Vet School 101 Magic waters: Why I love “smart” water therapy for pets
If Gatorade is for adults and Pedialyte is for kids, what works for pets in the dog days of summer?...during illness?...or all year round?
For most pets, the answer is “just plain H2O.” But did you know that enhanced waters are available for pets, too?
Some people use them to tempt pets to drink more. Think: heavily exercised pets, dogs with certain kinds of bladder stones, cats with upper respiratory infections or those with other conditions best managed via lots of fluids. Many of them can be driven to drink when waters offer yummy aromas. Here are a couple:
Fortifido comes in spearmint, parsley and peanut butter flavors). This "nutrient-enhanced" water tackles the "vitamin water" trend. Just like this one...
K9WaterCo's offerings include Toilet Water (chicken), Gutter Water (beef), Puddle Water (liver), and Hose Water (lamb). This one also contains "vitamins," presumably rendering it useful for smaller volumes only.
Even if you don’t want to buy one of those peanut-butter flavored waters so your pets will drink more (they give me the heebie-jeebies, too), consider that fluids don’t need to smell like the inside of a brewery or a chicken coop to provide a boost to your pet’s drinking pleasure.
In fact, my favorite approach to tempting pets to drink has nothing to do with flavor additives or aromas. I like the simple “magic fountain” trick: Get a recirculating waterer (like this $50 Drinkwell version).
These are so addictive to cats that they’ll even turn it into a cat toy as they lap up considerably more fluids than they might not otherwise. Keeping a faucet dripping? That’s the preferred method for many cats, though it’s not so great when it comes to basic water management, right?
For dogs, I go in for the standard “Lixit” faucet attachment.
Added to an outdoor spigot it’s fresh water on demand. Dogs trained to this method early on will even eschew the pool in favor of the convenient and ever-fresh water from your pipes. And that’s a great alternative considering that pool water could have lots of other stuff you might not want them to drink. More so considering they risk drowning as they age. (Older pets can get unsteady on their feet while going for a pool drink.)
Apart from waters designed to tempt pets to drink, lots of fluids are now marketed for pets on the basis of their electrolyte content. Electrolytes added to water can mean even faster resolution of illness, better recovery from injury and, reportedly, greater resistance to heat stresses (more on that later). That’s something your municipal water will never offer.
In the hospital, we’ve used these for everything from patients recovering from surgery to those for whom diarrhea risks drying them out...and taking important electrolytes along with their fluid stores. Lots of brands have made the veterinary rounds. Here are a couple:
Rehydrate: This one reportedly tastes salty but nothing more. And it comes in easily dissolved effervescent tablets. Think Alka-Seltzer.
Electramine: This one comes as a powder. Again, reportedly a tad salty.
OK so they’re specially designed for pets. I like that. And they do work. But such a large percentage of my patients won’t drink them (or some of the other chicken-flavored ones that come boxed like milk) that I started to wonder whether something else might do the trick.
Diluted Pedialyte or Gatorade-style sports drinks (but that nasty taste and so much sugar!), chicken stock-masked electrolyte solutions (works decently for some), ice cubes made of all of these, etc. All of my attempts met with varying degrees of success.
Finally, I happened upon one drink that worked best for all: SmartWater. It tastes like water. Its added electrolytes may be minimal but its the only product that doesn't taste like something other than what a pet normally likes to drink.
Too bad it’s not very environmentally sound to have water shipped like that all over creation. Too bad it’s pricey compared to regular water. But it’s still cheap compared to the pet-specific stuff. And I only recommend it for specific disease processes or injuries that cause electrolyte depletion.
For my own pets, I’ll offer it when soft stools assail them or when they've vomited from a simple upset tummy. But I won't go out of my way to offer electrolyte replacements to replenish stores post exercise. Why? Because dogs don't sweat like we do. They don't lose electrolytes in the same way.
Nonetheless there is some suggestion that dogs may be less susceptible to heat stress if they've taken in a good dose of electrolytes before heavy exercise. True? Not so much according to this great study. But it may be true for endurance athletes who lose electrolytes over long periods of time via their urine (think Iditarod).
