Your Dog's Water
Think
that finding
a good, high-quality
dog food is important?
All
of the beneficial ingredients that go
into dog food will
not help your dog
if he it
is not
drinking enough water.
Water is
the body's most important nutrient. Adult dogs'
bodies are 60% water, and a
puppy's is 84% water. Dogs can lose all of
their fat and half of
their protein without adversely affecting their health, but a loss of 10 % of their
water can cause significant problems. Dog owners
should place as much attention
on the quality of the
water their dog drinks as they do on the ingredients that go into the best dog foods; not all water is the same.
The criteria for clean drinking water for
dogs is similar to the criteria for drinking water for people. Tap water generally provides the best nutrients and least contaminants; if, however, the tap water contains high amounts of magnesium, nitrates, and iron it can cause long term health risks.
For those who fear their tap water may be contaminated,
bottled water can be a better choice.
Stainless
steel and
stoneware dishes are good, safe
choices for food and water
bowls. Plastic bowls may scratch, giving unhealthy contaminates an ideal place to live. The water should be cool in the summer and room temperature in the winter. The dogs bowl should
always be clean. If you're not sure
if it needs changing, ask yourself if
you would
drink the water -- if the answer is
no, change it.
Dogs should have
access to fresh water at all times. This is even more important
than giving it the best dog foods on the market. Dogs
need three times more water than they do food every day. They need even more water if it is extremely
hot, the dog is lactating, or if the dog is exercising more than
normal. Dogs that eat canned dog food do not need to drink as much water because of the high amount of water contained in the food.
Often, sick dogs don't want to drink the water they
need, but the illness increases the need for water. When this happens, a dog can
become quickly dehydrated. To check for dehydration, dog owners can pull upward on the
dog's skin at the nape of the
neck. If the skin snaps
back, the dog is sufficiently hydrated, if it takes several seconds for the skin to go back, fluids may need to be replaced intravenously or subcutaneously. Owners should never offer water to vomiting dogs; this is perhaps the only
time to make sure dogs don't have access to water. If a dog vomits for more than a twenty-four hour period it should see a vet immediately.
In addition to better health, proper hydration contributes to the
performance of a dog. Many owners of working dogs flavor their dog's food in order to make sure it is drinking the appropriate amounts. Studies have proven that proper hydration increases an animal's working
ability by 80%. The next time you pour one of those "better" dog foods into your dog's bowl, remember that if the dog doesn't have the right amount of clean water, the food is useless.
Daniel Moore contributes articles to several web magazines, such as
http://kydel.com and
http://sufup.com.