Son's Dog Drinks Our Pool Water, Is It Harmful?

[M.D. Holloway]

Indy is now 10 months old. He is turning into a great family friend. Funny thing is he doesn't like to swim! He will drink our pool water but will not jump in. He did fall in once and I tried to push him in and he wanted none of it. We heat our pool so its not the temp. He looks like he wants to join the kids but chickens out.

Also, he loves to drink the pool water. Its a salt chlorine convertor pool. The NaCl concentration is 3300ppm. He hasn't puked over it and he doesn't seem to have any other issues yet. I called our Vet and she said that the concentration seemed rather low and not to worry.

Have you guys experienced your dogs drinking pool water and having issues?

Here is Indy by the pond and the trail. He spotted some ducks and heard something in the woods. Everything is a toy and every living creature has potential to be his best friend! Labs are funny.

[porsche4life]

He isn't dead yet, I wouldn't worry....

I guarantee he doesn't like the pool b/c there is no easy way out... Build a ramp.

[goat]

No up on my salt pools..
But Dogs in general don't need that much salt. I would be worried about kidney problems later.
Also to remove the salt from the body they will urinate more, leading to dehydration.
But if the vet says no prob. But then again I am always over protective of my dogs.

[Tim Hancock]

Our dog swims sometimes for over 10 minutes several times each summer day all on his own. He will also always join us when we are in the pond. That said, he ABSOLUTELY WILL NOT jump in from our dock even though it is only 1 ft when the water level is high... If we call to him while on the dock, he will run off the dock and then wade in to us.

[Rikao4]

don't force him..
he will go if he wants too..
but he needs to know how & were to get out...
Jack my youngest Lab..is hard to keep out of any puddle..
but he does not like the pool..avoids it..
Sam the older one..
doesn't like ponds..
will wade up to his chest only..
pool.. he's in & out all day if I let him..

Rika

[gatotom]

Labs will start swimming in their due course time, not on your schedule.

My lab Lady took the jump in a pond at 7 months old because another lab jumped in and she just followed the example. She didn't like it too much and didn't jump into water for another yr and believe me this dog loves to jump.

She also will drink the puget sound salt water, I always worry because later in the day she will be drinking water like mad, but she has no problems.

A pic on the boat in jan.

[R K T]

Speedster couldn't wait till the pool was finished....she loves swimming.

[R K T]

Sorry.....to answer the question, we never had a problem with her swallowing a little bit of water when she was swimming. But it was a salt water pool, and like stated earlier, salt is not good for you or your dog. I would try to stop the dog from drinking it.

[M.D. Holloway]

something I found

Q: My dog has been drinking from the swimming pool this summer. Will the pool water hurt him?

A: Animals like cold water when the weather is hot and humid, so make sure your dog has plenty of fresh, cool water and replenish it during the day if necessary. Your dog may drink from the pool because he actually prefers it, or it could be that his water supply is getting warm and not to his liking.

If his water bowl is easy to access and freshened daily but he still chooses pool water, it could be a sign of a medical problem or just a new habit. Pool water is not recommended for drinking, even though the chemicals are diluted and not likely to cause a problem.

However, there is a real concern if he drinks the water shortly after you have added chemicals, or shock, to your pool. The chlorine or bromine levels at that time could be high enough to cause problems ranging from stomach upset to neurologic signs.

Also, many pools today use salt systems that convert salt to sodium and chloride. Most salt systems keep the sodium level around 3200 ppm (parts per million) which is 10-20 times more than tap water. The high salt levels could increase the natural blood sodium levels, a conditioned called hypernatremia, which can cause severe dehydration with signs ranging from lethargy to seizures.

You might think animals would reject the taste of heavily salted water, but there are those dogs that will drink the ocean water when visiting the beach; they typically develop diarrhea because of the high sodium and magnesium in the water. These dogs also run the risk of becoming dehydrated.

Animals need more water when outdoor temperatures rise, but a dramatic increase in water consumption could also be a sign of kidney disease or other metabolic problems. You may want to investigate this new behavior further by having your veterinarian examine your dog and do some routine blood analysis.

Some animals will drink to excess because of an affinity for water; this behavior is called psychogenic polydipsia and can disrupt blood electrolytes causing serious problems. It can also lead to a condition known as water intoxication, a fluid overload on the body, with signs including difficulty breathing and neurologic components like dilated pupils, seizures and coma.

Lastly, I do worry about dogs accidentally falling into a pool and drowning. Dogs are natural swimmers, but if they do not know how to exit a pool they will exhaust themselves clawing at the side in vain.

My recommendation is that if your dog enjoys an occasional lap from the pool water I would not worry, but if he drinks from it multiple times a day or for prolonged periods I would limit his access and make sure he has no other medical problems driving his behavior.


Tracy Dewhirst is a freelance contributor to the News Sentinel.

[lowyder993s]

My two drink constantly...can't get them to quit, even tho a 5 gal bucket of fresh is closer. 7.5 yrs old and still no probs. DON'T push the dog in the water!!! Surest way to get them not to go in. I just got in the pool when they were about 4 mos and coaxed them in. Keeping them on the step and then letting them come out to me working it further and further back. ALWAYS had them go back to the same place to get out so they don't try and get out on the side of the pool (which they sometimes do). Here's Enzo thinking he's a chessie

[boba]

My current 3 dogs have been drinking from the pool their entire lives and previous dogs have done the same since 1988. All in saltwater pools. No health problems to report. Of the 6 I have had during that time only one does not like to swim and she is still young. They will even go swimming in the winter even though TX winter is not always cold.

[Joeaksa]

My critters have done it for years and no problems so would not worry about it.

[UconnTim97]

as long as you're not peeing in it...

[Zeke]

Probably better water than a lot of municipal systems.

[M.D. Holloway]

True Milt! I keep that water pristine. The pH is perfect, the free Cl is optimal, very little if any Chloramines and the NaCl level is around 3000ppm. I adjust chlorination according to the outside temp. I test the water weekly and also bring it to a pool shop to test as well (just to validate my data). I have to add acid weekly but that is typical. I backwash every quarter and have only had to add salt once and stabilizer once.

[Zeke]

Just don't let the dog eat half an avocado every day.