Sign of dehydration in dogs and cats: Prevention and care tips

Whilst the awesome Australian weather helps us to enjoy more time in the great outdoors, the hot conditions can put us and our beloved canine and feline family members at a higher risk of dehydration. Maintaining adequate hydration is important for our short and long-term health, and it’s no different for our pets! If total body water decreases beyond tolerable levels, serious illness or even death can result.

For this reason, we’d love to discuss all things hydration, so you and your fur-bestie can ‘go with the flow’ of good health, even in hot weather!

Why hydration matters for your pet’s health

Hydration refers to total body water content, which is made up of all the water that is contained within the cells of the body, as well as the water that sits around cells, within our blood, and inside the gut.

Adequate water is required for the maintenance of key bodily functions and structures, including:

• Carrying vital nutrients and oxygen to cells via the bloodstream
• Removing waste materials from the body through pee and poop
• Regulating body temperature through processes such as sweating
• Moistening tissues of the eyes, nose and mouth
• Aiding digestion
• Lubricating joints for comfortable movement
• Protecting body tissues and vital organs such as the brain

Common signs and symptoms of dehydration

Significant dehydration can have dangerous health effects, including:

• Loss of the ability to regulate body temperature
• Dysfunction in multiple organs, including the brain and heart
• Damage to organs such as the kidney

Symptoms of dehydration will vary depending on the percentage of total body water that the pet has lost. Less than about 5% dehydration is difficult to detect on physical examination alone, although healthy pets will usually show compensatory signs such as increased thirst and more concentrated pee as their body tries to regain and hold onto water.

Once a pet has lost more than 5% of their total body water, they will begin to develop symptoms such as:

• Dry, sticky gums
• Reduced gut movement
• Reduced skin elasticity
• Dry, sunken eyes
• Depression
• Weakness

Losing more than 10-12% of their total body water can put a pet at serious risk of potentially fatal unwellness if left untreated.

You can check your furry companion’s hydration at home in two ways:

• Checking their skin elasticity through the skin turgor test: This involves gently pinching up a ‘tent’ of skin over their shoulders and seeing how long it takes to retract back into a normal flat position. Pets who are more than 5% dehydrated will have less elastic skin that will stay tented for longer, rather than snapping back into place within a second or two
• Checking their gums: Which will feel dry and sticky if they are more than 5% dehydrated

Prompt veterinary attention should be sought if a pet:

• is showing any symptoms of being more than 5% dehydrated, or
• hasn’t been drinking normally for more than 12-24 hours in healthy pets, or 6-12 hours in very young or old pets or those with other health problems.

Causes and risk factors

Water is naturally lost from the body via pee and poop, and through processes such as breathing, panting and sweating. While there are clever systems within the body to help monitor and maintain adequate hydration (such as hormones to prompt thirst or reduce water loss via wee), some pets can be at a higher risk of unhealthy water loss. These include very young or old animals, animals with underlying health problems such as kidney disease or diabetes, and nursing mothers.

Additionally, dehydration can occur in any pet who is prevented from accessing adequate drinking water, or who experiences an excessive loss of fluid via significant vomiting, diarrhea or bleeding. Cats and dogs will also be at a higher risk of dehydration in hot conditions or if they exercise heavily (as they will lose fluid from heavy breathing or panting).

Preventing dehydration: Practical tips

The most important strategy for preventing dehydration is to encourage your furry companion to drink adequate water! You can encourage your pet’s healthy drinking by:

• Placing multiple bowls of fresh water (washed out and changed daily) in different locations around the house
• Ensuring there is at least one bowl of water for each pet in the house, plus one extra to avoid competition (it happens!)
• Ensuring pets with mobility problems can access water dishes easily, and raising water bowls up off the ground if they appear to have trouble bending down
• Offering your pet access to a pet water fountain or other source of moving water, as this can encourage cats particularly to drink more
• Offering pet popsicles (ice with frozen treats inside – yum!)
• Feeding your pet a portion of their daily diet as a high-quality tinned food
• Adding water to your pet’s food or flavouring some of their drinking water with springwater from canned tuna or low sodium chicken broth
• Experimenting with different types of water bowls (as some cats don’t like plastic bowls, or narrow bowls that their whiskers will touch)
• Talking to your veterinarian about hydration supplements

Keeping your four-legged friend cool in hot or humid weather will also help to reduce water loss from excessive panting. You can do this by always providing your pet with access to shade, avoiding exercising them during midday heat, and giving your pet access to a fan or air-conditioning in weather where you would feel too hot sitting outdoors! These measures will also reduce your pet’s risk of developing dangerous heatstroke, which brachycephalic (flatter-faced) and thick-coated pets are particularly prone to.

Vet care and treatment options

Dogs and cats who develop significant dehydration due to illness or injury should be assessed promptly by a vet, as they will often require rehydration through medical means to prevent more serious unwellness.

Mildly dehydrated pets who are not vomiting can usually be rehydrated through the provision of drinking water or oral rehydration formulas (containing additional glucose and balanced electrolytes), or careful syringe-feeding or tube-feeding under veterinary supervision.

Pets who are mildly dehydrated but are also vomiting may require the administration of subcutaneous fluids. This involves the injection of sterile medical saline solutions under the skin, where they will gradually absorb into the rest of the body. Sounds scary, but we assure you it isn’t!

Moderately to severely dehydrated animals should ideally receive intravenous fluids (i.e. a drip). Early intervention is vital to help prevent vital organ damage from prolonged dehydration.

Monitoring and maintenance

To help ensure your fur-bestie remains healthily hydrated, it’s recommended to perform regular hydration checks. This is particularly important in hot weather, or if your pet is at a higher than usual risk of becoming dehydrated (e.g. very young, old, or unwell animals). This can be as simple as monitoring your pet’s wee to ensure they are passing urine regularly and that it looks a healthy straw-yellow colour, and performing the hydration checks discussed above (skin turgor and gum checks) if you’re concerned.

Scheduling regular 6-12 monthly veterinary checks for your pet can help to detect any developing health issues which may put them at a higher risk of dehydration. Having pet insurance can also bring peace of mind that you’ll be able to afford the recommended treatment for your pet in the event of any unexpected illness or injury.

The bottom line? Hydration = healthy!

Helping your pet to stay hydrated is an important way of supporting their general health. It’s a good idea to be aware of conditions that could challenge your pet’s ability to maintain hydration and always immediately consult your vet if you have any concerns.