In the Bible, we read of two scriptures that describe about dogs eating their own vomit.
Proverbs 26:11 says “As a dog returns to its vomit, so fools repeat their folly.”
2 Peter 2:22 tells us “Of them the proverbs are true: ‘A dog returns to its vomit,’ and, ‘A washed pig returns to the mud.’”
Well, the Bible is right. Dogs do eat their own vomit. Why …?
Hmm… there is no definitive answer as to why dogs eat their own vomit. The possible explanations are:
1. Their mothers regurgitated the food when they were young. Mothers will chew the food in her mouth and then spit it out for their young to eat. So some puppies grow up concluding that it is alright to consume their vomit as it is also ‘regurgitated food.’
2. Due to their strong sense of smell, they are still able to sniff out food particles that remain in the vomit. Hence it is something appealing to them and edible too.
3. They just don’t have the intellect (that human has) to learn or conclude that vomit is unclean and thus not supposed to be consumed back. To them, regurgitated food is the same as food. What humans deem as disgusting is not so in the mind of the dogs. Contrary to our four-legged pals, it can be said that humans are conditioned creatures with refined eating habits! We should also be thankful that God made us the highest beings of all His other creation.
Nonetheless, it is still a habit not to be encouraged because if you let the dog thinks it is ok to eat back his own vomit, he will most likely think it is ok to eat his own feces and other dogs’ vomit and feces as well. And if you have more than one pet dog at home, then very soon the rest of the pack will follow suit and become professional vacuum cleaners!
In the case whereby the vomit or feces belong to a sick dog or a dog that have just ate some form of poison, then your dog will be in big trouble – he can get poisoned or diseased as well.
The habit of eating vomit usually starts from the period of a puppy’s upbringing. Hence, the rule of the thumb is: Always remove the puke or feces and clean up immediately before the dog can have his feast or so he thinks!
