Posted by Waste Happy on September 10, 2026

How Much Does a Australian Shepherd Poop?

Quick answer: an adult Australian Shepherd weighs 40 to 65 pounds and produces roughly 3.8 to 9.4 ounces of stool a day on dry kibble. That is about 2.2 to 5.5 ounces per pile, and 87 to 214 pounds a year.

How we worked that out

How much a dog produces tracks how much it eats, and how much it eats scales with body weight, but not in a straight line. Vets estimate a dog's daily energy need as 70 times its weight in kilograms raised to the 0.75 power, which means small dogs eat more per pound than big ones, and so produce more per pound too. We ran each breed's weight range through that formula, divided by the energy in typical dry kibble, and applied the measured ratio of stool to food eaten. As a check, the model predicts 62 to 105 grams a day for a 19 pound beagle, and lab beagles of that weight on kibble measured 90 grams.

For a Australian Shepherd, that comes to about 0.56 to 0.95 percent of body weight a day. How often a dog goes does not really depend on breed. Most adult dogs go about once a day, and two or three times is normal (PetMD). Diet and fiber drive frequency far more than breed does. So a big breed does not need more bags than a small one. It needs bigger, tougher ones.

Diet moves the numbers a lot. In one study of lab beagles, dogs on fresh cooked food produced about 38 percent less stool than on kibble, and dogs on raw diets about 56 to 59 percent less (source). Every figure on this page assumes dry kibble.

What Australian Shepherd owners should know

About 50% of Australian Shepherds carry the MDR1 (ABCB1) drug-sensitivity mutation (WSU estimate). Dogs with the mutation can have neurologic effects from loperamide (Imodium), a common human anti-diarrheal. (source)
Hereditary cobalamin (B12) malabsorption has been confirmed or suspected in Australian Shepherds. (source)

Any sudden change in your dog's stool, especially with vomiting, lethargy or blood, is a reason to call your vet rather than wait. Our dog poop color chart covers what the common changes can mean.

Cleanup with a Australian Shepherd

AKC standard: the backs of the forelegs and the britches are moderately feathered. Britches sit right at the rear; a sanitary trim helps.

How the Australian Shepherd compares

Of the 60 breeds we covered, the Australian Shepherd ranks #23 for daily output. Here it is beside the breeds closest to it in size:

Breed	Adult weight	Daily output
Samoyed	35 to 65 lb	3.5 to 9.4 oz
Vizsla	44 to 60 lb	4.1 to 8.8 oz
Australian Shepherd	40 to 65 lb	3.8 to 9.4 oz
Basset Hound	40 to 65 lb	3.8 to 9.4 oz
Wirehaired Pointing Griffon	35 to 70 lb	3.5 to 9.9 oz

What that means for the bag

This is where the bag genuinely matters. Large and giant breeds produce softer, wetter stool than small dogs on the same food, because of a longer colon and slower transit (source). Soft and heavy is the worst combination for a thin bag. You want one thick enough that you cannot feel warmth through it, and long enough to tie off well above the load. Ours are extra thick and 14 inches long, against the 13 inches most brands sell.

For your own number of bags, the bag quiz gives it to you, and how many poop bags you need shows the math.

Common questions