# Should I do anything when she eats dirt/grass/leaves?



## s14roller (Nov 18, 2010)

So far, the most frustrating part of walking her in the yard has been she will eat dirt, leaves, grass, etc. I did a search and saw this is normal, but is this something I should just continue to let her do? I typically say "NO" and reach into her mouth to get it out but I'm not 100% sure what the correct thing to do is. :help:


----------



## 1sttimeforgsd (Jul 29, 2010)

I really can't give you a correct answer, but my dogs have always occasionally ate dirt and grass.


----------



## vicky2200 (Oct 29, 2010)

I always say no and remove it, but when they are young its a never ending battle


----------



## cassadee7 (Nov 26, 2009)

Watch ahead for it, say "leave it." You can also have them carry a ball or a stick in their mouth on a walk and then they won't go eating stuff... at least that works for Saber.


----------



## Emoore (Oct 9, 2002)

It's a good opportunity to teach "leave it," but I don't take every single bit of dirt or grass out of his mouth.


----------



## s14roller (Nov 18, 2010)

Thanks, everyone. I'm pretty much doing what everyone else has suggested. I say no and remove what I can, but some times also just let her eat a bit of it. 

Yesterday it was leaves; I raked most of it this morning, so now it's dirt and grass. 

Hopefully she grows out of it, but a 9 week pup is a 9 week pup!


----------



## warpwr (Jan 13, 2011)

Miss Molly did/does it too. I finally gave up since she has the run of the back yard now. I figure it's probably part of the immunity building process maybe.


----------



## JustMeLeslie (Sep 15, 2010)

Just to let you know she might be into eating dirt, leaves and grass right now, but eventually she will go into her I have to eat every stick and bug I see phase. What a lot of fun that phase is! Thank goodnes for "leave it". Sticks and GSDs just seem to go hand and hand so the stick phase will probably never end.


----------



## shaner (Oct 17, 2010)

My pup did the same thing. At first I would try to get her to leave it, after a while I just gave up. If she wanted to eat dirt and grass, I let her. I knew she would grow out of it anyway. She puked up a bit of grass a few times, but other than that, she was perfectly fine. She grew out of it rather quickly.


----------



## carmspack (Feb 2, 2011)

Just a reminder since we are heading into gardening season . Be careful with the use of herbicides and insecticides. 
Do not use cocoa mulch -- it is crushed cocoa bean and is toxic.
Be careful with fertilizers - dogs can get iron poisoning , get impacted when eating bone meal which becomes a little rock inside.
Several plants and bulbs are toxic Avoid These Toxic Garden Plants To Keep Your Dog Safe

Carmen
Carmspack Working German Shepherd Dogs


----------



## MicheleMarie (Mar 29, 2011)

My holistic vet says things like that are normal. My 6 year old dog grazes like a cow!!! she'll eat dried leaves too once in awhile. The vet said that it's normal and that it wasn't harmful or beneficial. The only thing that sucks is when she eats tall grass it came make her poops hard to come out haha


----------

