Hey Woofa’s,

Our weather is starting to warm up, finally!  Spring is in the air……yay!

This means our water intake will start to increase, and it’s no different for our pets.

Our dogs need a healthy intake of water as well.

However, they rely solely on us to keep their water bowls clean and full each and every day.

With a gazillion choices of water bowls to choose from it can become overwhelming and confusing as to which one to actually use.

Let’s keep it simple shall we?

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT YOUR DOG’S WATER BOWL!

Here are some basic things to keep in mind when choosing your dog’s water bowl.

The Type Of Water Bowl!

To me this depends on your dog – how big your dog is, is your dog a chewer (which most are when puppies), will they end up playing in it, how long are their ears (will their ears end up hanging in it every time they drink)?

You’ve got bowls made out of – Plastic, Ceramic or Stainless steel just to name a few!

Plastic can be chewed up – growing up with Staffies we learnt this pretty quick.

Ceramic can break causing injuries.

Yes, you guessed it we went for stainless steel for our Staffies.  I still use stainless steel for all Billy’s bowls, they’re easy to clean, they can be thrown around and chewed and they survive it all.

We actually use stainless steel mixing bowls because they come in different sizes.

You’ve got to choose right for your dog.  What might work for someone else may not work for you.

If you’re dog is not a chewer or doesn’t throw their dish around then plastic or ceramic will work fine.

Some Questions to ask yourself when choosing a water bowl –

• Is it easy to keep clean?
• Will it scratch easy (because muck can get stuck in the scratches)?
• Can my dog pick this up in their mouth and throw this around?
• Will my dog’s ears dangle in the water when they’re having a drink from this bowl?
• Where am I going to put this bowl, will it be safe i.e. not be easily broken?
• How many water bowels do you need?

How Many Water Bowls Will You Need?

This is a great question because you’re going to need more than one, no matter how many dogs you have.

Billy is an only dog and he has four, two inside and two outside.

Why so many?   Because if we get slack in keeping one filled or one tips over, we know there are three more he can drink from.

We use to have a Staffy, Bonnie, who when it got hot, would dig in the water bowl and splash the water up under her belly to cool down.  She’d do this until there was no water left!!!!

We had four Staffies  at the time so you can imagine how many water bowls we had to have.

I’d recommend at least two water bowls per dog.

Where Do I Put My Dog’s Water Bowls?

Another great question.

You also have to work out whether your dog is going to be an inside dog, or an outside dog or both!

If your dog is inside with you while you’re home and outside when you’re not home, I’d say place at least 1-2 bowls inside and 2-3 outside.

If you’re home you can keep an eye on the bowls inside –  cleanliness and keeping the water level up.

When you’re not home and the dog is outside you want to make sure the bowls aren’t in the sun all day.

The sun moves around so you want at least one bowl in an undercover shaded area away from falling leaves or anything that can fall into the bowl.

If there’s no undercover area, make it so at least one bowl is out of the sun and away from anything falling in it.

Inside bowls, we place them in our bathrooms.  One bathroom is used more than the other, so I’m constantly changing that water bowl.   Because we’re in there more but there’s also more things like loose hair or fibres in the air that fall into the bowl.

Another room in the house to use is the laundry, cool tiled rooms where the water can be kept away but easy access for your dog to get to.

How To Keep The Water Bowls Clean?

Another important thing is keeping the water bowls clean and full.

It’s your dogs only drinking source so it’s important to keep it clean and full.

I wouldn’t be wiping the dog’s bowl out with a sponge that has chemicals on it.

To keep them clean use a clean cloth (put it aside purely for cleaning out the bowls) and wipe the bowls out.

You’ll notice that the water may look slightly cloudy and the bowl may have a film on it, run it under water and wipe it all out.

Another reason why I like stainless steel, so much easier to keep clean.

I’ve seen some dog bowls (when I was mobile grooming) that had green moss sitting on top of them – NOT GOOD!

Would you drink out of a dirty drink bottle????  Your dog shouldn’t have to either!

Checking The Water Level!

It’s also a good idea to keep an eye on the water level.

This way you’ll know how much water your dog is actually drinking and which water bowl they prefer.

Fill up your dog’s water bowls and place a tiny mark where you filled them too.

In a day or two you can check too see which bowl has been drunk from more frequently.

You’ll also be able to make sure you’re dog is drinking regularly.

NOTE – it will benefit your dog if you elevate their water bowl so they don’t have to strain their neck just to get a drink of water.

Some bowls come with a stand or you could use an appropriate sized pot plant holder, or build your own.

FUN FACT ABOUT DOGS AND WATER!

Have you heard of the Jacobson’s organ – yes your dog has one!

Jacobson’s Organ (aka Vomeronasal Organ)

This runs along the floor of the nose (roof of the mouth) starting just behind the canine teeth.  Human’s do not have this.  It connects directly with the olfactory lobe via nerve bundles.

At first it was thought Jacobson’s organ was only for scenting sex related pheromones for dogs.  However, it’s now been associated with the dog’s ability to ‘scent’ water!

This basically allows dogs to smell objects underwater without them inhaling!!!

It’s like having part of a nose in your mouth!!!

Diagram of Jacobson’s organ  inside dog’s mouth 

How cool is that?

WHAT DOES ALL THIS MEAN?

It’s important to choose the right water bowls for your dog.

With so many options on the market, take a look at YOUR dog’s needs first and then choose what will work best for them.

Keeping your dog’s water bowls clean and full is imperative to their health and well being.

Happy Drinking Everyone!!

IN THE COMMENTS BELOW – BILLY WOULD LIKE TO KNOW – WHAT TYPE OF DOG BOWLS YOU USE FOR YOUR DOG?