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Linda Arndt ~ Canine Nutritional Consultant
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Why Does My Dog Eat Grass?

The answer is this...Dogs eat grass for many reasons.

First your dog has basic nutritional needs that are often not met with commercial diets and there is a real need for living foods/vegetation(salads) in their daily diet. This vegetation provides them with enzymes, chlorophyll, micro-minerals, micro-nutrients. In the wild they would get these by grazing or predigested vegetation found in the gut of the animal they would hunt and consume.

You will notice this need to consume vegetation also increases in the winter months if you live in a cold climate. This is also the time when you will see stool eating - Coprophagy - an unsightly habit, but rather natural to dogs. This practice is a hold over from prehistoric times,
in preparation for the winter months. See my article on Stool Eating.

Of course we have all watched our dogs consume grasses then vomit, this is using vegetation for a specific purpose other than for nutritional value, to cleanse a system. In my Blackwatch Feed Programs at my website you will find all the things necessary in a diet so the "wholes are filled" and you will find the need to consume grasses minimize and generally done only when the dog has an upset tummy or when simply grazing on a nice spring day when young green shoots are present.

I have found by switching to a "super premium" brand of kibble (list in my feed programs), add some 4 in 1 Probiotics/Digestive enzymes which also contain some Barley Grass, Nzymes - dietary enzymes which provide the living component to a diet, Vitamin C and some fresh fruits and veggies the consumption of grass will reduce drastically if not completely.

Introduce each of these components 3 days apart so they get used to them in their food. If they get a little loose stool, back off the amount and ease them into it. To change your dogs kibble, here is a chart on how to make the switch.

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