Pebbles and rocks.
While chewing on rocks may seem like baffling behavior, it’s also exceedingly dangerous. Many things can happen including:
- Tooth fracture – This can be extremely painful. Signs include pawing at the mouth, shaking the head, not eating, and/ or excessive drooling. Left untreated, a deep break can lead to systemic infection.
- Cuts to the interior of the mouth.
- Choking – Rocks are among the top 10 items that dogs choke on.
- Intestinal blockage – This often requires emergency surgery.
- Perforated internal organs including the stomach and colon – This requires emergency surgery.
Sticks.
If your Shih Tzu likes to chew on sticks instead of toys, it’s important to know that this is dangerous. Dangers include:
- Splinters in the mouth or esophagus
- Cuts to the interior of the mouth or esophagus
- Choking – Sticks are among the top 10 items that dogs choke on.
- Intestinal blockage – This often requires emergency surgery.
- Perforated internal organs including the stomach and colon – This requires emergency surgery.
- Possible toxic poisoning - Certain trees including black cherry, black walnut, Buddhist pine (Yew pine), Norfolk Island pine, red maple, oak trees (the leaves and acorns), and apple trees (toxins are in the stems) can be toxic to dogs. Signs of toxic poisoning include muscle tremors, vomiting, shortness of breath, seizures, and even sudden death from acute heart failure.
Leaves.
If your Shih Tzu likes to munch on dried leaves in the yard, you may be surprised to learn that this can be very risky. Some of the leaves from trees and shrubs that are toxic include:
- Apple tree leaves. You probably know that apple seeds contain a chemical that is toxic to dogs, but the stems and leaves do as well. In fact, concentrations of the toxin (called amygdalin, which metabolizes into cyanide during digestion) is the highest in the autumn, meaning that fallen leaves are the most dangerous of all.
- Cherry tree leaves. Cherry pits and the leaves of this tree are toxic, with the most concentrated chemicals in wilted or dead leaves.
- Holly plants leaves. Both the berries and the leaves are toxic to dogs. These contain two chemicals: saponins and theobromine (the same that are in chocolate).
- Oleander, dogbane, milkweed, foxglove, kalanchoe, and Lily of the Valley all contain a certain type of poison that affects the heart (cardenolides or bufadienolides) which can lead to abnormal heart rhythm and cardiac arrhythmias which can be fatal.
- In all, there are over 400 plants that are toxic to canines.
Dirt.
Eating dirt is another strange thing that a Shih Tzu may do, and this has its own set of potential dangers including:
- May contain sharp rocks and other objects.
- May contain pesticides (even if you do not use this, neighbors may and runoff may enter the yard during rainfall).
- May contain certain iron-based fertilizers or those containing disulfoton which are toxic.
- May contain cocoa bean mulch which contains toxic methyxanthylates.
- May be contaminated with dropping from birds or feces from wild animals or other dogs which can lead to parasitic (worm) infection. Certain diseases can also be transmitted via contaminated soil including campylobacter, coronavirus, cryptosporidiosis, giardiasis, parvovirus, and salmonella.
Pine cones, nuts, and other outdoor matter.
Everything under this category, not being food, makes it potentially risky to allow a Shih Tzu to chew on. Pine cones, while not toxic can cause intestinal blockage. Nuts from the black walnut tree can contain a toxic mold (mycotoxin Penitrem A). Ingestion of poisonous wild mushrooms can cause everything from liver failure to coma.
Grass.
Out of all of the types of items a Shih Tzu may eat off the ground while outside, grass is certainly one of the most common. It’s long been disproved that dogs do this for the reason of wanting to induce vomiting if they have an
upset stomach; though, it may very well have this consequence.
Other risks include possibility of ingesting of lawn care chemicals and possibility of contracting parasites or disease, much like the risk of eating dirt from outside.
Why Shih Tzu Puppies and Dogs Eat Things from the Ground
There is a wide range of possible reasons why a Shih Tzu may have this sort of behavior, including:
#1 Pica. This is a medical issue and compulsive eating disorder that refers to a dog’s craving and ingestion of a non-food item; this disorder is seen in humans, dogs, cats, chimps, and even cattle.
A dog may direct this towards just one thing or several. This does not, however, apply to a puppy or dog that simply mouths or chews on objects.
The exact cause of pica is unknown. However, it is suggested that an iron deficiency (anemia) may be to blame. It is also thought to be linked to other nutritional deficiencies, hormonal imbalances, parasitic infection, or diseases including diabetes and liver disease. Separate from this, some veterinarians believe that this can be due to stress or anxiety.
#2 Strong urges to chew.
Very common to young
puppies that are teething, but possible with dogs of any age, strong urges to chew may be to blame. This makes sense when it comes to sticks. It’s hard to believe that rocks would feel good to chew on, but it’s near impossible to fully figure out dogs and their sometimes very strange quirks.
#3 Attention-seeking behavior. Canines typically figure out rather quickly what brings their owners rushing over and offering all sorts of attention. So, if you act this way when your Shih Tzu starts chewing on leaves or crunches on pebbles, this may be one of the reasons.
#4 Curiosity.
Not having opposable thumbs, canines use their mouths to find out the answers to ‘what’s this?’. So, merely mouthing rocks, dirt, and so forth may be a Shih Tzu’s way of exploring. Some outside objects may hold the scent of wild animals, or their natural scents (berries, flowers, sap, etc.) that can make a dog curious.
#5 Boredom. If a dog is left unattended for a period of time, it makes sense that some boredom will kick in. A Shih Tzu may then take it upon themselves to stay occupied. Without any other choices around, it’ll be sticks, rocks, dirt and other natural materials that they pays attention to.
#6 Taste. Rocks are very salty, which many dogs find appealing (it's one of the reasons why dogs like to lick their human's skin, which is also salty). Dirt, grass, sticks, leaves, and those types of things have their own particular woodsy tastes which can also interest dogs.