# Caution: Ice & cold water for your dogs



## Havtahava (Aug 20, 2006)

I have not verified this email or the truth behind ice & cold water being a problem, but it looked serious enough to pass along, especially since so many of us are having hot weather right now. We've also talked about giving ice cubes to our dogs as a game or to cool them off, so...

This came through one of the Havanese e-mail lists tonight as a forward from another breed's list. I don't know the original source though.

Emphasis (bold) is mine.



> Cross posting encouraged
> 
> Hello Everyone,
> I am writing this in hopes that some may learn from what I just went
> ...


If I can verify this before I leave for Denver, I'll try, but for now, I'm just going to post this as I received it with the one paragraph bolded by me.


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## Poornima (Jun 29, 2007)

Hi Kimberly,
Thanks for posting it......better safe than sorry. I was putting ice cubes in Benji's water when it was very hot. If the post is true, I am so thankful that nothing happened to Benji.

Thanks,
Best,
Poornima


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## Beamer (Jan 29, 2007)

Sounds interesting.. i guess... but by the the time the ice water made its way to the stomach, I'm sure it would have risen in temperature.???


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## juliav (Nov 21, 2006)

Thanks for the post Kimberly. I never gave my dogs ice/ice water and now I never will.


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## Leeann (Feb 28, 2007)

Thanks Kimberly, my boys love cold water. I actually keep their water in the fridge for them. I usually dont put Ice cubes in the water but do let them play with them on hot days. I think I will change and only give them the cold water when they have been inside with the a.c. on and give them room temp. water when outside playing. I would have never thought that cold water could harm either of them but why take the chance.


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## radar_jones (May 6, 2007)

Hmmm....very good advice on a very sticky situation over there, thanks for that. I hope all is well. I usually give radar some ice in his water when we go out for a walk but it melts in no time so no worries for him there. Other than that he doesn't really get it.

Derek


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## LuvMyHavanese (Apr 13, 2007)

Wow, if thats true i have been very blessed also. I always fill Tripps water bowl full of ice. I have noticed a few times after he would run around outside then would come in & drink, he would vomit the water up. One day recently he threw up a lot of fluid & i thought i would have to take him to the vet but then he seemed ok. I just always thought he was gulping too fast. We have a vet appt. tomorrow & i will ask.
Thanks


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## lfung5 (Jun 30, 2007)

I noticed they always have a pool of ice water at the AKC shows. How can we get this letter to them and in the right hands? Thanks for the heads up! I give my guys the ice water at the shows all the time!


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## dotndani (Mar 19, 2007)

Wow that is scary.I always put ice in Duncan's water while we're outside especially in this heat we've been having.Better safe than sorry,so thanks for posting this bit of info.


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## Missy (Nov 6, 2006)

Wow. thanks for this Kimberly. My boys love Ice and Ice water. But I will stop this practice til I hear more.


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## Thumper (Feb 18, 2007)

I searched for this on www.snopes.com and it didnt' come up!

So, maybe I will look around online and/or ask my vet. Alot, but not all, of these types of stories end up being urban legends.. This just seems weird to me, but thanks for posting it. I will investigate!

Kara


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## irnfit (Nov 21, 2006)

Everyone I know gives their dogs ice cubes. However, I don't give ice water. It is usually cool water. When I give ice, I break it into small pieces for them. Kodi doesn't like the ice, and Shelby loves to make a game out of it. My big dogs used to get whole cubes and I never had a problem.


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## mintchip (Apr 19, 2007)

WOW Thanks Kimberly


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## pjewel (Apr 11, 2007)

My instinct was the same as Kara's. I too checked out Snopes. There are so many urban legends out there that it's hard to know what to believe and what not to. It's definitely worthy of further investigation.


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## mckennasedona (Feb 20, 2007)

I need to ask my vet about this. I can see where loading a water bowl with ice and truly giving "ice" water might be a problem but....I put one or two ice cubes in my girls' water just to cool it down a bit.

Susan


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## radar_jones (May 6, 2007)

If I'm not mistaken the core temp of a dog is 39 degrees celsius or 100.2 Farenhiet isn't it. That would have to be a lot of ice to lower the internal temp. that much. A person would have that much of a problem with ice like that but of course we just get those Eskimo Pie Migraines.....:biggrin1: 

Derek


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## Doggie Nut (Oct 20, 2006)

No more ice for Valentino until we know for certain!


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## Cosmosmom (Jan 12, 2007)

Thanks for the information Kimberly . I used to give Asta ice to cool down but now I just use cool water from the water cooler .. not ice though 
Wow - you have to be so careful about so many things . Here I always thought a little ice in the water would be good on a hot day .. Sort of like a popscicle .. 
One thing I did learn recently is that if you are out walking your dog and it is very hot and there is grass nearby encourage the dogs to cool down by lying on the grass .Of course not in the bright sun but in the shade , if it is available and you can find a nice cool spot . It will help the dog cool down . Dogs know to do this intuitively but we are always trying to get them to do it our way .. and try to head home . Trust me take the time to let them lay there for up to 5 minutes if necessary to help cool their core . They do it through the abdomen .
Cosmo does this all the time when he gets hot and now Ahnold does it too .. Both dogs are black so they feel the heat quickly . I try and be careful and walk early in the day and later in the day but sometimes we have gotten caught ..

