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Bluebell drinks a lot... diabetes?

emmawright

Well-known member
Hi All - i posted on here recently about Bluebell being rushed to the vet, turns out she has pancreastitis (think i spelt that wrong), for which she is on a special food (hills i/d). The reason i am writing here is because she seems to drink a lot of water, especially compared to Lottie who really doesn't drink very much. They have a big bowl of water down all day and i lift the water bowl at about 7pm, she will then sit out in the kitchen and bark and bark for a drink, i have just let her have another drink (now 7.45pm) and then she will probably be out there barking at 9pm. I let her have a drink because i don't like to think that she is thirsty, but the problem is then that she wee's in her bed at night. My dad has diabetes so i know that a symptom is excessive thirst, and the vet did mention about diabetes could be a possibilty in her future if her pancreas gets worse. The thing is she doesn't drink a little, its great big gulps and she just drinks and drinks....
 
I would recommend getting her back to the vet right away, Emma. I do not think water should be withheld from a thirsty dog -- if she is wetting it could be due to a spay, it could be her meds, it could be many things. But I truly doubt she should be denied water and it may actually make her condition worse if she is not given water as she needs it.

You can get incontinence panties for dogs -- many use them with oldies at night. Or I'd just get vetbed and wash it daily if she has peed in the night. But she needs to see the vet as excessive thirst can indicate a range of issues, and at the very least, I'd get the vet's advice on rationing water as I think that could be potentially dangerous or at least, be making things very uncomfortable for her.

Good luck and let us know what the vet says. :flwr: There are many here with experience of pancreatitis who might be able to advise too. Nicki knows a lot about this for example.
 
Karlin's right, you should NEVER withold water unless on medical advice.

You need to get her back to the vets - pancreatitis on its own doesn't cause excess drinking - but you are right in that diabetes can cause that. There could be lots of reasons so you do need to get Bluebell checked over by the vets.

You can use wee wee pads or incontinence pants - pekeatzurescue don't seem to make them anymore but I've just found some on E-bay


http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/New-HOTTER-DOG-SHORTS-Pants-Season-Incontinent-SMALL_W0QQitemZ250524939710QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_Pet_Supplies_Dogs?hash=item3a547335be
 
My old girl Belle was diabetic for 3 and a half years.
When she was unstable she would drink and drink and also pee herself. She also every so often go into a hypo (would act drunk)
Hope you get some answers soon.
 
Poor Bluebell. Yep, I'd get her back to the vet and make sure she's not having a medical problem. Shelby drinks twice as much as Jake. She always goes to get one last drink of water before going to bed. She will also wet the bed, couch, whatever if she drinks too much so I have to make sure she gets out plenty to potty. Hope Bluebell is okay.
 
Hope the i/d is helping Bluebell now. Excessive thirst and peeing is often the first noticable sign of renal disease, so I'd echo the previous advice and go back to the vets for some blood tests just to be on the safe side.:xfngr:
 
"Karlin's right, you should NEVER withold water unless on medical advice."


- I don't think i withold water! Like i said, i lift the water bowl at 7pm roughly and if she wants a drink after that then i give her one. As for her bed, they have a lot of blankets and if she has had an accident then i just wash the sheets - i have tried the waterproof beds and found them to be not very good, e.g. not waterproof!

But then she had blood tests etc done when she was at the vets - so you would think if there was a problem they would have picked it up. I'll talk to the vet.
 
But Emma, removing the bowl is withholding water -- it needs to be always accessible to both dogs; this is actually so essential that not having water available at all times (not just on request!) is a prosecutable offense in many places (it is the basis of cruelty prosecutions in Ireland for example). She may not go to you until she badly needs water, and not having access to it could in itself potentially cause a serious problem or collapse. It is not fair to keep it from her just due to bedwetting -- I think you urgently need to figure out the cause of both issues. :flwr: A final walk to let her relieve herself should help most wetting problems but vetbed makes it very easy to deal with as do incontinence panties. There are also medications for spay incontinence if that is the issue. I am sure your vet will also say you need to keep water down at ALL times.

