Dangerous For My Dog To Drink From The Toilet?

[Lissa]

Polaris, my seven-month-old puppy has discovered the wonders of the bathroom. From a terrible place where baths are dispensed, it has gone to a wonderland of toilet paper to be unrolled and strewn about the house, rugs to chew, and a new source of water.

She drinks bottled water out of a filtered fountain bowl, but is she grateful? Oh, no . . . . nasty toilet water is what she will go for if given a chance.

My other dog never drank from the toilet. What gives? Why is she so attracted to it? Why are some dogs attracted to toilets where others are not?

Is it dangerous? I can imagine it's not exactly a sanitary source of drinking water, but this is an animal which licks her own backside. What about the chemicals in the water? Every once in a while, I drop in a 2000 Flushes tab. (The water's not blue any more, so there's not much in there.)

Will it make her sick?

Is there a way to break them of this habit, other than leaving the lid down all the time? Like her digging, is it just something I'll have to accept?

[DrDeth]

The Chemicals can be very dangerous. Go in, and remove any remaining containers!

Don't use harsh chemicals to clean the toilet anymore. Use vinegar or baking soda. Bleach might be OK if you make sure you triple rinse it all out, and don't let it sit.

As to the germs- well- usually, if the toilet is kept fairly clean, the dog should be OK.

Why is she attracted to it? The water is fresher, and it isn't still, thus it tatses better. They have pet drinking fountains at the pet store- perhaps that's the solution. They also might have a thingamajg that attaches to a faucet so that when a dog licks it, water flows.

[vetbridge]

The water has the potential for causing harm, especially if you use a sustained release cleaning product.

Keep the seat/lid down. You really should anyway, si?

[Soylent Gene]

Dogs love toilet water.

Let them enjoy.

Dogs eat animal shit, why would toilet water hurt them?

BTW- as far as using cleaners, I would imagine one flush would clean out (aka "flush") any of the chemicals away. I have never heard of a dog getting sick from drinking out of the toilet.

[brownie55]

Not only does keeping the lid down save Polaris from danger, you won't sit on the water she drools across the seat. The other positive is no more seat up/seat down arguments, everybody lowers everything, everytime.

[DrDeth]

Originally Posted by Soylent Gene

BTW- as far as using cleaners, I would imagine one flush would clean out (aka "flush") any of the chemicals away.

I'd use several flushs and also a brush in between flushes. Also- do note that some of the chemical cleaners (like those that turn the water blue) are supposed to last "1000 flushes' or so.

[Anne Neville]

I don't want to worry about chemicals, bacteria, et cetera with regards to the Neville kitties and the toilets. So we just keep the lids down all the time- problem solved.

We deal with the toilet paper issue by scrunching a hand towel in over the top of the roll, so it hangs down and covers the roll. It seems to work most of the time for keeping the kitties from unrolling, clawing, or biting the toilet paper.

[ZipperJJ]

Ever consider she doesn't like the bottled water from the filtered fountain bowl?

I personally don't like filtered or bottled water - tastes way too different than my fabuouls city water from the tap.

Maybe she's craving some minerals!

Try filling her bowl with tap water for a while, see if she's into it.

Although I bet she just does it for the novelty of being a dog that drinks out of the bowl

[Eve]

Not only will it keep your dog from drinking out of it, but you don't want to get up one morning and find Lupe Velez drowned in your toilet . . .

[Lissa]

Originally Posted by Anne Neville

We deal with the toilet paper issue by scrunching a hand towel in over the top of the roll, so it hangs down and covers the roll. It seems to work most of the time for keeping the kitties from unrolling, clawing, or biting the toilet paper.

Not for her, it won't. She's equally attracted to hand towels.

I swear to god, tissue is like crack for her. She'll go to amazing lengths to get just a smidge of it.

The other day, she tricked me. I was getting ready to take a shower, the water running, and she came into the bathroom. She stood up on the edge of the bathtub, and looked at me with a beguiling puppy-grin.

"Oh my god!" I thought, ecstatically. She's going to get into the tub!" After all of the turmoil we've had over bathtime (she used to scream like she'd been set on fire when she was bathed) she's starting to learn to like it!

