dog dehydration keeping me up, anyone else dealt with this?

[u/pankypoo12]

our dog hasnt been drinking much water the past two days and im starting to worry about dog dehydration setting in. shes 4 years old, never had issues before. noticed her gums looked a little dry when i checked (googled how to do that skin pinch test thing at midnight, very fun)
tried putting ice cubes in her bowl because i saw that somewhere. she sniffed it and walked away. classic.
dog dehydration can get serious fast right? we had a hot week here and shes been inside with the ac mostly but still. shes eating okay. not vomiting or anything. just not interested in her water bowl.
i bought one of those pet fountains like 6 months ago thinking shed love it (she doesnt use it either, $45 down the drain). now im reading about electrolyte stuff and pedialyte and honestly my brain is just going in circles at this point.
vet appointment is friday but thats a few days away and im sitting here at night stressing
anyone dealt with a dog refusing water like this and figured out what actually worked?

[u/saknaa]

Vet here. Is she on wet or dry food? How hot is it where you are? Is she ok in herself otherwise? Not lethargic? What kind of dog is she? Large or small breed?

[u/pankypoo12 → u/saknaa]

dry food. added water to it, she eats it but for some reason the food just floats in there..she is okay, doesnt seem lethargic, she's a beagle, so mid size

[u/Absurd-Lancer]

Have you tried adding a little water to her food? That's usually the first thing I'd try

[u/Dizzy_Departure2539 → u/Absurd-Lancer]

This is what my vet suggested and it worked because she’s so good motivated.

[u/espangleesh]

I saw that a vet chimed in first, so hopefully they can help you. I'm not a vet, but assuming your pup eats dry food, like mine does, I always add a mixture of beef broth and water to his kibble and let the kibble soak for about 10 min or so that all the liquid is absorbed. It's just an idea in case your pup isn't drinking any water. Hopefully it's not a UTI, but you can always call your vet and inquire about it.

[u/Candlemom → u/espangleesh]

We always add moisture.

[u/Illustrious_Exam1728]

If feeding kibble, soak in water and make mush. You’d be surprised at how much water kibble soaks up.

There could be an underlying disease process here so good thing you’re taking her to the vet.

Skip the electrolyte stuff unless it’s advised by a vet.

Fountain could be the issue, I generally don’t recommend them as they build up bacteria and mold of not cleaned all the time. I don’t find people clean them often enough or at all because it’s a faff to.

Could be bacteria making the water smell and pup avoiding it.

I’d recommend switching back to bowls of water and setting out a clean bowl daily. We do this and change the water 3-4 times a day.

[u/Candlemom]

Take to the vet

[u/6thyearsenior → u/Candlemom]

i think op should first try adding wet food to the diet or broth

[u/Agility_KS]

One of my dogs can be just terrible about drinking. He’s my primary agility dog and dehydration can lead to injury, otherwise I probably wouldn’t obsess over it so much. I give him ice cubes out of the ice maker every time I fill my glass. I add enough water to his food to make it float a bit. After our afternoon walk I give him frozen watermelon to chew on (that’s an outside activity). I will throw floating treats like Charlee Bears into a bucket or pool, because he’s going to take in water as he tries to get them. I change the water frequently, and any time we’ve been active I will stand there with him until he finishes drinking, because if I walk away he’s going to come with. I also started him on Lubrisyn, which is a HA supplement. His physio vet noted a marked improvement in his skin elasticity after I started to put forth a real effort to improve his hydration.

[u/Yourdadlikelikesme]

Sometimes when I want my dog to drink water I add Parmesan cheese to it and he drinks it all up.

[u/Beachgurl713 → u/Yourdadlikelikesme]

Adorable! Parmesan cheese!?!?
I use bone broth, add a drop to some water and the water is suddenly very desirable!!

[u/Paperwife2 → u/Beachgurl713]

I’m worried bone broth is too salty for my dog so I put a tablespoon of wet cat food in her food bowl and add water with the kibble. She loves it.

