You found your dog chasing and eating bees in the garden and was worried about his safety. He could have suffered from bee stings and got a nasty allergic reaction due to the bee venom.
You don’t know what he is up to and want to know more about what is causing him to behave this way.
Your dog is eating bees for various reasons, such as his natural instinct to go after “moving” things, he likes the taste of the bees, to get rid of bees humming around his ears, seeking revenge from the bees for biting him, to ease his boredom by chasing them, protecting you from bees stung or to make up for his nutrient deficiency.
Natural Instinct To Go After Moving Things
It is not surprising to see dogs chasing after moving objects such as cars, bicycles, cows, sheep, cats, squirrels, birds, snakes and bees, as their natural instinct is to pursue their prey.
This behavior has been known since ancient times when they were taught to hunt for their prey in the wild to survive.
This instinctive act never goes away even when they are now well taken care of by their owners.
So, when your dog is chasing after the bees and eating them, he is just doing what his instinct had “told” him to do!
He Likes The Taste Of The Bees
Your dog could have eaten bees before and find the taste and the pleasant crispy texture to be appealing.
This grows his interest in catching and eating them whenever he gets the chance to do so.
He sees them as his source of protein and calories and that drives his prey instinct to hyper mode.
This is certainly a behavior that you ought to correct your dog immediately, as he may develop an allergic reaction due to a bee sting.
Signs to look for when he is stung by a bee include swelling of his eyes, mouth and face, excessive drooling, pale gums, diarrhea and vomiting.
What you can do is to make sure that your dog doesn’t get to see the bees and that will reduce his chances of eating them.
If your dog only encounters bees during his walks, changing his walking route would be an approach to stop this behavior. He can’t eat the bees if they disappear from his sight!
Or if bees are present in your garden, you can plant some bee-repelling plants such as cloves, mint, eucalyptus or neem in the garden to repel the bees.
These plants don’t need much maintenance and can easily be grown in pots.
Irritated By Bee Humming Around His Ears
Your dog feels disturbed by the annoying bees that keep humming around his ears.
These bees are a bother to your dog, and he tries to get rid of them by eating them.
Your dog’s irritation may be from the fact that he doesn’t like the noise the bees make, or he is making his “revenge” to them from biting him previously.
If your dog is really bothered by the bees, you should do what you can to keep the bees away from him by applying bee repellent spray on him.
This will help to keep the bees away from him and free him from those buzzing sounds!
He Is Trying to Protect You from the Bees
One of the main reasons why dogs are highly sought after for adopting at home is because of their loyalty to their owners.
Dogs are known to be caring and will protect their owners from harm.
Your dog sees that there are bees flying around you and, based on his experience, he knows that it would be painful to get stung by them.
So he tries to protect you from being harmed and the way to do this will be to eat them.
That explains why he is eating the bees.
Nutrient Deficiency In His Diet Make Him Eats Bees
What would your dog do to get the nutrients that his body needs if you have not been feeding him a balanced diet?
Well, he will try to get them by eating other foods that he can grab hold of.
So it is not surprising to see your dog eating “food” that he believes is rich in protein and is beneficial to his body.
Usually, animals such as mice, rabbits, birds and incest will be his preference if he can get his mouth on them.
It is important that you do not merely feed your dog with those dry commercial kibble that you bought from the pet store.
Though these commercial foods have been specially formulated for dogs, they certainly cannot match those raw diets that are going to be more beneficial to their well-being.
So make it a point to offer your dog a raw diet that comprises organ meats, raw eggs, fresh fruits and veggies along with a dairy product such as a few teaspoons of cow or goat milk or yogurt at least twice a week.
Depending on factors such as the breed of your dog, his age, size, gender and activeness, you will need to make adjustments to what to feed him, how much and how often he will need to eat.
The best way to do this is to keep a log of all the food and treats that you are feeding him and how much he eats.
You should also keep a record of the weight of your dog and compare it to the weight of other dogs of the same breed and size.
This will give you an idea of how much your dog needs to eat.
If your dog has special needs, ask your veterinarian about what is best for him.
He Is Doing It Out Of Boredom
When your dog is left with nothing to keep him busy, he will find ways to entertain himself.
If he is in the house, you will see him chewing on your furniture or shoes, scratching the floor or digging in your trash.
If he is outdoors, he will eat the mud, dig the garden or chase after bees or birds that fly past him to keep himself occupied.
He likes the “victory” of being able to get hold of the bees and eats them once they are in his mouth since they are just another form of food to him.
To prevent your dog from eating the bees (which can potentially cause him allergies), you should only let him roam in areas where there are no bees around and apply bee repellent to him to keep the bees away.