She delicately dipped one paw into the tub. I stepped back in order not to seem threatening (like I was going to dunk her in if I got a chance) and waited, excitement rising. She lifted her back leg as if to climb in, and looked over at me. Hallelujah! She's actually going to get in willingly!!!!

I backed up further to show her I was giving her her space and looked away pointedly. At that moment, she lept off the tub edge, darted toward the trash can, grabbed a wad of tissue and ran like hell.

Originally Posted by ZipperJJ

Ever consider she doesn't like the bottled water from the filtered fountain bowl?

I personally don't like filtered or bottled water - tastes way too different than my fabuouls city water from the tap.

Maybe she's craving some minerals!

Try filling her bowl with tap water for a while, see if she's into it.

Dude, I wouldn't give, well, a dog our local tap water. I get the EPA reports. Stuff of nightmares, let me tell you.

Although I bet she just does it for the novelty of being a dog that drinks out of the bowl

You're probably right-- at her age, everything new is very exciting.

[ouryL]

Yes, he might choke on the Tidy Bowl man.

[Anne Neville]

Originally Posted by Lissa

The other day, she tricked me. I was getting ready to take a shower, the water running, and she came into the bathroom. She stood up on the edge of the bathtub, and looked at me with a beguiling puppy-grin.

Awwww, puppy grins!

Do you think she might have wanted to lap up the water in the shower? The Neville kitties do that. They have fresh water in their kitty bowl, but non-kitty-bowl water, whether it is water in Momma's glass or dirty water on the shower floor, tastes so much better, don'tcha know?

Some dogs like playing with a stream of water from a hose- they will leap after it and try to bite the stream. You should try this with Polaris, and post some pictures if she goes for it- it's so CUTE when they do that!

[whiterabbit]

Due to kitties almost all of the time I was growing up, I just keep the lid down. I don't have any critters now, but I can already see that training my SO to keep the lid down is going to be a challenge. I'm always lowering it. It's probably the easiest solution once you get all the people trained, however.

My family has a dog that drank out of the gutters in the French Quarter of New Orleans and, amazingly, didn't get sick.

[Lissa]

Originally Posted by Anne Neville

Some dogs like playing with a stream of water from a hose- they will leap after it and try to bite the stream. You should try this with Polaris, and post some pictures if she goes for it- it's so CUTE when they do that!

That's why I got her the fountain, actually. She much prefers running water. She tries to bite the water that comes from the detatchable shower head. When we'd go on walks, she wouldn't drink from the bowl I brought-- she'd only drink from the stream from the bottle as I was pouring.

So, we got her the fountain waterer. The older dog refuses to go near it. Polaris drinks from it, but a little cautiously still. She's probably afraid of the motor's purring. She will not drink from the stream as it gushes from the fountain yet, but likes it if I pour water from a jug down onto the fountain's platform. She's an odd duck.

Perhaps this comes from how I cared for her as a baby. When I got her, she was only five weeks old, and desperately ill. She didn't know how to drink water. The only way to get it down her was to squirt syringes of it into her mouth.

My older dog is VERY picky when it comes to water, and she'll go thirsty before she drinks water she doesn't like or from a bowl she dislikes. I used to have to bring bottles of water from home when we'd go away, or she wouldn't drink at all for days. She refuses to drink from puddles or streams. She won't drink water from the hose, or any other running source. On walks, she refuses to drink at all until we get home, even if I brought her bowl with me.

I once bought her a gallon-jug waterer, and she wouldn't go near it. I mean, refused to even go within five feet of it. I couldn't drag her close to it. My husband convinced me to remain firm. He said no dog will dehydrate itself with water in plain view out of stubborness and she'd drink when she was thirsty. He was wrong. We broke before she did.

It's amazing how opposite the puppy is in temperment. It's certainly much more convenient!

[Uvula Donor]

Lissa, my dog went through the toilet paper stage, too. One day he even got into the linen closet, pulled out a new package of 12 rolls, and ripped the hell out of them. Spread every room in the house with bits of toilet paper.

Be firm with him. He will grow out of it, I promise.

