What does pica mean?
It is important to differentiate between destructive chewing where multiple objects are targeted and true pica. Pica is an abnormal craving to eat none food items, or unusual foods. The causes of pica are numerous, brain lesions involving the hypothalamus and extreme nutritional deficiencies have been associated with this disorder. Stress and obsessive compulsive disorder may also be contributing factors. Veterinary advice must be sought in this instance to establish the cause of the problem it may be necessary for a complete blood count to access the performance of organ function to rule out any underlying diseases such as a low red blood cell count seen with iron deficiency anaemia for instance .
