Water consumption...

[moto1320]

I'm wondering, how much water consumption is normal. Doc drinks an ungodly amount of water. I am of the opinion of the more the better since it's good for the body. I know that excessive drinking can be signs of other problems though. Anything I should look out for?

Also, Doc is not housebroken and I just spent an hour cleaning my rugs as a result of this. It's just like keeping up with a puppy with him. He'll set a record for longest whiz and then an hour later have to go just as much again. :roll: I am obviously going to have to restrict the water amount but don't want it to be too much.

Daisy drinks just as much as she has too and I don't wan't her being thirsty because Doc can't limit himself and I took the water off the floor. To me thirst is the worst feeling.

[damienApbt]

my boy rods a drinker too. if there is water he will drink it . i cant take him in the fountain at the park any more cause he drinks the entire time. he loves the water but i have to cut down on how much he is in it. he'll pee the entire walk home from the park like every couple minutes. then when i come home he'll pee in the house. if i put him in the crate he creates a dogmade lake in there. he'll do that all day.

when i used to take him to the park, people would always fill up the water bowl for him. i have to drag him away from it, and people would say "but hes thirsty" when i know that he'll be there all day if people keep filling it up. i only give rod water when he needs it, after walks or playing or if he paws at an empty bowl. other wise i'd have to follow him around with a bucket.

edit: although in the house hes not as bad. rod never seems thirsty he just keeps drinking. if your boy always looks thirsty may be you could mention to your vet. im no vet but isnt it usually a sign of liver problems.. or was that kidney. i was worried about it too but my boys not too persistant to always have water. may be he just has a bad habit to hit the bottle a bit too much

[concreterose]

My dogs drink a lot of water too. The puppy is pretty active and is always chewing on something, and older dogs sometimes drink a lot of water too. I wouldn't restrict him drinking it, unless you want to take it up maybe a couple hours before he goes to sleep. Just make sure you take him out regularly. He may even stop drinking as he gets used to being with you and settles down. He's probably just still real excited!

[jmann4]

I wouldn't limit access to water. Honey is a serious drinker (average of 2 minutes at the bowl!) and I have found that she doesn't drink as often as Angel does.

Does he drink a lot of water and then go a while without any?

[barbponys]

Excessive water consumption is often a sign of kidney issues. They can be damaged by bacterial infections you don't even know your dog has fought off. Another sign is really diluted urine, if in the am his first pee is not concentrated........ get a sample and take it in. If it's too concentrated, same deal, get it checked. If there's an odd odor that's another sign. My dogs only drink as much as they need, no more. My pug more than my pit but he's less tolerant of the heat.

Giving water with their meals, after excercise and a few hours before bed time should be enough. If it's really hot, limiting isn't such a good idea. Drinking too much can actually wash out nutrients, they don't get the chance to be absorbed, they get pee'd out. So letting them have as much as they want isn't good. JMO.

Pat

[moto1320]

Thanks guys, I've been trying to check. It does seem that his urine is a little diluted. I just want to be as informed as possible to know what to ask for. It's not that he's really thirsty and chills out. He'll just keep going. He emptied out a two qt. bowl almost 4 times after walking around the block yesterday, on top of everything else he drank that day. I drink tons of water myself and he is still surpassing me at 52 lbs-almost 1/4 of my weight. He never has some, always all of the water available. I'm taking him in to the vet again anyway to get his legs checked out, something's still not right. I'm having him x-rayed for problems and having Daisy done too, to get a PennHip checkout before we step up our exercise anymore or consider weight pull.

[pocketpit]

I've been going through the same thing for quite some time now with our female, Dice. Constantly having to crate her when unsupervised for fear (no, make that knowledge) that she'll pee in the house. Constantly having to wash dog blankets and clean up large puddles in her crate. At first I thought it might have to do with her bedding (I had a dog once that would soil it's crate if there was bedding in it) so I eliminated that thinking that might fix the problem. Wrong!
I've had a urinalysis (actually several) done and ruled out the possibility of a bladder infection and ran blood work to check her kidney function. All normal. There are some dogs who's kidney work, but are unable to concentrate urine. Having the specific gravity checked on several different samples will help rule this out. If two or more samples are tested and still are not concentrated then a water deprivation test can be done to further narrow down other causes. My dog just suffers from physcogenic polyuria/polydipsia. Which in laymans terms means it's all in her head! She just has some mental need to drain buckets and then her bladder! In cases like this water limitation is useful. I've learned to limit her water intake before bed time (or any other time she may be confined for a long period) and just let her out frequently otherwise.