One thing I've never been able to break him of, though - we have an antique drying rack in the bathroom, and we hang hand towels and washcloths on it when we're finished using them after a shower. Whenever the dog goes into the bathroom, he will very carefully pluck all the washcloths (dry or wet, it doesn't matter) off the rack and place them on the floor in a neat row.

About the toilet thing - well, we just stopped using chemicals in the toilet and let him drink out of it. I'm not concerned about a little bacteria. If he gets into my chicken coop, he doesn't chase the chickens, he eats the chicken shit. I figure if that doesn't hurt him, a little eau de toilette won't either.

[ZipperJJ]

Originally Posted by Lissa

"Oh my god!" I thought, ecstatically. She's going to get into the tub!" After all of the turmoil we've had over bathtime (she used to scream like she'd been set on fire when she was bathed) she's starting to learn to like it!

She delicately dipped one paw into the tub. I stepped back in order not to seem threatening (like I was going to dunk her in if I got a chance) and waited, excitement rising. She lifted her back leg as if to climb in, and looked over at me. Hallelujah! She's actually going to get in willingly!!!!

I backed up further to show her I was giving her her space and looked away pointedly. At that moment, she lept off the tub edge, darted toward the trash can, grabbed a wad of tissue and ran like hell.

I love your Polaris stories

My Dolly used to be allowed to "play" in the bathroom when I was in the shower. There were times when I didn't have her crate yet and I didn't trust her alone in the house when I was in the shower. She'd be allowed to put her feet and face into the tub with me.

She grew to like it. Too much. She found the drain to be fascinating. We have a wire cover over the drain to catch hair. She thought it was a good time to use her claws to scrape at the drain until the wire cover popped out then run around the house with it. Honestly, in the middle of the night...*scrape scrape scrape* - in our fiberglass tub!

She stopped being allowed to come into the bathroom with Mommy.

Anyway, she liked the idea of the bathtub for a long time. The shower didn't scare her. She still will get very excited for bath-in-the-tub time. Jump right in - woohoo!!! BUT...as soon as she realizes she is having a BATH and she has to hold still, she makes up her mind that this is Not So Fun and proceeds to fight tooth and nail to get out of the tub, sopping wet.

She now gets bathed on the patio, with the hose, on a leash. In the winter, to the groomer's with her.

So don't get too excited if Polaris decides the Tub is a fun time. She's only messing with your mind

[vetbridge]

Originally Posted by Soylent Gene

I have never heard of a dog getting sick from drinking out of the toilet.

I have. In fact, I have seen fatalities from ingestion of toilet water. Most of the fatalities have involved toilets in summer homes where the homeowner placed antifeeze into the toilet before leaving in the fall. On the first visit in the spring, fido takes a drink and is taking a dirt nap a few days later. Sodium hypochlorite, while usually not deadly, can cause some pretty nasty GI signs also.

[whatsittoya]

Originally Posted by Lissa

Dude, I wouldn't give, well, a dog our local tap water. I get the EPA reports. Stuff of nightmares, let me tell you.

That ought to answer that question. Toilet bowl water is (generally speaking) tap water with extra goodies thrown in.

[tygerbryght]

Originally Posted by brownie55

Not only does keeping the lid down save Polaris from danger, you won't sit on the water she drools across the seat. The other positive is no more seat up/seat down arguments, everybody lowers everything, everytime.

<cue music>
It ain't necessarily so.
</music>

Some of my Danes liked toilet water. If the lid was down, they'd just use their noses to lift the lid. It doesn't take a giant breed to do that trick, either. Any large breed can manage it (shepherds, labs, standard poodles, etc.), and many smaller dogs, if they're determined to get at it.

You may have to keep the bathroom door closed, Lissa. Or else get a "toddler gate" and put it across the entrance. If you go for the toddler gate, be sure to get one that's at least three feet high (preferably higher). You do NOT want to teach her to jump gates!


I do concur with vetbridge, et al, who recommend changing to natural-type cleaners until you've solved the problem.

And I trust that, if you've been in the habit of kissing her on the face (or anyplace her tongue can reach, or splashes from the toilet can reach), you've stopped. Also, if she "kisses" the other dog, I'd swear off dog kisses, period.

