Dogs eating out of litter box...YUCK!?

Question

i know this is a tasty treat for dogs, i have read on the internet. it suggest moving the litter box to where the dogs can't reach it. well i have a new kitty that is 6 weeks old and she can't jump that high. it mentioned something about using a baby gate to block te entrance to where the litter box is but leave a little bit up off the ground if your cat isn't comfortable make the jump if you put up on something. well that would work good if one of dogs weren't so little and more than likely could fit under it if i did that, it is a very small chihuahua, not teecup but still really little. so what can i do to get them to quit doing this, it's gross. i know there is something you can put in a dogs diet to make their p**p or others not s desirable but do they have anything for cats so the dogs won't do this? please i'm open to suggestions, thanks.

Answer 1

I have NEVER met a dog that didn't do everything in his poor to get to a cat box.

I have a wolf dog and he for the first month we Had him he walked by and we said oh this is great we don't have to re position it so he can't get his head in there or put it on a counter. Oh but all of a sudden its like 'where's the poo'. The box was being cleaned, and it wasn't my husband or the kids cleaning it. I found him 2 days later with his head in the kitty box. So he is so big now , 9 months and 117lbs I have to situate it so the cats have to go under the gas BBQ and into their box.

Good luck with  your Chi..he can move better and faster than the cats probably

http://www.flickr.com/photos/29035692@N0...

I wish you luck.

Answer 2

There are tablets I gave my dog to stop her coprophagia, they were called Deter Coprophragia Treatment.

They did work for her, but as there isn't a definative answer as to why dogs do this, it can't be guaranteed to work. I am told that sometimes making sure that dogs have extra vitamins work too, or feeding the dog several times a day instead of one big meal a day.

Obviously if you do catch the dog in the act, startle them with a big "No" but only if you catch them actually at it. Praise immediatly if they stop.

Answer 3

Like drinking out of the toilet or the gutter, it's what dogs do.  Yuck, is right! The food that a cat eats is much higher protein than that of a dog, and well, the waste is just, to a dog, a tasty treat.  This doesn't mean that  it should be included as part of a healthy diet!  It just means that, dogs will do it.

Catch him in the act, and the firm NO.  Try to face the opening of the box to a wall, enough room for kitty, but not enough room for the canine clean-up crew to get their heads in.

Clean the box.  Often.  If you can clean it as soon as kitty has used it, this may discourage your hungry hounds too.

Maybe you can put the litter box in a room that's off limits to the dogs, or a room they don't spend time alone in.

It's just a matter of being creative.  Do keep in mind though, that you don't want kitty to feel 'trapped' when she tries to use the box if Bowser chooses that same time to go sand-snacking. And lay in a good supply of doggy breath mints!

Good luck