# Drinking too much water?



## Darlene (Oct 12, 2012)

My boy is 2 and 6lbs. He stays in his crate all day with no water or food and has had this routine ever since day one. Here lately it seems he has been drinking his water so fast that an hour or so later or the next morning he throws it up not all the water but some. I can hear him some times and it sounds like he is just gulping it all down. In the evenings should I not let him have so much water at once just give it to him like every 30-45 minutes or so?


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## Aquarius (May 8, 2009)

A dog should have access to water 24 hours a day. There is no reason why you should withold water during the day?

Two things I can think of is one that he is so thirsty from not having access during the day that he is the making the most of it in the evenings. Or two - I'd wonder might he have diabetes where excessive drinking can be a symptom.

Let him have water 24 hours a day and see how he is doing after a day or two - if he is still gulping and getting up water - bring him to a vet immediately to get checked out.

Welcome to the forum by the way


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## michele (Jan 12, 2009)

I agree with above,dogs need water 24 hours a day.They can get dehydrated so easily especially if fed kibble


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## woodard2009 (Aug 4, 2010)

Or he's gulping it up knowing that he won't get any more. These little dogs can get dehydrated really quick & it could be fatal.


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## miuccias (Aug 22, 2012)

I think so too. Before I got my chis I read a lot of this: "limit the amount of water if not at home and remove the water source at night" I found similar advices everywhere, I thought it was madness (just my opinion)
my puppies have access to water all day and night, I change it twice a day.
They do have accidents, are not 100% pad trained, yet, but I feel better this way.
again, please this is just my opinion. 


Sent from my iPhone using PG Free


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## omguthrie (Oct 13, 2009)

If you are worried about him drinking a lot at once during the day and needing to pee while in his crate right after you leave, try putting a smallish amount of water in his bowl and freezing it before putting it in with him. That way he can lick it to slack his thirst but doesn't get to drink big gulps so that he has to pee right away. That is a trick used a lot with dogs being shipped in airplanes where you want them to be able to wet their mouths and get some water but you don't want them to soil their crates.

If you really think he is drinking too much a vet visit is in order. I had a foster puppy one time who would stand at the water bowl and drink so much that you could watch her belly blow up with water til she was as fat as a tick. She would drink until she physically couldn't hold any more and would regurgitate water and then drink more. This would continue for an hour or more unless I stepped in to stop her. She came from a puppy mill past where she didn't have access to clean food or water and never knew when she would get it again. I had to train her to take a few sips of water and then leave the bowl and go back if she was still thirsty. Took some time but she learned that water would be around. This is an extreme example but we did have her checked for diabetes and kidney problems before deciding on a behavioral problem.


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## ~LS~ (Oct 29, 2011)

I agree with Jane. Great advice.


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## KrystalLeigh (Aug 17, 2011)

Is the reason you withhold food and water during the day to keep him from going to the bathroom? How long is all day? We've found that as long as we give Odie an outside break before we go to sleep, even if she has food and water on our bed's foot board and eats/drinks during the night, she can hold it until the morning. 

Is he trained to go outside only or on pee pads? If he's trained to go on pee pads and you're worried about him going to the bathroom in his crate when he has constant access to water, you could buy a small playpen and put his crate and a pee pad in it so he can do his business. If he has constant access to water and you still notice an increased thirst, I would get a blood panel done. One of our dogs drank excessively, and he was diagnosed with cushing's disease.


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## Darlene (Oct 12, 2012)

Thankyou everyone. He is not pad trained he is trained to only go outside. What I don't understand is that i have had him for 2 years and this has never been an issue before. I will try leaving a little water in his cage when I leave it is not a pen it is a dog cage for him to sleep in. I will change up some things and if it does not help I will then take him to the vet.


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## ~LS~ (Oct 29, 2011)

Darlene, keep us posted on how things turn out, if you can.


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## Darlene (Oct 12, 2012)

*Update so far*

I changed out my little man's water bowl to a smaller one and just gave hima little at a time and split his dinner into 2 sessions and he did not throw up at all. This morning after our walk he even ate his dry food I put down for him to have befoe Ileft for work. I was just so excited that we had no issue. I will do it again today and tomorrow he is off to get neutered so this weekend will be all about loving on him. I am nervous but know it needs to be done for his sake.

Thank you all for your words of help.


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