Fish Oil And Dogs

[Lost in LOS]

My dog has lots of hair and needs to drink a lot of water. He wont drink much for some reason. I walk him 4 kilometers each morning with a water stop halfway. he usually refuses to drink any water, wont even look at it, i have to force him and once he starts he usually drinks enough. at home he doesnt drink much water either. i have tried from the tap, filtered water and bottled water, it doesn't make any difference.

my question is...... in the military we used to take salt pills for heat as it makes you drink and retain water. i was thinking of giveing him store brought "fish sauce" which i can put on his food. he should like the taste and it has lots of salt in it to make him more thirsty and drink water. is this a problem with the sauce. is there another better solution?

thanks

[bina]

very rare for a dog to not drink enough water if thirsty.... and dogs dont sweat either... they suffer from heat exhaustion/stroke but u would notice that right away; he would just not want to continue his exercise, would become lethargic, etc.... dogs lose moisture from panting....

u can check for dehydration by lifting the skin at the back of his neck; it should sink/snap back... if it returns slowly, he is dehydrated and then, sub cutaneous fluids usually work out well...or force feeding water, other then that, no need to do so really.... and he's walking, not running.

having lots of hair (fur) doesnt mean he suffers from the heat more; the hair protects him from the sun; obviously though dark fur heats up more then light fur...

hosing a dog down is more effective to cool him off (belly, balls, face) where fur is thinnest.

if he acts normal when at home and not lethargic etc, is eating properly, u dont have to give him anything...

also, what does he eat? leftovers?, dry food, moist food? how old is he? what breed? some breeds utilize water better then other... boxers etc seem to drink more; other breeds drink less (the ones with the pointier noses; flat nosed dogs get heated up and slobbery and lose much more water that way 0 boxers etc. )

dogs dont drink a lot really; they drink after eating, and after excersice, not usually during....

dogs with kidney problems and diabetes drink too much... but a healthy dog would have a light yellow pee (urine) and not be drinking liters and liters....

remember, he's a canine not a human with different body requirements than u have.

always offer water but no need to force to drink.... the only time we salt food is with dogs with urininary tract problems...

bina

israel

[Lost in LOS]

very rare for a dog to not drink enough water if thirsty.... and dogs dont sweat either... they suffer from heat exhaustion/stroke but u would notice that right away; he would just not want to continue his exercise, would become lethargic, etc.... dogs lose moisture from panting....

u can check for dehydration by lifting the skin at the back of his neck; it should sink/snap back... if it returns slowly, he is dehydrated and then, sub cutaneous fluids usually work out well...or force feeding water, other then that, no need to do so really.... and he's walking, not running.

THAT IS ALL FINE

having lots of hair (fur) doesnt mean he suffers from the heat more; the hair protects him from the sun; obviously though dark fur heats up more then light fur...

hosing a dog down is more effective to cool him off (belly, balls, face) where fur is thinnest. DO IT DAILY ON HIS MIDWAY STOP, HOSE DOWN AND DRINK WATER WITCH HE USUALLY REFUSES OR ONLY DRINKS A LITTLE ALTHOUGH HE HAS JUST WALKED 3 KILOMETERS IN THE HEAT

if he acts normal when at home and not lethargic etc, is eating properly, u dont have to give him anything... ACTS FINE BUT CAN HAVE AC AND HOPS IN THE POOL OFTEN [DRINKS AS HE IS SWIMMING]

also, what does he eat? leftovers?, dry food, moist food? how old is he? what breed? some breeds utilize water better then other... boxers etc seem to drink more; other breeds drink less (the ones with the pointier noses; flat nosed dogs get heated up and slobbery and lose much more water that way 0 boxers etc. )

DRY FOOD, CANNED FOOD AND SOME TREATS

dogs dont drink a lot really; they drink after eating, and after excersice, not usually during....

dogs with kidney problems and diabetes drink too much... but a healthy dog would have a light yellow pee (urine) and not be drinking liters and liters.... REAL HEALTHY

remember, he's a canine not a human with different body requirements than u have.

always offer water but no need to force to drink.... the only time we salt food is with dogs with urinary tract problems...

THANKS FOR YOUR HELP. HE JUST APPEARS THIRSTY DURING HIS WALK WITH HIS TONGUE HANGING OUT BUT WILL DRINK JUST A LITTLE

THANKS

bina

israel

[bina]

his tongue is hanging out cause thats how he cools himself off!!!! my dogs ask for water; they look at me and at the water bottle, and wait, or they stop along the route at irrigation pipes and wait for me to turn one on to drink... if they dont ask, i dont worry about it, they'll drink when they want too...

and he's getting canned food so theres more moisture

and he drinks from the pool, so there u go.......

[smileah]

Hi there

I too, have doggies with lots of fur.

They seemed to be itching a lot - one dog in particular (the one that came from France and wasn't so used to the heat), and after ruling out fleas or other insect bites or allergies, I thought it might be a result of dry skin.

I have since been giving my 13 kg dogs 1000 mg capsules of fish oil (Natural Care brand) per day. I poke a hole in the gel capsule and mix it with their food.

There has been a great improvement. The dry, itchy areas have completely gone, and all of their coats are healthier looking.

So yes...the fish oil is fantastic. I highly reccommend using it.

Happy walking!

Edited May 26, 2008 by smileah