Dogs and Poop

I've been taking care of my brother's dog, Emma, for a couple of weeks while he's been finishing up with his finals this semester. Emma is a very cool dog, and she loves to chase frisbees and pinecones and squirrels. However, I recently noticed another one of her habits - a much more disgusting habit at that.

She likes to eat her own feces.

I'm not talking about a little investigatory bite, like she might do with a milkbone or a beggin' strip. This is full-scale chowing down. And she does it with the same enthusiasm that a person might have when digging into a porterhouse steak or maybe fine Italian cuisine. But, mind you, instead of either one of those delicacies, we're talking about her own droppings here (not that it would be any better if she were eating another dog's turds). But it's been especially bad these past two days, as she is constantly taking a break from our backyard frisbee games to gobble down these smelly brown treats.

Granted, I'm neither a big biology nor animal behavior expert, but it seems to me that there is something very backwards about this. Aside from the taste - and my God, imagine what it must taste like - I can think a million other reasons why this is so wrong. Say the taste isn't an issue - and for her, it evidently is not - why would a living being crave its own excrement? Is that not a concentrated pile of stuff that your body has already rejected? If it didn't work out for you the first time around, why on earth would you go back for round 2?

Gives a whole new meaning to the phrase "Shit-Eating Grin"

I really have nothing profound or even mildly amusing to say this habit, but I was just thoroughly disgusted, and felt I needed to share.

You're welcome.