Can Dogs Drink Distilled Water?

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If you are in the local supermarket and you happen upon the ever growing water aisle, you’re likely to notice water in the gallon form.  Popular varieties include spring water, filtered water, well water, tap, and distilled water.  Of those three, only distilled water has some really neat and desirable qualities ( and odd drawbacks).  For instance, race car teams use distilled water to keep an engine from overheating.  It has a higher boiling point and is less likely to hurt a motor.

 

Can dogs drink distilled water?  They most certainly can.  There are a few upsides and only a few minor downsides when considering whether or not you should give your dog distilled water.  This owes to the unique process of distilling water and what it pulls out of the water.

 

Can dogs drink distilled water

 

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Benefits of giving your dog distilled water include:

 

  • Lack of contaminants:  Of all the different types of water out there, distilled water is going to remove the most amount of contamination that would be found in nature.  Giving your dog contaminant free water is a great way to keep them from disease and pollutants.
  • No Fluoride:  Water that comes from the tap has added chemicals.  The main ones are chlorine and fluoride.  While fluoride is certainly responsible for helping peoples teeth stay healthy for a longer period of time, there re also some drawbacks.  Here is an article on fluoride and dogs that I find fascinating and maybe a bit scary.  Although, you may want to be looking for fluoride in your dogs food before you start with the water.  There have been studies that have shown insane amounts of it in their food.
  • It’s just water:  The idea behind distilled water is to give you the purest water experience possible.  That means no additives at all.  This means that calcium and other minerals just aren’t there.  Unless there is some underlying reason to deprive your dog of th

 

Why you may not want to give your dog distilled water

 

Should my dog drink distilled water?

 

Distilled water is truly fantastic, and is certainly not going to hurt your dog at all.  But, while fluoride can sound scary, and not additives can sound great, there certainly is a downside to pulling them out of your dogs water supply.

 

According the World Health Organization, there are risks to drinking water with the minerals pulled.  They say that there are fourteen minerals that are missing from distilled water that can have a negative impact on a humans health.  While dogs and humans certainly are different biologically, it is not a stretch to assume that most dogs need these minerals too.  Here’s a link to the article from the WHO.

 

There have also been cases where dogs have developed heart problems and potassium deficiency when given distilled water exclusively.

 

It doesn’t quench thirst as well

 

Distilled water is often described as flat or dry.  It really doesn’t have much of a flavor at all.  Those minerals that have been pulled in order to have a water in its purest form are also what gives water its taste.  Dogs know this too.  They will usually drink more water when they are offered distilled over spring water.

 

Distilled water alternatives

 

Although fluoride can sound scary to some people, tap water really is the way to go for a dog.  Unless you are specifically told by your vet to use distilled water, don’t go out of your way to give your dog distilled water.

If you need to buy your dog water off of the shelf during a long water outage, it may be wise to go with the spring water.  Spring water has all of the minerals that humans and pets need to keep their bones strong.

 

Wrapping up, Can Dogs Drink Distilled Water?

 

If you are for any reason in a pinch and distilled water is the only water around.  Don’t hesitate to give your dog distilled water.  Dogs certainly can drink distilled water.  But if there is any alternative for your dog, it may be better to steer your hound away from it.

Jason
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