Quote: betty landercasp

Pups are made of water, they drink a ton of water. Maintenance fluids (not growing, not in a hot place, not playing) is 15 cc per lb. So if he weighs 25 lbs he needs
375 cc of water to remain alive. Panting uses a ton of water, and growth even more.

I suspect it's not a "disease". Drinking until they puke is a common complaint. Eating the puked up kibble and water is real common too
I'd leave the water out all the time, put some ice cubes in there for him to play with,to slow him down.

Just to let you know, when my girl was little she drank so much water that she would cry like she was about to drop dead of thirst every time I turned the faucet on!

She grew out of it at about 5 or 6 months.

If you are really worried I would agree with the others and see the vet. But I wouldn't worry too much about it unless you are seeing other abnormal symptoms.

How old is he now?

If he is over 4 1/2 months old I would probably leave him a little bit of water all the time. If you have been restricting water to help with housebreaking he should be starting to have a little more control.

Medical conditions that can be associated with over-drinking: diabetes, thyroid, kidney, urinary tract, adrenal are the more common and also more common in non-pups (minus the urinary tract infection). I've had my share of psycholog. drinkers/pukers, esp. the younger or newly adopted, and have made water offering adjustments as others suggested with success. I think it is important to always consider medical conditions because there are no guarantees. The general rule I try to follow is once I get to know the dog and their patterns/behaviors when they do something that is out of characteristic for them I want to ensure their health first. Sorry if I alarmed you in my earlier post, just trying to cover all the possibilities....

I would continue with not restricting his access. If he has issues with urinating in the crate, then you may want to restrict him (give him less water, but not none at all), but I too live in AZ and I tend to think of it as being cruel to restrict their water, especially when it is as hot as it has been. My dogs go outside for 5 minutes and come in very hot and thirsty. They drink a lot now and when it is cooler, remember, it is very dry here and dehydration is a concern for people and dogs.

If it is nothing medical, then you should see him not be so obsessive if you don't restrict access. My female is crated while I am at work and she has a full bowl of water there for her. You will notice most dogs won't drink when no one is home. I know I leave three bowls of water out, they usually drink after breakfast and when I get home, but usually the water level is the same as when I left.

I think you all are assuming that I am restricting water, like I'm withholding it, when he needs it. I give him water all the time. Every time we come in from outside, after meals, after he pees, when I think of it, etc. He is more hydrated than me most of the time.

I just don't leave it down for him because I don't ever want him out of my sight and unless I bring it in each room I go into that would be hard. He seems to be doing a lot better now that he knows he will continue to get water until he stops drinking.

Glad to hear it's getting better.

One point though--it's not about what we assume. It's about what the dog assumes. If he THINKS water is being rationed (perhaps a better term than "restricted") that's the only assumption that matters. It's possible that all these water breaks are making him more focused on water, not less ("Dad seems really hung up on giving me water--he gives me the bowl, then takes it away. I better drink up because I think that's what he wants me to do.") From his point of view, currently, there's a lot of fuss made over the water bowl. Several times a day, serving and drinking water are an "event" in his day--why wouldn't he have a lot of emotional energy tied up in that?

I believe there's something comforting to a dog to know that "his" water bowl is always there, always full. Even if he's not in the same room with it, he knows it will be there the next time he wants it.

Like many interactions with dogs, it is the misunderstanding of intentions that causes the disconnect. (You know that he's always going to get enough water to drink, but he's just figuring that out.)

When something isn't quite clicking it's often helpful to try to figure out how the dog might be interpreting the interaction--not just what you are saying or doing. Most dogs are more than happy to go along with anything you want as long as they understand exactly what it is you want from them--but they often don't understand. Or at least not right away. Much easier to try to see things from their point of view than to expect them to understand yours. --Just something to think about.

I pretty sure this is an issue your pup will outgrow. I hope some of our suggestions help a little.