Cat food contains more meat content than does dog food. This makes cat feces smell appealing to dogs who will scavenge for food. As such a cat's litter box may be seen as a banquet to a dog.

There are several considerations owners of both cats and dogs need to address.

-Placement of the Litter Box-

Dogs are more social than cats, they prefer to be in the part of the house where the people are. In homes with unfinished basements a cat litter box is easily kept in an out of the way place that a dog would never encounter.

Furthermore by raising the litter box off the ground it may be out of reach for a dog. Where as cats can jump onto an old table to use their litter box, a dog would not get up there.

Putting the litter box in a room that the dog does not have access too, as when the door to the room can be blocked with a baby gate, also works well.

-Type of Litter Box-

There are few litter boxes that are inaccessible to all dogs. Smaller breeds can get into anything, but for some dogs a litter box with a lid is enough to keep them out. Self cleaning litter boxes also remove the poop, ideally before the dog can get to it, but some cats are scared to use them.

-Keeping the Litter Box Clean-

Regular cleaning of the litter box means there is less stuff in it for the dog to find and eat. Better cat food also means fewer feces.

-Treating the Feces-

A dog can be put off eating cat feces by taking the time to put Tabasco sauce on the poop and allowing the dog to eat it a few times. Eventually he, or she, will learn that the cat feces are not so yummy after all and will forget about eating them.

-Look at your Dog Food-

Many commercial dog foods meet only the minimum standards in pet nutrition, leaving the dog feeling like it is missing something. In this case the dog is craving more meat. Note that dogs eat their own poop for different reasons, of which can be read about by clicking this link on Coprophagia. However eating cat poop is a scavenger behavior as dogs look for more food. Except in obese senior dogs, a dog food should not contain corn as a first ingredient, but rather should have a good meat source. Note also that by-products are not a meat source.

-Training the Cat Differently-

Believe it or not but cats can be trained to use a human toilet. This is a slow process but eliminates the need for a litter box altogether.

Learn more about this author, Brenda Nelson.
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