I would get her back to the vet -- you are not seeing norml behaviour. If your vet is being so-so about these symptoms, I'd get a second opinion from a different practice.

There are other causes of excessive drinking as well. And sometimes tests need to be redone. Or try a different vet for a second opinion.

What does the breeder say? Is there any history of such problems in their lines?
 
Well considering i only lift the water bowl in the evenings i would hardly say that is cause for prosecution, there is no one who looks after these dogs better than i do! They do not just get their water "on request" as you put it. I have just called the vet and she says to measure the amount of water she is getting through in 24hrs and to let her know, but she said it would be silly to jump into tests yet as she is only a young dog. She said the barking is probably behavourial and so is the weeing in the bed as she has always done it from a puppy. I asked her about lifting the water bowl and she said that was fine to do so, but if she still wees in her bed whether i lift it or not, theres no point in me lifting it.
 
I'll be the voice of dissention here. I often lift the water bowl up at 8:00. I give Shelby a drink of fresh water and then the bowl goes up. I can't have her drinking water an hour before going to bed, she will pee the bed. Same as I don't drink a big glass of wate before going to bed but will have a big glass an hour before. But she is really good about taking a good drink of water with her last of the evening bowl.

I think the problem here is not her drinking water but drinking so much and having accidents. I do think I would talk to the vet and if you aren't getting a satisfactory answer, ask for another opinion.

Refresh my memory Emma...how old is Bluebell?
 
Oh well - it's not just me who lifts a water bowl then ! Like you said, i have a drink last thing before bed, i don't drink throughout the night, so the dogs are the same. I think the bed wetting is behavourial, as she has always done it, she used to do it as a puppy, when i had daisy, she would jump in her bed and wee then climb into her bed and sleep! leaving poor daisy with a wet bed!

Bluebell will be 3yrs next April.
 
I agree with Cathy IF you know there's no underlying health problem.

But there is a big difference between being SURE this is a behaviour issue or a spay incontinence issue-- in which case, this is something you need to resolve or manage -- and the significant risk in the case of this already ill dog that this could be a health problem in which depriving water could pose a serious problem or a collapse.

It would not be a normal recommendation to EVER pull water from a frantically thirsty dog, or to remove access to water for any dog at all during all waking hours -- as I said, doing so is grounds for cruelty prosecutions in many countries, with good reason.

To me this sounds like a health problem, given her history, and a potentially serious one that I would not presume is a behaviour. I also know of diabetic dogs that have needed several blood panels before diagnosis -- and there are other serious problems that can cause an excessive thirst problem.

Please do have a read of the links I posted and raise those with your vet. If the vet cannot find anything I would definitely get a second opinion, perhaps from a specialist.
 
Sorry to drag this up again Emma, but Bluebells excessive thirst has been playing on my mind for a few days now and wont go away. I've an uneasy feeling there is something wrong with her kidneys maybe??

Often owners say "well he/she has been drinking a bit more than usual the past few weeks, but the weather was quite warm, so I didnt think anything of it". Thats right after they get the result of the BUN tests etc etc which has just confirmed their pet has renal disease that they were completely unaware of!!

I agree 3 years is young for this type of thing to happen, but these things can happen at any time to anyone. It can happen suddenly and quite dramatically or silently and creep up on you (chronic). PLEASE take her back and get some tests done, if only to shut me up.

Wishing you and Bluebell well.
 
My concern with a 3 year old having this problem is that she would be fully housetrained by now and if she is having accidents, I can't help but feel there might be a medical reason for it. Rule out medical and then address behavioral.

When Shelby did this a time or two at almost 6 years old...off to the vet we went. Medical issues were ruled out and we began to address a behavioral issue. Sure enough, once we made sure she went out and actually pottied several times a day...and turned it into a "party" (treats, attagirls, etc) she stopped peeing inappropriately.

Again....Shelby drinks significantly more water than Jake but it was not a medical issue.
 
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