Why do dogs splash in their water bowls?
Destin Keeling
2025-07-07 00:19:20
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Dogs and cats instinctively know that still, stagnant water can be a dangerous breeding ground for bacteria and parasites so that pawing at the water is basically a depth, temperature and water quality check. It also gets the water moving which immediately makes it more appealing to drink. Let’s be real, the fur-kids are like human kids and therefore playing with water is ALWAYS fun. For dogs, water play also keeps them cool. But all that poking and prodding does actually serve a purpose. Water might be an essential part of every day life but it seems playing with water is also a big part of every day.
Hollie Torphy
2025-06-27 13:49:59
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If she's getting excited or in a playful mood you could try redirecting her excitement to something else for example a frozen food stuffed toy or a favorite blanket. Sometimes dogs will do this if they're hot as well. Does she do it after walks or after being outside. My Shepherd did this when he was a puppy. We put the water bowl up off the floor and that solved the problem. We had a puppy stay with us recently who did the same thing. What worked for us was keeping an inch or less of water in the bowl. We put out several bowls, so there was still plenty to drink, but less water = less fun.
Ollie Legros
2025-06-27 13:41:06
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Dogs take any action as a sign of encouragement, and you must ignore her when she turns her water bowl into a wave pool. Some dogs will dip their paws into water to cool down, so make sure your pup isn’t overheated. She also might be enticed to dig into her bowl if there’s sediment or food at the bottom, so keep the dish as clean as possible. Your current strategy of yanking away a Tupperware container only reinforces her behavior, and I’d guess that this whack-a-mole routine has become her favorite game in the whole wide world. You can also reduce the water level in the dish so she has less liquid to play with. She’ll soon grow out of her wet-and-wild stage and commit to hydrating like a mannered adult.