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How much their dogs are drinking is something a lot of dog owners overlook. But they shouldn’t as it’s vitally important.
Making sure your dog is drinking enough, but not too much, improves their health and helps to stave off certain illnesses.
But the general thinking is as long as there’s water out for the dog, they’ll take care of themselves. There’s a few problems with this idea.
Some dogs are under-drinkers, some are over-drinkers, and in both cases this can lead to health issues.
Also, if your dog noticeably increases or decreases the amount of water they drink it’s usually a sign of an underlying health problem.
So it’s important you monitor your dogs water intake so you know they’re properly hydrated and can spot any drastic changes that could be a symptom signalling a visit to the vet is needed.
So how much water should your Labrador drink each day?
How Much Water Your Labrador Should Drink Each Day
The general advice is that an average healthy dog should drink between 0.5 to 1 ounce of water each day for each pound of body weight.
So a 70 pound Labrador will drink between 35 and 70 ounces of water per day.
The factors that alter the amount between the upper and lower limits are:
- Their diet: Because a dog eating mainly wet canned food will require less water than a dog fed on dry kibble.
- The weather: If it’s a hot summers day, panting and sweating mean a dog will need to drink far more than on a cold winter morning.
- Activity levels: An active dog will perspire more than one that’s had a lazy day and needs to replace fluids lost through sweating. So of course they drink more. So if you take your dog on a 3 hour hike, make sure you increase their water intake when compared to a lazy day in front of the TV.
- Medical advice: Some illnesses and some medications will affect how much water your Labrador should drink each day. Your vet will advise you if you need to increase or lessen their water intake.
- Age and size: Obviously a larger dog requires more water than a smaller dog, and an adult dog needs more than a puppy. Sticking to the 0.5 to 1 ounce of water per pound of body weight should see you right. But make sure to spread this intake over the day, especially with a young puppy who aren’t able to monitor themselves until more mature. Don’t leave loads of water out for a puppy, they are very prone to over-drink not knowing any better.
Checking For Correct Hydration Levels
How do you check if your dog is dehydrated? Or even over-hydrated?
How To Check For Dehydration
The most popular method is to pinch the skin on your dog’s neck, stretch it up and outwards and then let it go and see how it reacts.
Well hydrated and healthy skin will very quickly snap back into position, exactly as it was before. But if your dog is dehydrated the skin will ease back gently and leave a little tent of skin.
This test works because the elasticity of skin decreases as it loses moisture. Dry skin remains wrinkled and doesn’t snap back when released.
A second method to check for dehydration is to check your dogs gums.
If you run your finger over their gum you should find it very wet. If it’s kind of sticky, or worse if it’s dry, then your dog is dehydrated.
You can also press your finger into their gum which forces the blood out making them appear white.
Then when you release the pressure, the blood should come flooding back almost instantly. If it takes a few seconds, or remains a pale color, you need to get your dog to drink.
How to Check For Over-Hydration, That Your Dog Has Drunk Too Much Water
If your dog suddenly starts to drink a lot more and it cannot be explained with warmer weather or exercise, then it’s possible something could be wrong.
Excessive water intake on its own can cause problems such as lethargy and being sick.
But even if things aren’t taken this far to excess, just an increase of intake could be a sign of diabetes, kidney or liver problems. It definitely shouldn’t be ignored.
Help! My Labrador Doesn’t Drink Enough Water!
First of all, have your vet give a full health check to make sure they aren’t ill. Some dogs just do under-drink, so they may otherwise be healthy but you should have them checked.
If you do have a genuine under-drinker, there’s a few things you can do to encourage them.
Praise and reward can often work wonders. So try training your dog to drink. Every time they get some water, use the cue word ‘drink’, and then praise and reward.
It shouldn’t take long before you can use the cue word to get them to drink on command.
Sometimes flavoring the water can help. There are special sachets of meat flavorings you can buy from pet stores that motivate a dog to drink more as it’s tasty. These are known to work well.