In any case, I probably wouldn't go crazy splurging on electrolyte drinks unless your pet really needs to replace them. And I'd call you a tad over-the-top for offering it as a way to pamper your pets as many of these companies propose. But flavors for enhanced interest in drinking? I guess that's OK. But let's be honest: nothing makes me want to retch quite as much as the though of liver-flavored water. Parsley? OK so maybe I'd try it...just once.
July 24th, 2009
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Add Comment46 Comments
I have my doubts about how good all this marketed water is....I recently made my own 20 yr old daughter read the label on vitamin water she was guzzling down.
that being said, the water fountains are great. My cats love them and drink gallons out of them. far more than out of a normal bowl...throw in a few ice cubes and even better. The down side is the paw washing toy drowning that they love tends to keep me constantly cleaning out filters....
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=19955
this one is my cat's favorite one...we have several types.
LorriM July 24th, 2009 12:20:51 PM
We use GoDog to get our dogs to drink more when competing. And it does the trick rather too well -- my gal won't drink regular water after she's been offered GoDog. =7 Spoiled? Yes. =7
Julie in OH July 24th, 2009 01:21:33 PM
The one I believe is excellent is HydroLyte. One of the other K9 Handlers had some when we were deployed to search for victims after Hurricane Katrina. It worked very well and the dogs liked it. So, we used HydroLyte and periodically ran I.V. lines due to the extreme heat. I know that many other dog handlers around the United States are now using it. It's all natural ingredients, has vitamin E, and is chicken flavored. It really is a great electrolyte replacement, Energizer and Antioxidant.
Vi in Texas July 24th, 2009 02:09:13 PM
I thought electrolytes were essentially salts - so it would make sense they would taste salty, right? Gatorade tastes a little salty to me too, underneath the sugar. Would using the powders at concentrations similar to the smart water instead of the recomended dose solve the taste problem?
Also, while I do not like the flavored-water bandwagon that's been forming up as of late, I thought the flavor names were hilarious.
puppynerd July 24th, 2009 02:10:54 PM
puppynerd: I imagine that would be the case. Since so many of them are powdered, that's probably a good alternative to the bottled variety--just add less. Why didn't I think of that? ;-)
Dr. Patty Khuly July 24th, 2009 03:40:11 PM
My cat recently had surgery to remove (oxalate? waiting on the lab results) stones from his bladder, and I finally took the plunge and bought a fountain in hopes he would drink more.
OH MY GOODNESS. This was truly the best $50 I've spent on either cat OR the dog, because all three of them just ADORE it. My dog refuses to drink out of anything else now, and both cats hang out around the fountain all the time.
Crystal July 24th, 2009 05:48:24 PM
hi,
here you have posted very nice and very valuable information.
Thanks for sharing the information.
ansh@boxers dog July 24th, 2009 06:12:28 PM
I - and my cats - miss my Drinkwell fountain...but it was always slimy w/build-up, despite frequent washing. And it was such a pain to clean all the little nooks and crannies, so I finally chunked it for a plain bowl. Anybody here have any tips for keeping those types of fountains clean? I'd love to get one again.
anna July 24th, 2009 11:02:00 PM
Anna, the key for us was:
1) Distilled water only
2) no filter
The Drinkwell is a must for Cougar - he seems to get a little dehydrated a couple times we packed it up because it had pink slime I couldn't get rid of. That was before we discovered using distilled water in it. No more pink slime. The only time we had slime (not pink) was when I used stuff that was labeled as "purified water", not distilled.
Otherwise, we have two water bowls out all the time too.
Jenny July 25th, 2009 12:08:21 AM
I don't believe that recirculating water fountains are good for pets. My neighbor has one made by Petmate, and everytime I look at it, the water looks filthy. These fountains need to be taken apart and cleaned often, but it's a difficult process. You are not doing your pet a favor if you are offering it recirculating water that is not fit to drink.
My favorite approach to get my dog to drink is to add a spoonful of cottage cheese to his water. He will drink all of the water to get to the cottage cheese (which sinks to the bottom).