One thing I would like to stress as there is another thread about dog walking . Be sure you can devote enough time to the walk to make it an enjoyable event for you and the dog . It is a time to bond with your dog . I see so many people talking on cell phones and hurrying their dogs to do their businesss and thats it . In the city I see all the housekeepers and nannies walking the dog - it seems ludicrious to me . They know the dogs better than the owners .. 
I know most of us are conscientious about our dogs and want them to have a good life . I have just seen so much of it lately where the dogs are ignored and put in harms way ... I really wonder why they have a dog .. 
Sorry I guess have a burr under my saddle today !!!


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## Julie (Feb 8, 2007)

Thanks for posting this information Kimberly.I don't give ice,but I'd rather know then not know,and I'll watch to see if it is indeed true.Better safe then sorry..........


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## irnfit (Nov 21, 2006)

Shelby will automatically lay down in the grass if she gets hot on our walks. Also, my trainer showed us that if your dog gets hot and you have water handy, wet them on their belly and in their "arm" pits. This should help cool them quickly. I carry a bottle of water with me on our walks.


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## radar_jones (May 6, 2007)

Hey I like the belly and arm pit idea. Since thats where the heat is most concentrated I guess it would be the best spot for the water to be applied. Radar sometimes likes his face to be wet a little...it reminds him of wet puppy kisses.

Derek


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## Sunnygirl (Jun 1, 2007)

I'm skeptical, but better safe than sorry. I googled to see if I could find anything about this on the internet, and all I came up with was stuff on Ice Cube and Snoop Doggie Dog, LOL.


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## Thumper (Feb 18, 2007)

LOL on the snoop dog/ice cube rappers!!!ound: 

I'm really skeptical of this! It just reeks of bs. I think I will send it to snopes so they can investigate it?

Kara


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## Thumper (Feb 18, 2007)

Okay,

I found something on dogster

http://dogblog.dogster.com/2007/08/09/ice-causes-bloat

But if you scroll down, there is a comment from a lady that says bloat isn't caused by ice water, but some other gastro/intestinal issue...that may be present in other breeds. I'm assuming Baran isn't a Havanese?

I also sent to snopes, so I'll let you know what I hear back! I'm assuming that thousands of people put ice in water bowls during the hot months. It just seems logical that if it was dangerous, there would be more literature out there about it.

My vet will probably laugh at me when I ask them this! lol, gosh...maybe I will put hubby up to it? hehe

Kara


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## SMARTY (Apr 19, 2007)

I'll be safe rather than sorry, Smarty has always loved her ice cubes. She will stand by the refrig for one. Next time she will get something else until this is verified.


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## SMARTY (Apr 19, 2007)

Kara, bloat can have a lot of different causes, Worms, sickness, over eating and I know of dogs bloating for no reason at all. I lost a perfectly heathy Boxer to bloat and we never found the cause. I fed him and he was fine, 30 minutes later whimpered and I noticed the bloating, I had the vet on the phone when he layed down and died.


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## Thumper (Feb 18, 2007)

Yeah, that is what I'm finding online. It may be pure coincidence that the dog had ice water before the bloating episode?

Here is what snopes sent me...I may not hear back from them for a few days or weeks! I will just keep checking the search engine to see if they post it.

_Thank you for writing to us!

Our site covers many of the items currently being plopped into inboxes
everywhere, so if you were writing to ask us about something you just
received, our search engine at http://www.snopes.com/search can
probably help you locate the very article you're looking for. Just
choose a few key words from the item of interest and enter them into
search box. (Searching on whole phrases will often fail to produce
matches; selecting one or two key words is the best search strategy.)

Our What's New page at http://www.snopes.com/info/whatsnew.asp and and
our 25 Hottest Urban Legends page at
http://www.snopes.com/info/top25uls.asp are also handy places to check
whenever you receive something questionable in your inbox.

Thank you for using snopes.com._

_Kara

_


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## Thumper (Feb 18, 2007)

SMARTY said:


> Kara, bloat can have a lot of different causes, Worms, sickness, over eating and I know of dogs bloating for no reason at all. I lost a perfectly heathy Boxer to bloat and we never found the cause. I fed him and he was fine, 30 minutes later whimpered and I noticed the bloating, I had the vet on the phone when he layed down and died.


I am SO sorry that you lost a Boxer to this!  It sounds like such a painful, unexpected illness.

:grouphug:
Hugs,
Kara


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## radar_jones (May 6, 2007)

Wow that's pretty extreme for something that can't even be diagnosed before the animal dies from it. I would think that an autopsy could confirm the cause but to have the known causes for something like that be so varied it's scary.

Derek


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## SMARTY (Apr 19, 2007)

Thank you Kara, that was many years ago. He was a young champion, and was very fit. His Body was sent to the University of Georgia Vet College and it was never determined what caused the bloat. His gut did twist which is why they cannot let off the gases and I've never heard of trying to get them to burp, which could help, if the gut has not twisted. 

i just typed in Dogs Bloat in AOL and this is what came up:

Bloat is a very serious health risk for many dogs, yet many dog owners know very little about it. According to the links below, it is the second leading killer of dogs, after cancer. It is frequently reported that deep-chested dogs, such as German Shepherds, Great Danes, and Dobermans are particularly at risk. This page provides links to information on bloat and summarizes some of the key points we found in the sites we researched. