Am I Worrying To Much

[meatboy]

the last 10days or more my dog has been drinking excesive amounts of water,i have always kept plenty in the fridge and only change it if it becomes warm,but now he just drinks his bowl dry all the time.he is only 2yrs+ has put a lot of weight on lately,last couple of evenings he has left half his food.i have looked up for possible cause's one of which is diabeties but that seems to be a problem with older dogs.i shall call the vet today as he was here last week and seen he had put on weight but we did not tell him about the drinking.please tell me i am worrying too much but me&mrs love this dog so much.he is on a course of antibiotics as he had a ear infection.

[Nienke]

Does your dog only get ab's or also the small pink or white pills aka anti-itch pills? If so, that's very possibly a corticosteroid which has as side-effect lots of drinking and peeing.

For us, we can speculate on some of the most horrible diseases that has excessive drinking as a symptom. But I don' think it will give you ease of mind.

Better to consult your vet about this issue, and in case of doubt have blood (including kidney and liver) and urine tests done.

[meatboy]

Does your dog only get ab's or also the small pink or white pills aka anti-itch pills? If so, that's very possibly a corticosteroid which has as side-effect lots of drinking and peeing.

For us, we can speculate on some of the most horrible diseases that has excessive drinking as a symptom. But I don' think it will give you ease of mind.

Better to consult your vet about this issue, and in case of doubt have blood (including kidney and liver) and urine tests done.

he has to take 4 a day of the small pink ones,just spoke to the vet he was here on sat,he said he looked well so we should not worry unless he starts to loose weight ,one thing i have done since i posted checked all his treets and found one that was given to us 9days ago[dentastix] which seems to have a lot of salt in them and have some bad reviews so in the bin for them.

[Nienke]

The little pink pills also has as a side-effect increased appetite.

[isanbirder]

One of the problems when you keep a dog is that he can't tell you what he's feeling like! My GSX recently lost appetite, and gradually got weaker; then he partially regained appetite, and I thought he was getting better from whatever it was. Then he got worse again, drank lots of water, panted a lot... so finally off to the vet. Blood tests, followed by a month's antibiotics, plus pills to improve his blood and support his liver. Well, he made a rapid improvement, and is now behaving more like a dog instead of a zombie. The vet suggested it was an infection from a tick bite... which is a fairly easy guess, and difficult to prove one way or the other. Another blood test next week.....

One thing in your post, meatboy.... why do you give your dog chilled water? I think it's better for him to have ambient air temperature water, as a dog normally does.

[meatboy]

since we have had him 18months we have always given him water from the fridge,has he has such a thick coat its hard to keep him cool so we try and make him as comfortable as possible its a shame that these dogs are allowed to breed in very hot countries when they are more at home in temps.of minus 20,so we do all we can for him.

[meatboy]

back with us today,he has stopped drinking excesive amounts and eaten up for the first time in 5days.must put in down to those dentastix.

[Pseudolus]

Meatboy - We need to do a combined shopping (hunting) effort. I read the other day about cool mats. They are gel filled and you pop a few gallons of water into them (only once) and then as soon as your dog lies on then a reaction happens and the thing cool down to 9 degrees lower than the ambient temperature. I went to JJ to look today but of course there are none there as they don't care a toss about things which are good for dogs. Anyway, see if you can find them and keep me informed. I will likewise. Might be a case of getting one from eBay (only 45 USD). They seem great though so will be trying to find them here.

[meatboy]

Meatboy - We need to do a combined shopping (hunting) effort. I read the other day about cool mats. They are gel filled and you pop a few gallons of water into them (only once) and then as soon as your dog lies on then a reaction happens and the thing cool down to 9 degrees lower than the ambient temperature. I went to JJ to look today but of course there are none there as they don't care a toss about things which are good for dogs. Anyway, see if you can find them and keep me informed. I will likewise. Might be a case of getting one from eBay (only 45 USD). They seem great though so will be trying to find them here.

i will get the wife to phone our bil family they have a big pet shop,they can ask the reps.or try the big shop on saveone market.they must be the same as a water bed.

[bina]

why dont u just provide a 'wet area' (we kept our horribly practical and ugly kibbutz bathroom/shower wet in summers since water always stayed pooled on the floor, to beused by our boxer nero (RIP)(from finland, with squishy nose, sufferred in the israeli heat since we dont use a/c)...

many people here provide small plastic 'pools' for their pets (watch out if u have small children), or a 'wet mud' area outside dogs love to dig and climb in to a big wet muddy hole, as long as their stomachs are wet, they cool off... the fur is not what makes a dog too hot, it is , among other things, the shape of their nose/face (pug face as opposed to long pointy face wtih lots of long tongue to hang out and cool dog off, while he pants)... if u look at canaan dogs, they all have thick double coat hair and they are desert dogs.

