Why Is My Dog Eating Grass?

Is your dog eating grass? If this is your first dog I’m sure you find this behavior very strange and wonder WHY?

Does she think she's a goat? You know that dogs love to eat meat... not grass!

Well, actually dogs love to eat many things. Grass included!

The second question that comes to your mind is, "Should I allow my dog to eat grass? Could that be dangerous for her health?"

As for your first question, there are many theories on the "WHY".

• Your dog is feeling sick and sees grass as a natural remedy to make herself throw up and feel better.

• The food you’re giving your dog is lacking fiber and the dog tries to find that elsewhere.

• It’s a natural instinct. As you probably have heard, ALL dogs come from wolves (yes, even your sweet small chihuahua). When they lived in the wild, they used to eat their whole prey (skin, bones, nails... everything). In most cases, the stomach of those animals was full of plants and fruits.

• There may be some psychological cause behind a dog eating grass. The dog is feeling boredom or anxiety for some reason and chewing grass comforts her. 

• Many dogs simply LOVE THE TASTE of grass!

This is my dog eating grass

Does your dog like to eat grass?
As you can see in the picture, Roza loves it!

Now, the most important question is: "Could grass consumption be dangerous for my dog’s health?" 

Well, that depends.  First of all, you have to be sure that the grass or lawn hasn’t been treated with any kind of chemicals (fertilizers, pesticides or other). This is a very common type of pet poisoning.

Second, make sure that your dog doesn’t eat any poisonous plants. Find a link to aspca.org with all dangerous plants for dogs at the bottom of this page

What Should You Do

Monitor your dog’s behavior and try to understand if there is a problem that makes her eat grass or simply loves the taste of it!

If the dog just nibbles the tender shoots of grass and nothings happens after that (vomiting or other sign of discomfort) there is no reason to worry. Your dogs just thinks it is delicious.This is very common actually, especially during Spring time.

However, if you have a dog that's whimpering and crying at the door and when it's let out runs straight to find and gulp down large quantities of grass, that's different. The most possible scenario is that s/he will vomit or have an episode of purging in a few minutes.

What’s coming out?  

• Food, the grass or just foam?

• What color is it? White, yellow, other? 

I know, that’s not very pleasant but please take a close look because the vet will need all the information he can get in case this behavior continues.  Maybe he’ll suggest a change in your dog’s diet or advice to add probiotics or some digestive enzymes to the dog's food.

It is also possible for a dog that has consumed something he or she shouldn’t have,  to look for something "green" to help her vomit. Is your dog eating grass because she ate something toxic?  Find everything you need to know about dangerous foods for dogs.

My personal experience taught me that my dog prefers to eat a certain type of grass because that helps when she has an upset stomach. Plus a few tender blades of grass in Spring!

If your dog loves eating grass but cannot have access to a safe place don't worry! You can always Grow Your Own Grass - free of chemicals- indoors. In our days, there is a solution for everything on the Internet.  Like this wheat grass kits I found on Amazon! You could use some in your salads as well!

https://www.aspca.org/pet-care/animal-poison-control/dogs-plant-list

I hope all the information in this page will help you give an answer to the question "Why is my dog eating  grass?". Of course, in case the vomiting or other signs of illness last for more than one or two days CALL YOUR VET immediately.

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