Studies have been carried out to determine a link between dogs eating grass and illness, vitamin deficiency and stomach upsets.
None of the studies have produced any evidence to link grass eating with a particular problem.
Neither have the studies shown that the dog is eating grass for nutritional needs. True, grass does contain nutrients and herbivores thrive on it, it does not seem that the dog is eating grass due to a poor diet. Wild relatives of the dog, the fox and the wolf, eat all of an animal when they catch it. Plant matter is contained in the intestines of the animal, which the predator eats.
Some dogs choose grassy areas at random while others select a particular spot. Often when a dog eats grass it will vomit which has led to the belief that the dog is eating it because he feels nauseous or has a gastro intestinal problem. It is thought that the grass binds with any offending material in the stomach and acts as an irritant causing the dog to vomit. However the majority of dogs that eat grass have no problems at all.
Dogs will often lick or chew grass where another dog has urinated, possibly to do with a dominance issue, the same as scent marking. One type of grass called couch grass is so loved by dogs that its botanical name is, Agrospyron Canina, after the dog.
Most veterinarians agree that dogs eat grass simply because they like it. Be warned, do not let dogs eat grass that has been sprayed with fertilisers, weed killers, or pesticides, particularly grass growing beside farmer’s fields which have been recently sprayed or fertilized.
|