'arctic' dogs have the same kind of coats, two layers, so the plushy downy type layer is shed out, the guard hair layers stay and protect from the sun...

most dogs, like most people acclimitize if they DO NOT stay in doors with a/c, and then go outdoors to high heat... if it is hot all the time, most animals and people acclimitize regardless... plenty of shade, water, activity only in early morningor late evening and most dogs should have no problem...

giving chilled water makes his body work to get the water to body temperature, making him hot... cool water is fine (u can put icecubes in teh water for the fun of it, our boxer loved that.)hoseing down is good also if u can stand the smell of a hairy wet dog.

we have huskies and malamutes here and they dont have any problem with desert heat. the pugs and pekineses however drop dead from heat exhaustion. my neighbor's kafkas (caucasion guard dog) dog got a shave, and he lives outdoors, shade, mud, and water bucket... he eats less during the summer...

hot dogs will be less active, eat less, or eat at night only; just have to make sure they dont lay in the sun; many an old dog has gone to lay in the sun and died of sun stroke, since they dont always have the sense to move out of the sun. dogs with heart problmes , just like people, need to be in cooler surroundings

bina

israel

[meatboy]

i dont think mud and water will do anything for my mrs.as the dog is in and out most of the day and he has the freedom to go anywhere in the house,its bad enough with his loose hair the mrs vacuums up every day thats easy,but he does like it in the downstairs shower room.

[isanbirder]

My dogs (three, now four) love the airconditioning at night... with the exception of the newcomer, who asks to go out if he happens to get into my room. When they go out for their walk in the early morning, all the dogs love the flooded paddy fields, and splash about in them with great glee (the GSX just lies down in it). The other three are all little dogs, toy poodle type, and the two long-haired ones need a haircut two or three times a year.

I has a bangkaew previously, with a splendid double coat; he was in Chiangmai, which isn't as hot as Buriram... but the heat never bothered him. But bangkaews traditionally love swimming.

[Pseudolus]

Bina - I don't live on a farm or in a kibbutz. Meatboy is correct; the practicality of a wet area / pool when you live in Bangkok is far from the mark. Also, the key difference between other breeds with double coats and Husky breeds is the composition of the under coat. The hairs are hollow, and not standard hairs, which trap air and heat up as well. This make ones hellova difference (bangkaews are Thai dogs, they do not need to acclimatize). I've heard people talking about the thermos flask effect in that what keeps them hot should keep them cool. That's assumes though that the middle is cool to begin with which a night in the aircon might achieve but not sure.

I know you are right about cold water though; everyone knows a cup of hot tea cools you better than a cold drink for this very reason.

The Male Husky is fine, but the female (8yrs) is suffering badly right now and its for her I am trying to find solutions for. She does not particularly like water on her (prissy like her ex mum lol) that's why I like the idea of this gel mattress that uses chemistry to cool. in fact I might get one for myself as well

By the way - my Husky's are adopted (from horrific circumstances which took a lot of time to recuperate them back to health) and brought with me here - I do not condone breeding and the trade of cold climate dogs in hot countries or anyone that buys who encourages the trade.

Edited June 18, 2012 by Pseudolus

[meatboy]

my dog was lucky we rescued him,although he had been well looked after the owner had to go away to work,he was left with relatives and let to run loose with a pack of soi dogs.my bil brought him to us knowing quite well we would look after him.he arrived after a 7hr journey in a car[he loves being in a car] looked very weak.3days with us we found he had caught a infection in his penis,was 15kilo's under weight,and was a inch from dying with a very high temp.vet said if they reach 8 theres not much chance of survival he was 7.after a number of injections and being put on a drip 10days had past and he showed improvement,since then we have done everything possible to make his life a better one and he is repaying us with his love and loyality,i feel for him every day because it must be very uncomfortable living in this climate with a fur coat on,you can tell at night when we all go to bed he loves to play with his legs spread wide on our bed right under the aircon then moves to the bottom end where we also have a fan for him.9 times out of 10 he will wake me up to go out for a pee[1.30] then straight back in,and i let him have a cold drink,i have just been looking at them water beds for dogs i dont think it would last long with him if he was to scatch it with his paws .

[Pseudolus]

The ones I am thinking about are not water beds, but gel beds (pretty durable and designed for these kinds of dogs). Will keep trying and advise when I do test one out.

[Nienke]

http://www.pets2bed.com/site/1405195/product/COOL-pet-bed

[Pseudolus]

http://www.pets2bed....ct/COOL-pet-bed

Thats the baby - Anyone know if they are sold in Thailand?