James July 25th, 2009 08:57:43 AM
James: Brilliant. I've also heard that smearing peanut butter at the bottom of the water bowl has the same effect. I have one client who swears by this method for her agility dogs.
Dr. Patty Khuly July 25th, 2009 10:29:34 AM
James,
we just take our fountains apart and run them though the dishwasher every few days...they stay nice and clean that way and the nooks get cleaned as well. We also skip the fliters on the drinkwell we have....but to hand clean?....you would need qtips.
LorriM1 July 25th, 2009 10:43:33 PM
I like the faucet gadget and I'll even get a recirculating fountain when they make one that's reasonably easy to clean. I do resort to bottled water when we travel and when there's contamination in the tap water but I stick to bottles that say "drinking water" because it meets the minimum drinking standards without being stripped of minerals like distilled water. I'd resort to "electrolyte" water for a sick animal but... Bottled water generally, daily for pets? Give me a break! We need to break humans of this nonsense and now pet owners are being fed the same silliness. So bad on so many levels starting with... Who's regulating the contents of this water? Probably nobody. Argh!
PJBoosinger July 25th, 2009 11:20:04 PM
My dogs don't normally drink a lot of water because they're raw fed, and the food they eat already contains a great deal of moisture. But during agility class in warm weather, and when traveling it was hard to get the dogs to drink enough.
Now I use GoDog - I dilute it more than the directions say, but it will still keep the dogs drinking water regularly during warm weather. The other trick I use when traveling is to add extra water to their food - if your dog will "drink" his meals that is a great way to help keep them hydrated if they aren't drinking a lot.
Barb July 26th, 2009 12:56:11 AM
In some countries it is pretty common to give cats pet milk as a treat and, incidentally, an alternate means of hydration. (Pet milk is lactose-free milk.) My cat gulped it down and begged for more at first, and then, over weeks, got inured to its charms.
cayugaduck July 26th, 2009 05:38:02 AM
Anna - we have a Drinkwell for our kitties, and my husband bought some kind of cleaning kit from the manufacturer that has helped us keep it in good condition for over four years. We take it apart and wash the parts in soapy, warm water. Then, he uses a brush that was made to get into the nooks & crannies to get all the gunk out. It's a lot of work, but it's done the trick.
I realize this post is about getting pets to drink more, but we got the fountain to encourage our pet to drink differently. Our female kitty was constantly licking the faucet, and my hubby found the thought of her germs on the faucet too much too put up with. So, he thought the fountain might redirect her attention. It's worked very well; although, she still loves to sleep in the sink. : )
Posey July 27th, 2009 03:56:23 PM
What is it with sleeping in sinks (and tubs)? Just that it's clean and cool or is there more to it?
PJBoosinger July 27th, 2009 05:47:42 PM
We use the Petmate drinking fountain for our two cats. Yes I do have to clean it frequently, but it helped me solve a water bowl problem. Tessa LOVED to bat her water bowl with her paw (presumably to see the waves on the water?). Every day I'd get home from work and the bowl would be half way across the kitchen floor minus the water. I switched to ceramic thinking it'd be heavier and harder to move. Didn't phase her. Keeping water in the bowl and available was one part of the problem. The other, that she'd start batting the bowl in another direction--down the back stairs. Although the fountain initially scared the bejeezus out of both cats, they now drink from it like pros, and Tess can't push it around with her paw.
joycebell July 28th, 2009 02:09:19 PM
The key for cats and hydration is easy...wet food (canned or raw). Cats descended from desert animals and have a low thirst drive. I do have a drinkwell fountain but more often than not, it's a toy. The cats love to play in it. Drink from it, not so much.
Heather July 29th, 2009 10:53:08 AM
Like others, my water fountain goes into the top rack of the dishwasher. I don't use the filters either. I don't think my cat really drinks more with it at this point, (though he did seem to at first), but I know he's enjoying it due to the little pussyprints I find all over my kitchen floor. And the occasional waterlogged toy.
2CatMom July 30th, 2009 12:43:27 PM
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