Water, Water, Water
Should I be concerned about the massive amounts of water being consumed in one sitting? Or is this just normal and a sign that my boy just loves his water (better than my shoes)? Thanks. |
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| I don't think drinking to much is a problem but I'm no expert. Cooper is 13 months old and drinks about 5-6 GIANT bowls of water per day. |
| Thanks for the response. In my experience I would expect this if it was hot out or we had been out for a brisk play/walk. But it's barely above freezing here and just was a little shocked at his consumption. I'll keep giving him his water (in the structure of his house training) |
| Restricting water intake and feeding dry dog food leads to many organ failures. It is not recommended, even for potty training. It can slowly damage the dog's kidneys and liver. It can cause cystosis and bladder infections which can scar the bladder and damage the kidneys. It can lead to painful kidney stones and make your dog prone to infections. It could even contribute to him overheating, even in the winter.
To properly potty train, the dog needs to be hydrated. To give him only 2 chances a day to drink may lead to stomach torsion and bloating. If he is ever dead when you come back, don't say you were not warned. I have had a neighbor do this to her dog and thought it was very cruel as I helped her bury the dog, but I did not say anything except it usually happens when a dog is only alowed to drink a limited number of times a day. Living organisms need a constant source of hydration. A lot comes from what you eat, as well as from what you drink. A crated dog does not get to munch on grass or find other hydrated food sources, so should be allowed to drink freely ALL DAY long. You could restrict it at night with no harm done if the dog gets it during the day. Never leave food all day long. But DO leave FRESH WATER available at all possible times. Especially for a growing pup. I drink a gallon of water a day. If you are afraid of accidents, don't be. They happen. Just put a bath towel down and wash it when it happens. NO dog WANTS to LAY in its urine, so do not worry. Have faith. The dog will (and needs to be given the chance to) learn to pace its drinking after a few days. He will learn not to drink any more than he can hold in a 4 hour period. I promise. Have faith in your dog and let him drink. Otherwise he's going to start vomiting that water on you every once in a while, and then he may actually start getting sick! By the time his kidneys are invovled it's going to be a lot harder on both of you. Please let him drink! |
| I really have to second that idea!!! Puppies need water, Pisco always has his bowl full of water and if I have to leave him alone I usually leave 2 bowls of water full.
Maybe he is drinking that amount at one sitting because he is not able to drink freely so when he can do it he does it in that way...and this can begin to cause serious damage to his organs. I don`t know haw big is a crate since I never needed one for Pisco (plus they are not sold here) but if there isn`t room for a mediun size bowl in it at least put a drinking pipet (like the hamsters`except but for dogs) Vero. |
| I believe some of you have gotten the wrong idea and picture us not giving our dog any water. He is fed four times a day. Has water at each meal, along with a small bowl in his crate while he is in there. Also the water is still down for him after he comes in from playing/walking outside. Feeding and giving them water in a structured timeframe is a consistent and well documented method of housetraining. If he was only getting water twice a day I would have understood that he was trying to get as much water as possible b/c he didn't know when the next bowl would come. We are an athletic family, who understand the importance of water not only to an athlete's performance but to your everyday life.
My question was based on having the bowl down all the time (before the house training) him just parking himself in front of the bowl and seemingly not come up for air until it was all gone. Then I would just refill it and soon he would be back at the bowl. Just to add to the conversation, after further research, besides just a sign of being thirsty, I found that excessive water drinking can as simple as a sign of bordom or as troubling as an early sign of diabetes (for dogs and humans). I have come to the conclussion that since he loves the water in his bowl, along with sticking his head in the shower while I am in there, my guy just LOVES water. Maybe I will buy him a slip-n-slide. |
| Sorry I came on so strong.
I have met people who limit water intake to potty train their kids and pets. It seems wrong in so many ways. But if he is getting water 4 times a day, then this is not true in your case. And I apologize for coming on so strong. It is hard to actually know for sure when you are reading a post over. Excessive drinking can be a sign of trouble as YOU, Vero, And I have all mentioned. If he is urinating constantly also, it can even be a sign of a bladder infection or kidney problems, as well. It can even mean he is getting too much protein, not enough potassium or other nutrient, or too much salt. If his urinating is quick and not abnormally frequent, he is probaly just hot and growing. When they pant the lose a lot of water. Yes, some dogs just love water. Sucking it down all at once can lead to him up-chucking it a few minutes later also. Abbi did this a few times and I began giving her only a quart at a time. I did not want her to chronically vomit, it is bad for their throats and can become like a habit. Overindulgence in anything can have consequences. Please do not take the comments to heart. We love having new members and new ideas. Our ideas and opinions are NOT the only ones that matter. Maybe I should go back and edit my earlier response, I was worried that water was being with held and not given on an ongoing basis. Dogs will usually meter out how much they drink if they know it is always available. Thanks for clearing up your original question. FYI: We have a slip and slide and Abbi does not like it, but will chase the girls all the way down it and bark at this little bridge thingy that sprays water on them as they pass it. She is so funny. I worry she will tear it up, but so far she just runs back and forth with the girls, who of course spray her. |
| Jack and Annabelle use to drink water like it might be their last one, but now that they are getting older they have figured out that there will always be more water to come. We keep 2 bowls down so that we know that water will be there even if we are gone for a few hours. We take up water at 10:00pm and they go for last bathroom break at 11:00pm. They get water back at 7:00am. It has worked well for potty training. I don't know if now that they are potty trained if I should now leave water in there at night now. If someone has an idea on that I would love to hear it.
