Dogs often perform behaviors that seem strange to humans, but there is almost always an explanation behind these canine behaviors. Understanding the cause that leads your furry best friend to do certain things is of great help to know if he has a health problem, a deficiency or an unmet need.
In this regard, you have probably observed your dog eating grass in a park or garden. And often this ingestion is accompanied by subsequent vomiting. Precisely for this reason, the belief is deeply rooted that dogs eat grass when they have an intestinal problem, with the aim of causing themselves to vomit. But the truth is that this has not been proven.
The X social network account @wildbehav spreads information about animal ethology and has dedicated a thread to explaining the reasons behind a dog eating grass. “No, dogs don't eat grass to vomit. Eating plants is a normal behavior for domestic dogs, but we must take into account a series of considerations,” the explanation begins.
He adds that the ingestion of plant matter with little nutritional value is very common in dogs but, despite this, there is little scientific literature on this behavior that is so deeply rooted in dogs. “Given that some dogs appear to be sick before eating plants and that some vomit after eating, it has been suggested that gastric or intestinal discomfort can evoke this behavior and that plant consumption can cause gastric irritation that causes vomiting,” points out while highlighting that “less than 8% of the dogs studied were sick before consuming plants and less than 25% vomited after consuming them, so it is unlikely that this is a sign of illness or that the herb acts as a an emetic (that causes vomiting).”
The thread highlights that “only a relationship has been found between hunger and grass intake. "Dogs seem to show less interest in eating grass as the day progresses and more interest before their regular food intake." Furthermore, he says that another possible motivation for carrying out this behavior is the animal's boredom, which often causes many of the behavioral problems of our pets due to the lack of environmental enrichment.
On the other hand, he notes that eating grass is also a common behavior in wolves and coyotes, so it could be an inherited behavior with some biological function that "is not completely clear." Therefore, we should not correct or punish this behavior, just prevent it from eating grass in areas that may be contaminated by traffic, insecticides, or the urine and feces of other animals.
In conclusion, Mary WildBehav recommends taking our dog to the vet if he eats grass very often to review his diet and consult an ethologist to treat him if this behavior is related to stress.
