Water is essential to life. It cools the body and carries necessary nutrients to the cells, yet plain old water sometimes gets little fanfare. Generally a dog needs at least one ounce of water for each pound of body weight per day but environmental factors, level of activity, and health condition can drive this need up much higher. With almost three-fourths of a dog’s body weight attributed to water, as little as a fifteen percent loss can cause death.
Why Dogs Become Dehydrated
Because the canine body has sweat glands only on the nose and foot pads, it is much less efficient at heat dissipation than the human body. Dogs pant to cool themselves and anyone who has mopped up after a panting dog knows how much fluid they lose.
Symptoms of Dehydration
- Lethargy
- Loss of appetite
- Sunken, dry eyes
- Dry mouth tissues
- Increased heart rate
- Slow capillary refill time (color should return to gums immediately after pressure is applied)
- Loss of skin elasticity (in the skin turgor test, skin on the back should return immediately to normal position when pulled up and released)
What to Do
- Place the dog in a cool area.
- Give small amounts of cool water every few minutes.
- Rush the dog to a veterinarian if symptoms are pronounced. By the time symptoms appear, dehydration can be serious and may need to be treated with subcutaneous or intravenous fluids and other medical intervention.
What Not to Do
- Do not feed dry food.
- Do not give large amounts of water immediately as this can cause vomiting and further dehydration.
- Do not use ice packs as this can constrict blood circulation and hinder cooling.
Dogs at Risk of Dehydration
- Senior dogs
- Pregnant or nursing dogs
- Puppies
- Heavy coated or dark coated dogs
- Dogs with fever
- Dogs with diarrhea or vomiting
- Dogs who have become too hot
- Dogs without access to water
- Dogs with any illness
Preventing Dehydration
- Make certain your dog has fresh water at all times.
- Provide outside dogs with shade (considering movement of shade) and plenty of fresh water in the shade in containers that won’t tip over. Containers should be set in the ground several inches.
- Make sure there are no objects for tethered dogs to wrap their chains around, preventing access to water.
- Provide water close-in as chains can shorten simply by twisting if the dog moves in a circle.
- Take along plenty of water for your dog and offer it frequently when traveling or participating in outside activities.
- If your dog refuses to drink, check in his mouth for something stuck. If there’s no obvious reason for refusal to drink, consult a veterinarian.
- If you see a dog without access to water, report it to authorities immediately.
Related Reading:
Heat Stroke and High Risk Dogs
Joy Butler - Writer, retired lab tech, mom, and animal lover with over 20 years' experience rescuing, kenneling, training and showing dogs.
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