Jack and Annabelle do the same thing with our kids slip and slide. They run and chase the kids all the way down and bark. Then they stop for a little bit and look like they are trying to bite the water as it sprays. It is very funny and good cheap entertainment. They were a lot littler this summer and didn't do any damage to it, but now that they have grown so much I figure we will have a few holes from their claws. They love their little wading pool. They will just hop around in it, and they love it when you throw the ball in it so they can chase it! I am looking very forward to this summer and playing with the kids and puppers! |
Sorry....I think I went quite strong before......
It seems your puppy is getting enough water....he just loves it that`s all. I know many people restrict the water intake for house training....but I really never needed it for Pisco, he has always have a lot of water to drink day or night...and he only had 3 accidents in the house in all his 10 months...the only time he did it was on purpose....yep...we had left him alone in the house for more than usual...and when we got home...he had behaved very well....nothing broken, no pee anywhere (when we leave him we leave the door to an enclosed patio open, he knows he can go there if he needs to)...so we took him out , when we got home he just went to sleep...as we did....I was woken up at 1 am by him...I could tell he wanted me to follow him....so I did and he just lead me to a big puddle and poop on the living room.....and yes he got grounded for that...after ungrounding him he waited for an hour to do the same thing....he did this 3 times that night until I realize he did it because he was mad at me for leaving him alone for so long....so sat down and petted him, played with him for a bit...end of the problem...he never did that again. |
| Grizzy my 4 month old is also drinking lots of water. I am home with my kids all day and he has unlimited water but he also drinks like its his last.I know this can be a sign of a health problems. He is going to see the vet tomarrow and i am going to ask him about it I will let you know what he has to say. |
| Thanks for the replies. Don't worry about the tone of your response. Everyone wants the OES' of this forum to be happy and healthy. |
I don't really know how much water Shanti drinks as I am always changing his bowl when the water is dirty (well, it isfrequently dirty  ). During the day a leave the bowl on the patio. If I go outside for more than 2 hours or so, I leave the bowl in the kitchen knowing that he will pee there.  (yes, he has a spot in the kitchen to pee, even I would like him to hold till I return... he never learnt that  )
During the night, I used to have the bowl outside, but Shanti always woke me up to let him out, not for peeing, to drink water, and he would pee inside the house , so lately before bed I put the water away...! |
| I was worried about the same thing too, so I had a word with my vet. She confirmed that as long as I give Merlin water once every 3 hours, it should be fine. Also, when I come home from walks with him, I'd give him some ice cubes as well to cool him down. I stop giving him water after 10pm, and I walk him once around 11pm. He manages to hold till around 6.30am. The vet says that is a good sign that he has no kidney problems, cos he would not be able to hold for such a long period otherwise. As for the day, he still puddles every 2 hours or so. I am monitoring it for a while longer. It could be because he gets to drink more, or he may not have proper control of his bladder yet. Vet says if he goes too frequently, I should just collect a urine sample and send it to her to check for any infections. Hope this info helps whoever out there with the same worries as me! |
| There is a self filling water 10,20,30 and I think 40 gallon jug you can get. The way it is set up O2 comes from the top so it is accually fresh water constantly. So you don't have to change it so often. My conern about your dog drinking so much is essesive water intack is a common symtom of many diseases like diabietes, kidney and liver problems allergies and more that she should really be checked out by a vet. Good luck! |
| We were also concerned with the proper amount of water our puppy should be getting in a day. For potty training our breeder told us to limit the amount of water we give her to 2 oz. at 7am, 10am, 12 noon, 3pm, 5pm, 7pm and finally at 9pm. As she gets better at holding it, and grows, we can then start increasing the amount of water we give her.
We were a little worried about this amount as she would lap it up so quickly, but the potty training was going alot better. We asked our Vet her opinion and she said our doggie was getting enough water and gave us a formula for calculating the required amount of water as follows: 2-3ml/kg/hr. or .03-.05oz/lb./hr. Our puppy, at 15 lbs. x .04oz x 24hrs. = 14.4oz., so I guess the breeder was right (always trust a good breeder). Obviously this wouldn't apply to times of the year when there is excessive heat, but it seems a good starting point. |
| Any updates on his water consumption? Did you ever get that Slip-n-Slide? lol |
| No slip-n-slide yet!
I think he is part fish with all the water he takes in, but I am not too concerned about it anymore. I do spend a lot of time at home sitting in puddles on my chair or having wet spots all over my pants. I think the big guy needs to wear a bib! |
| el gato:
did you just get this pup recently? is it possible he/she is not used to the fact that you are kind people and will always provide water, and so as a precaution drinks whatever is around? jack guzzled water for the first few weeks in my home, we figured he just liked the water  but now he will take it easy, he still lays near the bowl, but at least now he's aware of the outside world while he does it.  |
| He's 8 months old now and have had him since he ws 8 weeks. When I originally posted this I was just a little concerned that he was drinking like a freshman at their first fraternity party. But now I have just come to the conclussion that he will drink his fill, let out a huge belch and walk away like nothing happened. |
| oops....didn't read the dates on the posts...
he sounds funny |
| I just want to say that I for one was absolutely shocked when I got my 8 week old puppy home and saw the amount he could drink. No matter the amount you give him, he drinks it ALL and cries in pain afterwards while he has accidents all through the house. My vet was worried it was diabetes, so he put Cooper through $400 of urine and blood testing only to find out that its probably "behavioral". Since then, I have talked to many vets and found that the reason he probably hoards his water is because he was in a Humane Society and probably wasn't getting adequate water since there are so many other pups there. I now limit his intake (he's now 38 lbs) to 8 cups a day and many ice cubes as treats. He has been successfully housetrained and I have been told that he'll get over this by the time he is socially mature (by 18 months). So, not to worry! |
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