My dog barely drinks water. Is it a UTI or just his preference?

Question

Hello, my dog doesn't drink much water. I try to make him drink water but he still doesn't. It's 83 F here. Adding a little milk or curd to the water does make him drink the water though. Does he have a UTI or something? What should I do? The vet I go to has said that it's just because of his "personal preference" but I am not convinved. Pet's info: Dog | Lhasa Apso | Male | unneutered

Megan, DVM, CVA · Accepted Answer

Depending on the dog, he may not need much water. Dogs really only need ~1-1.5 cups per 10 pounds. So a 20 pound dog may feel the need to drink 2-3 cups per day where as a 5 pound dog may only drink 1/2 cup per day. Also, if you are feeding him any canned food or food with more moisture in it, then he will be less likely to drink plain water. At the end of the day, it does come down to personal preference. Usually, a UTi will cause a dog to drink MORE water. Finally, if there are any other signs like not eating, weight loss, diarrhea, etc. then I would have your vet take a look at him and maybe even run some blood work including electrolytes to make sure everything is normal. I hope this helps!

My dog barely drinks water. Is it a UTI or just his preference?

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