[geriatrickid]

1. A good shave helps cool thick coated dogs. My sister used to have her newfie's fur shaved down for the summer. Not like a sheep sheer, but a good trim leaving enough coat for protection from sun and other stuff.

2. be careful with the AC. The constant temperature changes can do a number on the dogs. My friend has some small dogs and he has been using his AC at night. One of the dogs ended up with a respiratory ailment.

Easier said than done, but the vet told him, to go easy on the A/C,

[crazykopite]

Chilled water is not good for your dog give him normall tap water, take him to the vet for a check up, hope he will be okay he could have a tick in him or got a nasty bite off a scorpion !!!!

[meatboy]

Chilled water is not good for your dog give him normall tap water, take him to the vet for a check up, hope he will be okay he could have a tick in him or got a nasty bite off a scorpion !!!!

the vet seen him on the 9th,the problems have been posted,as for given him chilled water how do they manage in the enviroment from where they originate from.you say give him tap water,on our moo-ban its only good for flushing the toilet.2weeks ago we had a rotten smell from the water we found out days later that the supply had been contaminated,whats good for me is good for him.

[isanbirder]

Chilled water is not good for your dog give him normall tap water, take him to the vet for a check up, hope he will be okay he could have a tick in him or got a nasty bite off a scorpion !!!!

the vet seen him on the 9th,the problems have been posted,as for given him chilled water how do they manage in the enviroment from where they originate from.you say give him tap water,on our moo-ban its only good for flushing the toilet.2weeks ago we had a rotten smell from the water we found out days later that the supply had been contaminated,whats good for me is good for him.

This is a fallacy, meatboy, e.g. human shampoo is bad for the dog's skin. When a dog is away from his home, he drinks water from puddles, streams, stagnant pools; you name it, he drinks it. So long as he's vaccinated, particularly against leptospirosis, it doesn't do him any harm. Not that I'm suggesting you give him dirty water; there's no point in asking for trouble. But cold water is actually not good for him.

[bina]

shaving down, especially under the chest, belly and legs will help him stay cooler; water room temperature, doesnt have to be tap water!! but as said, most dogs drink from places u woouldnt, so a good worming, and, apart from jiardia which IS a problem also for canines, and us, he certainly doesnt need the bottled stuff, but u would have to reintroduce regular water back to him.; a/c i also will say again, going in to cold cold house and then out to a hot hot humid outdoors is very unhealthy for humans , not to mention animals...

cute boxer on that bed......

bina

[meatboy]

thursday we bathed him and noticed his hair under his belly has got thicker so shall we get him shaved,regarding the aircon he normally comes in at 10pm having laid down with a powerfull fan on,straight into the bedroom[aircon on 30mins] also we have another fan,aircon off between 1-2am he lays in front of the fan,i let him out 5am and walk him 6am so his body should be aclimatised to the change in temp.i have started to give him chilled water and same amount of water [room temp] the water he gets is what we buy in 40lts plastic bottles even our neighbours dog who spends a lot of time with us seems to like the chilled water more than what they put out for him.as he likes to lay on his back legs wide open shaving him should not be a problem do you do it yourself or take the dog to a salon.thanks for all your posts.

[bina]

if u have never shaved before, best to go somewhwer very good, and have them do it first time so he doesnt have a bad experience ; ive been grooming for years so even foofoo (a dog psychiatric case) lets me do it, i do him in stages and lots of food prizes, if your dog is intact, then u have to be careful of his testes (as a kid i almost de balled an old english sheepdog, couldnt see him for the hair)... and use a hair clipper, not a scissors or razor... both of those are inviting skin wounds.. it would help if u would have him lay on back every day, run hand on stomach, or brush him on stomach, and even turn on a some kind of hair clipper near him, to get him used to the sound... however, some dogs just hate grooming and some are totally apathetic.. lilee just sits like a lump while i move her from side to side... just hates her feet done so i do them separately , one a day..

obviously water that has been in the sun and is hot wont be appreciated by anyone, dog goat or human, but a few icecubes thrown in can also add an hour of amusement , our boxers loved to chase icecubes

bina

[meatboy]

thanks bina we have got a good battery shaver he hasnt got any balls,the wife would rather do it at home,no trouble to get him on his back he loves a tickle.

[meatboy]

thanks bina we have got a good battery shaver he hasnt got any balls,the wife would rather do it at home,no trouble to get him on his back he loves a tickle.

hair is too thick for my shaver so looking for a mobile grooming service to visit in the korat area.ordered wheels but delivery due august.