Is my dog drinking and weeing too much?

Overview

  • Is your dog drinking and peeing more than usual?
  • You may hear your vet use the words polydipsia and polyuria (PUPD for short).
    • Polydipsia = drinking too much
    • Polyuria = weeing too much
  • The two symptoms often come together because the more a dog drinks, the more they need to wee, and the more they wee, the more they need to drink.
  • There are many possible reasons for your dog drinking and peeing too much.
  • If you think your dog is drinking too much, take them to your vet - never restrict your dog’s water to control the problem.

Is your dog drinking and weeing too much?

Is your dog:

  • Drinking more than usual?
  • Thirsty all the time?
  • Emptying their water bowl more quickly than usual?
  • Drinking from taps, puddles or streams more regularly than usual?
  • Drinking so much that they vomit?
  • Peeing more often or peeing larger volumes?
  • Having accidents weeing in the house?

If this is the case, contact your vet. It can be helpful to take a urine sample along with you to the appointment and tell you vet exactly how much your dog is drinking in a 24 hour period. For help with both these tasks watch our videos below.

How to: collect a urine sample from your dog

How to: measure how much your dog is drinking

Causes

Some of the most common causes of drinking and peeing too much include:

There are many other possible causes.

When to contact your vet

Always take your dog to see the vet if you think they are drinking or peeing too much.

Published: August 2019

Written by vets and vet nurses. This advice is for UK pets only. Illustrations by Samantha Elmhurst.