You turn your back for a second and your puppy has a mouthful of mulch. Most owners want to know two things: whether the stuff is going to hurt their dog, and how to make the habit stop. Here is what mulch actually does to a dog, and how to handle a puppy who keeps going back to the flower bed.
Why Mulch?
It is developmentally normal for puppies to pick up items. They explore the world with their noses and mouths. We can’t ask puppies why mulch is so appealing, but it’s probably something about the texture and smell. The mulch has an interesting texture as a puppy bites into it. Puppies also probably like mulch because we try so hard to get it away!
Is Mulch Bad for Dogs?
Most plain wood mulch is not poisonous, and that is the honest answer for the majority of yards. The real problem is mechanical. A swallowed chunk of bark does not break down, so it can lodge in the throat or move down into the intestine and block it, and a blockage is surgery, not a wait and see. Puppies and small dogs carry the most risk because everything they swallow has less room to travel. A dog eating wood chips off a playground or stripping bark off a tree is doing the same thing as a dog raiding the mulch bed, and the risks are the same.
Cocoa mulch is the one that genuinely worries vets. It is made from cocoa bean shells, and it contains theobromine, the same compound that makes chocolate toxic to dogs. It also smells like chocolate, so dogs are drawn to it rather than put off by it. If there is cocoa mulch in your yard or your neighbor’s, keep your dog off it. If you think your dog swallowed some, call your vet right away instead of waiting for symptoms.
Dyed mulch worries a lot of owners, though the dye is usually the least of it. The colorants in most products are iron oxide or carbon based and are low risk in the amounts a dog would swallow. What you cannot see is the wood underneath. Some dyed mulch is made from recycled lumber, and reclaimed wood sometimes includes older pressure treated material. If your dog is a committed chewer, plain untreated mulch takes that question off the table.
Two smaller risks are worth knowing about. Sharp chips and stiff bark can cut up the mouth and gums or irritate the stomach and intestines on the way through, which is usually what is behind the drooling, pawing at the face, or loose stool that shows up a day later. Mulch that has been sitting and decomposing can also grow mold, and some of those molds produce toxins that cause tremors and shaking in dogs who eat them. Old, damp, breaking down mulch is worth raking out.
Call your vet if you notice any of these after your dog has been in the mulch:
- Vomiting more than once, or vomiting that will not stop
- Straining to poop, or not passing stool at all
- Unusual tiredness or weakness
- Tremors or shaking
- Going off food
- Any amount of cocoa mulch, even if your dog seems fine
Risk of Mulch to Puppies
Whether your puppy just wants to pick up and carry mulch, chew it into smaller pieces, or try to swallow it, it isn't ideal! Some mulches may be treated with products that are toxic for dogs or even be made with toxic plants. Eating mulch could result in gastrointestinal problems if they eat too much. How much mulch is an issue will depend on the type of mulch and your dog.
Eating Mulch on Walks
Most puppies will outgrow this behavior if we do not make a big deal out of it. Avoid taking your puppy near mulch. If you are walking your puppy on a leash, navigate around the flower beds with mulch or carry your puppy past these areas.
While this sounds like we are avoiding the problem, most puppies outgrow mulch eating after a few months. If we continually let them pick up mulch, it becomes a competition and creates more interest for puppies.
Eating Mulch in the Backyard
Most puppies will outgrow this behavior too if we do not make a big deal out of it and avoid opportunities for now. If you can, block off the areas with mulch by using temporary fencing. You can use a leash in the yard with your puppy and prevent them from going to places with the mulch.
Engage your puppy in other activities, such as coming when called or playing toy games in the yard. Don’t let them get bored and go off to the mulch. You can scatter their breakfast food in the grass for them to sniff out.
While we may envision a puppy enjoying their freedom to frolic in a yard or lounge in the sun, most puppies would rather get into mulch, tear apart shrubs, and find other trouble. Puppies typically outgrow these behaviors if we do not let them practice them.
What to Do If Your Puppy Picks Up Mulch
Our human response is to take the mulch away from a puppy quickly. Unfortunately, this tends to build a puppy’s interest in grabbing the mulch! Some puppies learn to grab it more quickly or to be sneaky so that we don’t notice. Other puppies will learn to grab it while we watch, so this turns into a chase or tug game!
If your puppy is not going to swallow the mulch immediately, you can run or quickly move away from your puppy. Talk excitedly, and your puppy is likely to follow you. When your puppy arrives, offer a treat or toss the treat on the ground. Feed a few treats in a row while moving your puppy away from the piece of mulch, or calmly step on the mulch while your puppy is not looking. Do not race your puppy for the piece of mulch!
Then, leash your puppy or engage them in other activities. Don’t let them go back to the mulch area.
If you are more concerned about your puppy immediately swallowing the mulch, trade it for a high-value treat. This is the lowest-risk way of getting it back. They are not yet trained to let go, but we can at least avoid conflict or feelings of being tricked.
Safer Mulch and Ground Cover Options for Dog Areas
If you are redoing the beds anyway, some ground covers give a determined puppy less to work with. Large nuggets of untreated pine or cedar bark are harder to pick up and carry than fine shredded mulch, and with an untreated product there is no dye or preservative to wonder about. A few dogs are sensitive to the oils in fresh cedar, so if yours starts sneezing or scratching after you spread it, go with pine.
Rubber mulch comes up often because dogs cannot digest it. That is also the catch. It does not break down in the gut either, so a swallowed piece still has to pass on its own or come out surgically, and it gets hot in full sun. Pea gravel is another option, and most dogs lose interest in it quickly, though a small stone is still swallowable for a puppy who is truly set on it.
Skip cocoa mulch. There is no safe way to use it around a dog who picks things up off the ground.
The cheapest fix is usually not a new product at all. A short border fence or a run of temporary garden fencing around the beds settles the whole argument for less than a yard’s worth of mulch costs. Most puppies grow out of this within a few months, so you are managing one season, not making a permanent decision.
Using "Leave it" or "Drop it"
Most families want to teach “leave it” or “drop it” to handle mulch situations. While this can be helpful, it doesn’t teach the puppy to have no interest in the mulch. In some situations, it can build more desire to interact with mulch.
Learning these skills is absolutely a good idea! But start with a more neutral object, like crumpled paper, then move on to mulch later.
We would not leave a plate of cupcakes on a table with a human toddler. Expecting an average puppy to be responsible with mulch in the yard is unrealistic. “Leave it” might only be effective for a certain period after saying the cue, and you’ll need to repeat it. Instead, we want your puppy not to experience mulch’s joys and have time to develop other outdoor hobbies as he matures.
If the habit is not budging, or you want help building these skills the right way, working with a trainer will get you there faster than going it alone.
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