# Obsessive water consumption/urination



## mojosmum (May 20, 2005)

How about taking the water bowls away and giving them ice cubes to hydrate. You can make sure that Brandy only gets very tiny cubes while the other two get big cubes. 

How did you find this other vet? and does he have any suggestions for you?


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## Brandy's Mom (Oct 5, 2005)

Great idea in theory. I've tried the ice once before and she spread them all over the house. Also, I hate to dictate when the others can have water for fear it might cause them to feel like they need to gobble it up as well! And it's nearly impossible to keep Brandy from the others' water supply. 

I was referred to this clinic by our trainer. She said the water consumption problem is usually treated by limiting access to water. But with three dogs, she agreed that may be impossible.


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## monomer (Apr 21, 2005)

If the pH is too high then you should be able to lower it my adding cider vinegar to the drinking water and it shouldn't do your other animals any harm... in fact, I'm told dogs love vinegar water. Mind you, I haven't done the research on this topic but I do remember that many, many holistic and raw food advocates are always recommending acidifying your dog's drinking water for a myriad of reasons. Just Google it...


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## shaneamber (Apr 20, 2005)

Can you fence a small area and do a doggie door.Or they make a mat for dogs to pee on inside.It has a screen type mat that sits on a tray.
Shane
http://radiofence.com/wiz_dog_indoor_dog_potty.htm


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## Lucky's mom (Nov 4, 2005)

Hi Brandy's Mom,
Of course the first thing I did when I read your post was get my handy dandy "Dog Owners Home Veterinarian Handbook", a twenty-odd year old book I happened across in my closet. 

Drinking and urinating alot is the first stage of Kidney failure, and I wondered if the vets ruled that out. Apparently it can be a long stage. I would think that kidneys would be looked at the first, but I didn't see anything about it in your post and wanted to be sure, as in a situation like that water should be available all times as it offsets the inefficiency of the kidneys.

The excessive drinking and urinating was such a prevailing symptom for Kidney failure I wanted to be sure. And it may be reversable. I'd be interested in knowing what the vets said about that.


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## LauraEyes2 (Sep 16, 2005)

I have a 5 1/2 mo old Golden named Vinny who had similar issues with water obsession. After months of taking him out every 30 mins, I had him cleared of physiological problems that could be causing it. So the vet and I determined it was simply overhydration to blame!

I also ran into the same issues with difficulty in restricting the water, as when we first got Vinny, my other golden Charlie was being treated for Lymphoma with Prednisone and drank water like a fish, and couldnt be restricted from normal water intake.

So here's what i did. I put the puppy on a water schedule. While making sure he got plenty of access to water during the day, I controlled *when* he had free access to water and made sure he made a potty break within a reasonable time. Before, with free access to water, Vinny was peeing every 30 minutes, even beyond 4 months of age. 

Now, of course My other golden, Charlie was on Prednisone and needed frequent access to water. what i did was baby gate my apartment so that Charlie had access to the water, but Vinny did not. I would then pull up the gates when Vinny was allowed "drink time" and he had access to the area where the water bowl was. If I wanted to let the two of them play together, I would just pick up the water bowl while they played. With charlie being sick, he didn't want to play all the time anyways, so i think he appreciated the break from the playful puppy.

My best bet was giving him free access to the water bowl and letting him drink as much water as he wanted, and then I put him in his crate for about a half hour, then we would go for a walk to pee, then after that, no water till the next scheduled water time. I wouldnt let him go more than a couple hours without water, and I never limited how much he had when he'd have access to water. 

It worked wonders. Almost instantaneously he was able to go a few hours at a time. It was great. I was about to lose my mind taking him out every 1/2 hr. Esp since i live on the 3rd floor and it's a hike every time we went out! Jsut thought I'd give my input and maybe it'd work for you!! good luck

Laura


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## Brandy's Mom (Oct 5, 2005)

You guys really came through for me! 

Monomer, I'll look into the cider vinegar idea and run it past our new vet. She seems open to holistic therapies. 

Shane -- the indoor pad might not be a bad idea although, like paper training, it's something I'd want to wean her off of eventually. 

Lucky's Mom -- Brandy's kidney and liver function are perfect, according to numerous tests. In fact, the vet told me she's about run out of diagnostic tests to run on her. 

Laura -- How long did you have to restrict Vinny's access to water before he straightened out? Our situation is that all three dogs are kept in my home office with me while I work during the day. There is one bowl of water for them to drink from. During breaks and in the mornings and evenings, they each have their own water -- and Brandy helps herself to all of it.

thanks again!


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## LauraEyes2 (Sep 16, 2005)

i would say he was probably 5 mos before i could leave water down regularly. in the meantime, i still keep an "eye" on how much he drinks. If i notice he's guzzling water after a walk or something, i'll make sure he gets let out in an hour or so just to be safe.


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## Brandy's Mom (Oct 5, 2005)

Thanks, so far I've been able to slow Brandy down. Five months seems like forever, but if that's what it takes --- that's what I'll do!


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