“Sometimes I notice my dog drinking lots of water (more than usual). Other times she drinks less.”
Maybe your doggie is gulping her “normal” amount but it seems like an awful lot. How come?
“Is over-drinking unhealthy for my canine companion?”
I've listed lots of reasons your pet might be slurping excess water below. Also, Nimble and I devoted special sections to dog food diet-related thirst (near bottom of page). Likewise with the following section about thirst caused by dog diseases.
Your dog should consume about 1 oz of water per pound in a 24 hour period. This is the norm according to the experts. As far as I'm concerned, this is the norm for a dog on a processed commercial dog food diet. If you're feeding raw dog food, it will be much less (more on this down below).
Often, a dog drinking lots of water is caused by a disease. Excessive water consumption (polydipsia) can lead to increased urination (polyuria). Here's some diseases that cause abnormal thirst...
Many of these illnesses causing excessive thirst can be very serious... they should be addressed as soon as possible.
Here's a number of other reasons your doggy might start lapping up extra water...
I say “if” because she doesn't do these things...
Ha... that's what you think... arf! Nimble.
... then Nimble guzzled water after eating these dry, processed dog treats. I made sure I took her for extra potty walks!
Only you can make that choice. I'm not an experienced doggy doctor. Some of the circumstances above require medical attention because of a serious underlying chronic condition. Also, serious acute conditions might require a trip to your dog's vet.
Paying attention to early symptoms can save your dog a lot of suffering resulting in a quicker recovery. Furthermore, healthy dogs (Nimble's super healthy... bragging again!) will recover quicker than an unhealthy pooch.
Others can be treated at home. I'm not one to take Nimble to the vet every time she sneezes (I used to with my other dog!).
The following pages (links) will help you make choices. They're
about dog upset stomach home remedies but are relevant to this page. Dog upset tummies lead to a bad case of the squirts and a dog drinking lots of water. Here's some natural remedies
for dogs that work...
Your dog should never become dehydrated... this is a
life-threatening situation. A dog throwing up water and food can become dehydrated... please tap here to learn more.
Bottom line... if in doubt, please have your pooch examined. Better safe than sorry!
...after switching him from raw dog food to a processed dog food diet?”
Your pooch's body is made up of 75-80% water (like ours). Likewise
with raw veggies, fruit and meat. While feeding your pal raw dog
food, you'll notice she drinks much less than the neighbor's dog
surviving on processed dog vittles. But, she probably pees just as
often.
Want to learn more about feeding your pal the best raw dog food? Good... tap here for a healthier dog!
Aha! You're noticing how easy it is for your neighbor to “prepare” his dog's meals. Open up the bag, pour into a bowl... presto! You spend hours shopping (burning up your tires), preparing, feeding and storing.
It gets the best of you... time for a change (you didn't even ask
your dog!). Is there something about barf (raw) dog food you're not crazy about? Click here to tell your story... we'll publish it as a page on our site!
All complaining aside... Nimble (and I) love our dog feeding schedule. We wouldn't have it any other way... we'll share it with you!
After a couple days, you wonder "Is my dog drinking lots of water?" Yes... she is! This is because the processed dog vittles has most (or all) the water cooked out of it.
It's much healthier for your furry companion to “eat his
water”...the way mother nature intended. And, this water is
purified! Furthermore...
Your dog's body (and yours) will retain extra water due to improper dog diet and lifestyle. More on that here... just tap this. This leads to...
When your pooch eats chow with all the water cooked out of it (along with the nutrients)...
She'll continually suck her water bowl dry because...
Her body needs to stay hydrated for maintaining that 75-80% water
composition.
extra water is needed to flush out toxins from not eating a healthy
dog food diet. Also, other elements from an unhealthy lifestyle
need to get the boot!
As a result, your dog will pack extra water which may be diagnosed as
“overweight.” I call this water-logged.
Please be aware that chugging water while gulping food may lead to dog bloat symptoms. This can lead to dangerous stomach-twisting!
Increased drinking may be caused by hording the water bowl before another “competitor” slurps it down. I know canines gobble food for this reason... their systems are designed for this. It's an instinct passed down from their ancestors.
A neglected dog may drink more... this could become a habit. Finally, a stressed dog may gulp more than normal.
Gulping water occasionally may be perfectly normal for your canine... other times not.
Know what's normal for your dog. Also, reading this article and other information will help you make a quick decision...
“Should I take my doggie to the vet or not?” Does your dog need medical attention? If so, a quick decision will result in a faster recovery and less suffering.
Or, quickly deciding your pooch is ok is peace of mind. You won't
need to put that trip on hold... just keep loading up your car for
that fishing trip!
Our website is a work in progress! We'd love it (and so would your dog) if you returned regularly to check out all our new articles. We can't wait to expand on the topics above!
Also, we'll
include our highly recommended products for you and your dog to
choose from... only those we have used or would use ourselves. Also...
Be sure to check out Scott & Nimble's News Flash for monthly helpful tips and other neat stuff!
Nimble & I always reply to our visitors' comments below asap!
But... all of you who commented before April 14th, 2023 vanished and Facebook can't fix this so...
I'm "re-replying" (arf!). All comments from this moment forward will be posted forever (we love hearing from you).
Scott & Nimble.
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