Trixie wont drink water from a bowl

[Pam & Trixie]

This has been going on for a week now. 

She drank water fine for the 1st 2 weeks we had her.  From 2 different bowls ( neither are metal)

They are both Ceramic.

Then she stopped drinking water from them.

 

She will eat her food happily from one of the bowls.  She will not drink water from it.

 

I have tried 6 different bowls since this started...Even larger ones as google suggested.

 

I have dropped pieces of kibble into the water & she will fish them out & drink some water while doing so.

 

She will aslo drink water from my Hand ( this I did not do until she stopped drinking) 

She will drink it from my hand if it is in the water bowl also.

 

Anything Else you can think of that I can try to get her used to the bowl again?

 

Thanks,

Pam

[Pam & Trixie]

She just drank a little more fridge water on her own!  Not much.  but she drank some : )

 

Of course until she drinks well on her own. I will have to continue to make sure she drinks water - either from my hand...or on her food- or both.  So she wont get dehydrated.

[Jenny & Henry]

I just asked you about this!  Didn't see the post.  Sounds like you are making a little progress.  I hope she starts wanting more of that fridge water!!!  Good luck.

[Bonnie and Kona]

We had a Cavalier that would eat only when hand fed for a little while. I finally just stopped and she had to eat eventually. I found that hand-feeding became a way for him to get attention. My mom was visiting and enjoyed hand-feeding him which is how it started. I recommend you just stop. When she is thirsty she will drink. Just my experience... no expertise here.

[Pam & Trixie]

If it were food that she wouldnt eat.  I wouldnt be so worried.  But Puppies can get dehydrated very easily & it they can die from that.

So I need to make sure she is getting water some way.

[BG and Gavin]

You could make some ice cubes made with a bit of chicken boullion if you are really worried about dehydration.

[Pam & Trixie]

I think I will try either frozen low sodium Chicken Broth  or add a tiny bit to her water...I keep forgetting to get some at the store!

 

 I could phase that out...until it is just water...And hope she doesnt get used to chicken water : )

[Debb, Lucy & Oscar]

I hate to say this, but with allowing Trixie to drink out of your hand, you're training her (or maybe the other way around... she's training you) to only get drinks from your hand. I say this because we had a similar situation with feeding Lucy out of our hand when she'd turn her nose up at her food. At least that's how it started. There was a time when she would eat exclusively out of our hands, and even paw our hands at meal time. The way we're breaking it (and its been an ongoing effort for some time) is not to feed her out of our hands and slowly ween her to using the bowl. She doesn't eat as much any more (only 1 meal really), and we're okay with that. She did lose a couple lbs. but nothing major.

You could try different types of water... bottled spring water, tap water, filtered tap water, etc. and see if Trixie has a preference (my Lucy likes cold, filtered water from the fridge door). I think as long as you keep fresh water in a couple different bowls in a couple different locations, Trixie will come around. She won't deprive herself of water for too long. I do like the fountain idea, though, just to try, but often its just the type of water or the temp of the water that can make a difference. I know how hard it will be to stop using your hands, especially with something as necessary as water, but do you want to allow her to drink out of your hands for the rest of her life? Another thing you may want to do is to have her checked out by a vet. You don't want the cause of her not drinking to be physical.

[Pam & Trixie]

I agree & it certainly has come to mind that I could be creating a bad habit. But I also know she needs to have water.  She did not drink water for over a day when this started. 

I can tell she is thirsty when she goes to her bowl & looks at the water.

 

When I do give her water out of my Hand it is with my Hand in her bowl.  So hopefully that will help her get used to the bowl/water  still

 

I have tried different water, Different temperatures.  Different bowls (glass, plastic & Metal)  & sizes..And amounts of water in the bowl.

 

She has been to the vet twice to be checked...Their main concern was that she not get dehydrated.

 

I too had another puppy that was not interested in her food...Since it was food (not water) . I did not feed her by hand...but let her eat what she wanted & then put the food up.

[Debb, Lucy & Oscar]

You may want to try giving her a few laps of water in your hand and then simply stop, and stand, looking elsewhere. She'll look at you and wait, and after realizing you're attention isn't on her, she should start to drink from the bowl. Or maybe she'll wander off and come back later. A couple other thoughts come to mind... like starting this weening process when you get the new fountain. Also, changing the location of the water bowl/s. Doodles are so smart, they know when they have you wrapped around their little toe :). I didn't watch Lucy's water intake so much when she was little, and she certainly didn't drink as much as she does now at 17 months (she drinks about 2 quarts of water a day). She may have gone a day without drinking back then. All I can say is the longer you delay in weening her, the harder it will be.

[Pam & Trixie]

I tried a tiny bit of Low Sodium Chicken broth today in her water bowl.  And Trixie drank some!  She stopped & drank a little more.   I have a Bowl of it downstairs too.  She had 2-3 licks of it when I 1st put it down.

So that is really good.

Hopefully with time She will walk over to her bowl when thirsty & get a drink!

[Bonnie and Kona]

That's great! So glad the wonderful people on DoodleKisses came through for you with something that is working! Love this website!!!