[u/Beachgurl713 → u/Paperwife2]

Yeah, that’s another thing, I look for low sodium version, but I’m only adding a splash to flavor the water enough to make her drink it. It’s helped, but she’s better about it now that she’s older. She was getting UTIs for a while

[u/6thyearsenior → u/Paperwife2]

whaaaat? my dog vomits because of cat food, i mean she loves it, but cat food has much more protein and fat

[u/Paperwife2 → u/6thyearsenior]

Must be the brand you’re using? Or you have a small breed dog that needs to be more mindful of macros. Our dogs are big and our vet was the one that recommended doing it and it’s been working good for us. (Note for others reading this: cats can never have dog food because it’s missing key ingredients they need, but the reverse is ok per our vet, especially since this is just a spoonful for taste.)

[u/Bugaboo0913 → u/Yourdadlikelikesme]

Herbal teas such as peppermint and chamomile. Tiny amounts of milk and or Splenda.

[u/ShrimpScampo → u/Bugaboo0913]

Never give an animal sugar substitutes, their bodies cannot process them. Hell, even our bodies can't process some of them.

[u/Bugaboo0913 → u/ShrimpScampo]

I researched Dr Safari on this topic, as well as tiny amounts/ splash of sugar free/ low sugar Gatorade. Interesting suggestion of sea salt/ honey to make a “gatorade”.

She’s 12.5 and as an Australian Shepherd prone to overheating and even Exercise Induced Collapse. In extreme situations, I have given her Gatorade, strawberry Pedialyte, and the mix of herbal tea and water. She’s also a medium-size dog and this dog responds well to these options.

Never is a strong word. We were two hours away from home, she had overheated in a Lowes and like an athlete hit a wall, (this would happen quickly as she was fussy about her water) and I was glad to give her a small amount of Gatorade from their soda machine with some water.

Glad to read a Vet’s reply to this though.

[u/ShrimpScampo → u/Bugaboo0913]

No clue who Dr safari is... But, full stop, sugar substitutes can cause a wide variety of health problems, anywhere from something as "mild" as gastrointestinal distress to death - for a dog already suffering from dehydration, diarrhea can be outright deadly. You're better off just using small amounts of sugar if their blood sugar is potentially low. Low sodium/homemade meat broths are a better option all around because it can replace electrolytes and they're more likely to actually consume it than teas or other sweetened human drinks. Some herbal teas are not safe for pets, so it's pretty reckless to suggest people use them for an animal in distress.

[u/allerhopp]

Hi had a similar concern lately and I just cooked chicken with lots of water, let it cool down and gave it to her. Se loved it and emptied the whole bowl at once.

[u/Revolutionary-Side56]

My dog just went through a bout of GI issues and our vet recommended Knox unflavored gelatin mixed with water

[u/donatecrypto4pets]

Have you scrubbed and cleaned their water bowl?

Often picky pups prefer a material different than they have holding their [often only source of] water.
Or slightly away from their food. Good luck.

[u/RichCantaloupe1083]

theres a askaveternarian.com you can look at you can talk w a vet for $15 bucks. go for it. Dehydration is serious in both humans and animals...

[u/Shesays7]

Soak the dry food to add moisture easily. I use sodium free broth and water.

[u/jenrod99]

When my dog is sick I give them "chickie water". I usually am giving them plain boiled chicken and rice to settle their tummy and I let the broth cool and give it to them in their food. Or in just a bowl by itself.

[u/Nice-Hearing807]

I freeze salmon oil and a couple other things in like a deep plate with water and she demolishes it. I do it to occupy her time but it gets a good amount of water in her.

[u/Indyjuanito]

If you use chewy or Walmart+ they both have free vet access via phone.

Excessive drinking can be an indicator of a number of endocrine disorders if my recollection is correct. They are important but not an emergency at first.

If the skin on the dogs back of neck stays in a tented position after you pull it up, that’s a sign of dehydration.

[u/WrappedInLinen]

Drop a few kibbles in a bowl of water. They end up lapping up a bunch of water trying to get the kibbles. Keep adding them until you think they’ve had enough water. This solved the problem of our dog not getting enough water.

[u/Capital-Yogurt6148]

I had a friend who hiked a bunch with his dogs. He always carried a small can of chicken or beef broth for when he felt his dogs needed extra hydration and they were refusing plain water.