I, germophobe that I am, neither kissed my dogs nor permitted them to kiss me on or near the mouth. And yes, they knew that I loved them, and that I was boss. One of them was clever enough that she figured out a way of giving me "top dog" respects: She kept her mouth closed and brushed my face and neck with her whiskers. Others figured it out, too. Izzat clever, or what?

[Lissa]

Originally Posted by whatsittoya

That ought to answer that question. Toilet bowl water is (generally speaking) tap water with extra goodies thrown in.

Sweet creamy Jesus! I didn't think of it that way.

Dear god, it's poison! Miracle she ain't dead already.

Originally Posted by tygerbryght

If you go for the toddler gate, be sure to get one that's at least three feet high (preferably higher). You do NOT want to teach her to jump gates!

Though she's very capable of it, Polaris has never tried to jump a gate. (She can jump higher than any dog I've ever seen.)

The thing I use to block the top of the stairs is only six inches high, but she respects it. I think it's because when she was younger, she knocked against a gate accidently, and it fell on top of her. Though it didn't hurt her, she screamed in terror, and it must have stuck in her two-watt brain that a gate is a Dangerous Scary Thing.

She watches passively as the older dog nimbly steps over the stairs gate, and will whine in frustration. It's odd.

And I trust that, if you've been in the habit of kissing her on the face (or anyplace her tongue can reach, or splashes from the toilet can reach), you've stopped.

Trying to stop that puppy from kissing my face is like trying to stave off an attack of killer bees. She's everywhere at once. She's not much for cuddling, though, so it's usually not a problem. Every once in a while, though, she'll jump up on the chaise where I'm reading, and go after my face with incredible determination. If I've chewed Juicy Fruit gum, I might as well surrender at the initial onslaught, because I'll never be able to fight her off alone.

I am trying, though. Actually, Bean tries even harder for me. The puppy gets a very stern bark if she jumps up on Mommy if Bean is in the room.

Also, if she "kisses" the other dog, I'd swear off dog kisses, period.

Bean, the older dog, was Queen Victoria in a former life. She is not amused by the puppy's bubbly displays of affection. An attempt at a kiss will likely earn her a stern growl, if not being knocked onto her back with Bean's entire mouth around her throat. (The puppy is learning the proper deferential approach, which is really much akin to approaching the monarchs of old-- much bowing and grovelling, and even then, a snapping reproach should she dare to venture too closely.)

[tygerbryght]

Originally Posted by Lissa

<snip>
Though she's very capable of it, Polaris has never tried to jump a gate. (She can jump higher than any dog I've ever seen.)

The thing I use to block the top of the stairs is only six inches high, but she respects it. I think it's because when she was younger, she knocked against a gate accidently, and it fell on top of her. Though it didn't hurt her, she screamed in terror, and it must have stuck in her two-watt brain that a gate is a Dangerous Scary Thing.

She watches passively as the older dog nimbly steps over the stairs gate, and will whine in frustration. It's odd.

Wonderful! Get another gate and put it across the bathroom doorframe.

Trying to stop that puppy from kissing my face is like trying to stave off an attack of killer bees. ...

I am trying, though. Actually, Bean tries even harder for me. The puppy gets a very stern bark if she jumps up on Mommy if Bean is in the room.

:chuckle: That's wonderful. Bean is taking the role that older dogs (or sometimes, dogs who merely have more seniority in the household) will take - teacher.

Bean, the older dog, was Queen Victoria in a former life. She is not amused by the puppy's bubbly displays of affection. An attempt at a kiss will likely earn her a stern growl, if not being knocked onto her back with Bean's entire mouth around her throat. (The puppy is learning the proper deferential approach, which is really much akin to approaching the monarchs of old-- much bowing and grovelling, and even then, a snapping reproach should she dare to venture too closely.)

Good for Bean. She is doing most of the work for you. But I suspect that when Polaris finally learns Queen Vic - Bean's rules, she will be permitted to show proper homage. Eventually, Polaris will learn Proper Behavior from Bean's etiquette book, and things will be much calmer, trust me.

Meantime, a gate, and switching to vinegar or the like for regular cleaning, with some Clorox in the house for those occasions when it's really needed, will keep the toilet as safe as you can make it for when Polaris manages to evade everything and gets to her favorite drinkin' hole.