The Ultimate Guide to Finding The Best Drinking Water For Your Dog

If you are a pet parent, then you know how important it is to keep your furry friend healthy and happy. One of the most crucial aspects of their health and happiness is the water that they drink and water is perhaps one of the most neglected nutrients in a dog's diet. Whether it be from reverse osmosis or from a bottle or a Berkey, the water needs to be clean and safe for your dog. Here are some tips on how to find the best drinking water for your pup.

What are the Different Types of Dog Water?

There are many different types of water you can pour into your dog's bowl. 

Hard water, not so great
Hard water is high in minerals and is known to cause urinary problems in dogs. 

Tap water, not so great
Tap water is so-so for us but for our dog's it might not be so great. Tap water may be treated with chlorine and fluoride. Chlorine may be a deterrent for your dog to drink water because of their sensitive sense of smell. Fluoride in high levels may cause damage do a dog's kidneys and cause seizures. 

Filtered water is a great option
Filtering water is a great option to make your dog's drinking water safe. It can remove and reduce contaminants in tap water and sometimes it can remove minerals that cause hard water. Just make sure it can filter heavy metals, pesticides, herbicides, VOCs (are a group of chemicals increasingly found in drinking water that can cause a range of health effects including cancer in people and dogs), endocrine disruptors (chemicals and plastic by products that are now found in tap water that can interfere hormones and health in people and dogs) and bacteria. The best are made with solid block carbon filters.

Bottled water, sometimes not so great
Bottled water is convenient but you have to read the label. Some bottled water is just tap water and some bottled water has added nutrients and minerals which may be unhealthy for our dogs. Added minerals like calcium and magnesium can lead to the formation of urine crystals and bladder infections in dogs.

Distilled water, is not so great
It's probably a good idea to stay away from distilled water, because the process of making it is so good at removing contaminants and minerals that your dog may experience adverse changes to their health because the good nutrients in water have all been removed. 

Reverse osmosis, is not so great
It's probably a good idea to stay away from reverse osmosis, because the process of reverse osmosis strips the water of all the micronutrients. It can remove bacteria and heavy metals but it won't remove VOCs and no endocrine disruptors. 

How does a dog drink water?

We had to add this video slow-motion of a dog drinking water, because it is incredible!