What could that be??
What could that be??Unlike us humans, our pets don’t aim to drink eight glasses of water a day. They drink because they are thirsty.
Fluids are lost from the body through urine, faeces, panting and sweating. The more fluids are lost, the more is needed to be replenished by drinking.
However, excessive intake of water can be a sign of an underlying disease, and it is important to find out what is wrong early enough as many of the underlying conditions can be very serious.
What can I do?
For this reason, it is a good idea to get into the habit of refreshing your pet’s water bowl about the same time each day with the same amount of water, so any changes in thirst will become obvious early on.
Never withhold access to water as an attempt to “fix the problem of drinking and possibly urinating too much” as dehydration and fluid imbalances can make the pet’s condition much worse and this can be dangerous to your pet’s health.
Also, if a pet normally drinks a lot of water and suddenly stops drinking water, he or she may deteriorate very rapidly.
Instead, book a consult with us for a thorough health check, and if possible bring a urine sample with you as well.
Normal Causes
Some normal causes for increased thirst could be hot summer days, excessive play or exercise, or lactating mother dogs, but usually, this would be a temporary and expected increase.
Abnormal Causes
Some causes of abnormally increased thirst include:
- Kidney diseases
- Liver diseases
- Excessive loss of water through diarrhoea
- Diabetes Mellitus (sugar diabetes)
- Hormonal diseases (including thyroid problems, adrenal problems etc.)
- Blood electrolyte or calcium changes
- Infections, cancers and fever
- Certain medications can increase thirst as well
Next Steps?
As mentioned before, the first step in addressing the increased drinking is a swift veterinary investigation and diagnosis, as some conditions can become much more complicated or even irreversible or fatal if left unchecked.
Apart from a thorough clinical examination and history, we normally need to run some blood and urine tests. This may be enough to diagnose the problem and start a treatment plan, but in some cases, more tests may be needed.
For any queries or concerns, please contact our friendly team at Cronulla Vet Clinic.