Dog drank from a puddle, what to do?
Hello, my dog drank from a puddle while I wasn't looking. We were walking in an industrial area, and the puddle was rainwater. My dog is 2.5 years old (Bichon Frisé), and I'm worried that this could be harmful to his health. I read online about the disease leptospirosis, and that it can even be transmitted to humans. I only got him from the animal shelter for a week, and as far as I know, all the dogs there are vaccinated. Should I just observe him or go straight to the vet?
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Don't panic. If it was a fresh puddle, nothing will happen. Of course, in an industrial area, you always have to expect that the puddles will be contaminated if trucks drive through or whatever.
Lepto would be the least of your worries here.
The dogs from the shelter are vaccinated against leptospirosis, and besides, it's more common in rat-infested waters, like stagnant ponds, etc.
I would keep calm first.
Observe your dog more closely than usual in the near future, and if he develops a fever, vomiting, or diarrhea, then go to the vet immediately, that's for sure.
I would still contact the animal shelter again to make sure which vaccinations he has actually received.
Love 🌞 Greetings
Which vaccinations the animal has received is also stated in the pet passport…
Yes, there is a lot on the internet but fresh rain puddles when he drinks are not a problem
The problem is the puddles that have already tipped over, where masses of bacteria collect and can then cause diarrhea.
Therefore, you should not train your dog to drink from every puddle you find, as this could be problematic. However, if it only drinks from puddles every now and then, there's no reason to worry.
Your dog is vaccinated, and drinking from a puddle won't kill him. If the puddle was muddy, most of it he'll get is diarrhea, but nothing more.
Dogs also eat the intestinal contents of prey animals.
They don't get infected so quickly from contaminated water or food.
And it is very, very unlikely that a particular disease could be found in any puddle in an industrial area.
The vet will charge you a fee for disturbing him on a Saturday, otherwise they'll send you home laughing. Dogs do a lot more than just drink from a puddle… If your dog gets diarrhea and pees, then you should see the vet—not before then.
Oh yes, dogs can get sick, especially if you let them drink from puddles that contain liquid manure, for example, and the farmer has disposed of a dead calf on his dung heap (this used to be common practice). That is really dangerous because of botulism. Otherwise, such warnings are often published on the local authority website, for example when green algae appear in bodies of water, it is also really dangerous for dogs… but in 99% of all cases it is absolutely harmless.
Don't worry, it's rainwater.
Dogs drink whenever they are thirsty and find water.
It is better to take water with you when you go for a walk and give your dog some regularly.
LG
Our dog always drinks from every puddle, no matter how dirty
That doesn't matter, if you google headaches on the internet, that also tells you that you have a brain tumor 😉
Our dogs have drunk from various puddles, from streams and lakes, even from the sea (which involved spray putty and nothing else), with absolutely no problems.