Why Do Dogs Eat Grass?
Most dogs are not fussy eaters. They will gladly gobble up whatever you give them and then come back for more, and they are even willing to eat items that will have us feeling quite ill at the thought. Their willingness to eat just about anything and everything helps to make them easy to care for, but it is important to make sure they get the right type of nutrition.
Unlike cats, dogs are omnivores, and even wolves will sometimes eat vegetable matter to complement their diet. This means it is just fine to give them all the vegetable scraps they want, providing of course they get plenty of protein as well. They are even known to eat grass, and here’s a look at some of the reasons for this.
1. Gastrointestinal Disease
Dogs can get sick just as we can, and some of their potential illnesses are quite similar to the ones that we get. Their digestive system is also similar to ours, and they can catch diseases that will affect this part of their bodies. Catching such diseases could be one reason for a dog to eat grass. Eating grass could supply your dog with the nutrients that will help them to fight off the disease. It can also cause them to vomit, potentially helping them to purge the disease from their body. If they do start eating grass more than usual, it may be a good idea to get them checked out.
2. Relieving Nausea
Dogs can also develop nausea just as we do and anybody that has experienced the symptom will tell you that it really can be quite unpleasant. It is also an unpleasant experience for your pooch, and it is understandable that they will want to end the sensation as soon as they possibly can.
One way to achieve this could be through eating grass. Eating grass will often cause your dog to vomit, relieving their stomach of the contents and also the grass. With the deed done, the pooch should hopefully be feeling much better.
3. Bloating
Mammals, including humans and dogs, generate gas when they are digesting their food. This gas will usually just pass out through the body through the mouth or at the other end, but this is not always the case. If the gas does not pass out of the digestive system, for whatever reason, it can lead to bloating and this can be quite uncomfortable.
There are various remedies that people can use to relieve bloating, but dogs cannot do this. Instead, they will often turn to eating grass, which will usually do just the trick. As the grass causes them to vomit, the gases are also purged, providing your dog with relief.
4. Nutrition
It is a common misconception that dogs are carnivores. Instead, they are omnivores, meaning that they need to get vegetable matter in their diet in addition to meat. This also means that they may not always get the nutrition they need if they are fed a high-protein diet. One way for them to get this extra nutrition is by going out in the backyard to eat some grass.
This is not always the case because even dogs that already have plenty of vegetables in their diet will still eat grass occasionally. If your dog does appear to be eating grass more than is normal, you might need to consider changing their food.
5. Worms
It is quite common for dogs to pick up intestinal worms, they will often do so through eating infected food that they find outside. These worms will make their home in your pooch’s stomach where they will continue to grow as they feed on the contents of the stomach. Worms can potentially pose a threat to your pet’s health, and even to their life, if they are left untreated.
The good news is that they are quite easy to treat and are usually dealt with without causing any lasting damage. If your dog has worms, they might also self-medicate by eating some grass if they get the chance.
6. Purging Toxins
As already mentioned, dogs are usually not at all fussy about what they eat. Pretty much anything goes, even if it does come directly from the garbage bin. This can lead to them making a mess of your home, while it can also lead to some other more serious problems. It is not uncommon for dogs to ingest toxins, and this can obviously be a real danger for them.
If it happens, they will often try to help themselves by eating grass so that they then vomit. If you do suspect that your dog has eaten something toxic, you should waste no time in getting them to a vet.
7. Bored
Dogs are very playful, inquisitive animals. They are intelligent and need to be stimulated mentally in order to prevent them from getting bored. They need lots of attention from their families and just love to be taken out for walks. Depending on the breed, a dog will sometimes need more exercise than their owners can give.
As such, dogs can quickly become bored. When this happens, they will often begin showing destructive behavior like destroying furniture and just about anything else they can get their teeth into. In some cases, they may even turn to eating grass in order to help relieve their boredom.
8. Anxiety
Dogs get very close to their owners, and they tend to very loyal and loving pets. They like to get a lot of love back and also like for the household to be a safe and fun place to be. If dogs don’t get these basic needs then they can begin to struggle, potentially becoming very anxious.
Dogs handle anxiety in different ways, potentially becoming disruptive or even aggressive. Others might become withdrawn and not want to spend time with people as they usually would. Another sign that your dog is suffering from anxiety is that they are eating more grass than they usually would.
9. Inherited Instinct
Dogs are descended from wolves that got used to being around human settlements, and gradually became tame. These wolves, and other wild canines, would have eaten grass for various reasons and certain behaviors like this are likely to be passed down biologically. It could be that dogs eat grass purely because they have a natural instinct to do so.
Such behaviors will take some time to be bred out of animals so it is likely that they will continue to do so for many generations to come. There is no need for urgency for this change to take place, though, because it does them no harm in the meantime.
10. Pleasure
Another potential reason for dogs eating grass, and perhaps the simplest, is that they eat it because they like to do so. It is not uncommon for dogs to have a preference for eating certain vegetables, so it is entirely reasonable that they eat grass for no other reason than they like the taste.
In addition to maybe liking the flavor of grass, there could also be other aspects of it that they enjoy. Individual blades of grass might be able to tickle the dog’s throat as they are swallowed; it is this that is thought to make them throw up.