If you feed your Lab dry food, consider switching to wet food as this will increase their water intake too.
Help! My Labrador Drinks Too Much Water!
Again, have your dog checked by a vet to make sure it isn’t due to illness.
If given the all clear, for dogs that drink too much, the cure is easier than for one who doesn’t drink enough.
While you can lead a dog to water but can’t make them drink, you can certainly take the water away to stop them bingeing on it.
So for an over-drinker, you simply ration what you give them. It does mean having to frequently put out small amounts, but it’s the best and simplest cure.
You could use an ‘automated feeder’ but fill with water instead to achieve the same effect while being more hands off.
Conclusion
Water is essential for life, and having the correct amount is vital for good health.
Whether drinking too much or too little, this really isn’t good.
Some dogs just do not monitor their intake well and need you to make sure they get enough or don’t over-indulge. And you should be mindful of their intake for getting it wrong can lead to health issues.
But also you should monitor what they drink because if it noticeably increases or decreases and cannot be explained with weather or exercise, there’s a very good chance it’s a symptom of an underlying disease and you need to take your lab to the vet.
Always make sure your dog gets plenty of clean, fresh water every day. Approximately 0.5 to 1 ounce per pound of body weight. And be alert to any changes with their intake and act upon it.
Disclaimer
All content on this site is provided for informational and entertainment purposes only. It is not intended to be nor can it be considered actionable professional advice. It must not be used as an alternative for seeking professional advice from a veterinarian or other certified professional.
LabradorTrainingHQ.com assumes no responsibility or liability for the use or misuse of what’s written on this site. Please consult a professional before taking any course of action with any medical, health or behavioral related issue.
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2 comments
I am looking for a general guide to water consumption for our Lab. He is 10 years old and was a rescue dog so we do not know what his original situation was, he was left outside the rescue centre with a bag of bits and his leash. We are worried that he may be drinking too much but all his health indicators are correct according to the vet. Could this be something mental that causes him to binge drink? We feed him on dried food fomulated for older dogs. Thanks in advance for any thoughts or advice.
Hi Bob,
I’ve not much information to go on here? Have you measured his drinking? How much is consumed each day? If you left out a 2 gallon bucket would he try to down the whole lot in one go? Does he try to drink puddles or any water he can find anywhere on top of what you give him?
Well done for checking with your vet, that would have been my number one suggestion! How far did they go? Hormone tests? Blood work? Urine tests? There are many things can affect thirst, and insatiable thirst usually has an underlying problem…but all this is above and beyond my knowledge to be fair, so only a vet with their tools and tests can really advise here.
Anyhow, I’m not sure you’ll be able to find an exact guide to water needs, because it depends on too many variables. All you can do is understand the variables and then adjust. There’s no one right answer to ‘how much water should my dog drink’, all you can do is start with a ‘guesstimate’ amount and then monitor their intake, and check for dehydration, or over-hydration in the ways discussed above.
The most commonly suggested numbers are between 0.5 and 1 ounce of eater per pound of body weight. Or 1.1 to 2.2 ounces per kilo of body weight per day.
You say you’re feeding him dry kibble – Kibble fed dogs need more water than a dog fed on wet foods / a raw diet – So his needs will be at the top end of approx 2.2 ounces per kilo per day.
If you’re quite sure he’s drinking too much, your only recourse is to limit access to and ration the water. So I’d start by weighing him, calculating daily needs and then splitting that into 5 or so helpings throughout the day so he has a constant supply but no opportunity to binge drink.
But as I say, how much he needs depends on body weight, exercise, ambient temperatures, age, health and more. So you can see why nobody would be able to give you a fixed amount he should have?
Most importantly, you really should only follow your vets advice! I’d measure out and see just how much he is drinking if left to make his own choices, and if it’s truly excessive, ask the vet for more detailed and thorough checks to make sure no problem has been missed.
All the best!