are born in a pretty much helpless state; basically, they are deaf, blind and unable to regulate their temperatures, so the use of a den was a good choice to up the pups' chances for survival. Even as today, mother dogs still retain the instinct to build a den.
Owners of pregnant dogs often observe how, as the birthing day nears, their dogs are prone to start digging on couches, sofas and in closets and shredding cloth or pieces of paper for the purpose of building a maternal den.
These behaviors are referred to as " nesting behaviors " and they are reminiscent of when the puppies were kept safe in a den until they reached about 10 to 12 weeks of age.
Past this age, the pups would then start using their dens less and less and rely more on special rendezvous areas that can be compared to open-air kindergartens. The instinct of creating a nest, isn't necessarily a sign of pregnancy. False pregnancy in dogs may also evoke nesting behaviors in intact dogs who recently went into heat but didn't get pregnant.
Help, my dog shreds paper and eats it, what should I do? The best way to prevent dogs from ripping up paper is to keep it out of reach in the first place. Dogs often pull paper products out of the garbage, so using trash cans with secure, automatically closing lids can nip the problem in the bud. Not all paper products can go in the trash can, though how many YouTube videos have we seen of dogs gleefully unspooling toilet paper from the roll?
To let your dog play with paper in an appropriate way, consider turning his instincts into an enriching game. Home Dog Care Center. Written by: PetMD Editorial. Published: February 19,
0コメント