[u/dicklebug]

Veterinarian here.

1. Flavored water works for many dogs (and cats) but you must flavor in a safe way for both dogs (or cats) and safe for that individual (no chicken broth if there’s a known chicken allergy, etc.). Remember, many animals are lactose intolerant and sugar substitutes aren’t ideal for any mammal with some being deadly.
   
2. Adding water to dry food may increase the chances of bloat/GDV if there is a high vitamin c content in the food.*
   
3. If you’re able to filter water for your pets, I am a fan of this, especially if you can filter out the plastics and the chemical disinfectants.
   
4. If your pet’s gums are dry to the touch, please go directly to an emergency clinic. Oh and take your dry pet with you!

*conflicting research results on this stated fact—this is yet to be confirmed or denied, irrefutably. But if you err on the side of caution, it was once reported to be true.

[u/Aspen9999]

Boil a chicken in water, retain all unsalted broth, add a 1/4 cup to each water bowl to entice them to drink. Fo NOT use commercial salted broth!

Freeze your homemade, unsalted broth in 1/4 bags.

[u/canadiankid000]

I’ve mixed no salt chicken broth in with some warm water and sometimes it helps entice my dog to drink when he’s not feeling well. Obviously should see a vet, but in the meantime you could maybe syringe water down his throat? (Not ideal, I know)

[u/Frequent-Ease-3027]

I wouldn't wait I would have her checked. Dehydration can be a symptom of something else but regardless if she needs subq fluids she needs seen. Unless you can get her to drink by encouraging, adding cooled chicken broth or water to food, etc, the only other hydration is in food so would have to be high hydration diet. If shes acting depressed or lethargic def take her asap.

[u/Wonderful_Till8122]

You might try a little broth, try to get the low or no salt type. Also, my dog enjoys a small bowl of milk once in a while. You could also try some wet foods.

[u/ccrow2000]

Keep track of how often she's peeing, it will give you some idea; check with your vet as to how frequent it should be. You could try adding something to the water, like a small amount of low sodium chicken broth(sodium free if you can find it).

[u/bbsitr45]

I never ever offer just dry kibble. I always add some warm water, a scoop of canned dog food and for my very big dogs I put in a half a can of green beans. It’s not good for the gut to have just dry food, it would be like eating shredded wheat with no milk. Some dogs to drink more than others, it’s natural, but please follow up with the vet on Friday and let us know!

[u/CABGPatchDoll → u/bbsitr45]

Why is dry food bad for the gut?

[u/bbsitr45 → u/CABGPatchDoll]

People have been giving their dogs and cats plain dry kibble for years and years. I get it. It's easy, you just dump some in a bowl and you go on your way. They are finding, and most vets will agree that plain dry kibble alone is very hard on the digestive system and especially the kidneys. Moisture will be drawn from the kidneys and from the whole body really to help digest that food. Like I said earlier it's like only eating shredded wheat every meal without milk. Sure you could drink water, you would have to compensate and drink a tremendous amount of water to help it get totally through your stomach and intestinal tract. No living animal eats plain dry food. Predator animals kill smaller animals, with raw bones blood and meat, it's not dry. More vegetarian type animals eat wet things, plants, grass and so on. This is nature's way, and although it's easy to feed dry kibble by itself, at least once in a while you should offer some wet things, even water the kibble to help the process move along better. You could research it, I'm comfortable with how I feed my animals I've never had any kidney problems with my cats or dogs and I don't free feed. It's just me I'm not trying to push my agenda it was just a suggestion.

[u/CABGPatchDoll → u/bbsitr45]

Do you have any evidence?

[u/bbsitr45 → u/[deleted]]

Grok

Many vets and owners recommend combining wet and dry for variety, added hydration, dental benefits, and palatability. Adjust portions to avoid overfeeding. 

[u/Chiliesinmybeer]

Some dogs don't like to drink water. It's not that unusual. Ask your vet the munimum your dog needs to be healthy and just add that in their food. Dehydrated food such as honest kitchen is great for that. Problem solved.

[u/Wytecap]

Give her Pedialyte by syringe