Can drinking muddy water make dogs sick?
Posted on December 29th, 2009 by admin
I see dogs drinking muddy water at the park all the time. Can this make them sick? How about muddy tennis balls? Have you ever known any dogs that get sick from drinking muddy water? What kind of disease?
Hypothetically, yes. Standing water can carry diseases that have been deposited in the environment by other sick animals such as parvo or leptospirosis. It can also contain loads of bacteria and microorganisms that could upset the natural balance of bacteria in the intestinal tract. It could also contain intestinal parasites that had been deposited in the stool of infected animals. However, unless your dog is very young, very old, ill, or unvaccinated, the likelyhood of them actually becoming very sick from drinking muddy water is pretty slim. The bacteria in the water could cause some vomiting or diarrhea, but probably nothing to worry about unless it continued for more than 24 hours, but the chances of them catching a lethal disease is pretty small. Just don’t let them drink too much, make sure they have fresh water available, and moniter their eating, drinking, and elimination habits anytime they have been exposed. Same goes for lake or river water.
December 30th, 2009 at 5:02 am
It is always possible there is always a risk Giardia is hard to get rid of and known to come from contaminated water but I wouldn’t quit playing with your dog because of muddy water puddles.
References :
December 30th, 2009 at 5:49 am
its better to have your own supply of clean, fresh water at the park. Never let your dog play with a random tennis ball at a park, you have no idea where its been or if the dog playing with it previously had any nasty viruses.
Will the dog be harmed by drinking muddy water occasionally? Probably not. But its not a good practice to get them in the habit of doing!
References :
December 30th, 2009 at 6:37 am
They are dogs, a dog eats his own waste. I would not worry much about it.
References :
December 30th, 2009 at 7:14 am
YES! this is where they can get hookworms, etc.
References :
Vet tech told me
December 30th, 2009 at 7:51 am
It is not the muddy water that does it just the parisites that are in the water. meds for that can be expensive but those are rare cases
Hope I helped
References :
December 30th, 2009 at 8:09 am
none of them will hurt a dog
References :
December 30th, 2009 at 8:59 am
Hypothetically, yes. Standing water can carry diseases that have been deposited in the environment by other sick animals such as parvo or leptospirosis. It can also contain loads of bacteria and microorganisms that could upset the natural balance of bacteria in the intestinal tract. It could also contain intestinal parasites that had been deposited in the stool of infected animals. However, unless your dog is very young, very old, ill, or unvaccinated, the likelyhood of them actually becoming very sick from drinking muddy water is pretty slim. The bacteria in the water could cause some vomiting or diarrhea, but probably nothing to worry about unless it continued for more than 24 hours, but the chances of them catching a lethal disease is pretty small. Just don’t let them drink too much, make sure they have fresh water available, and moniter their eating, drinking, and elimination habits anytime they have been exposed. Same goes for lake or river water.
References :
vet tech, pre vet student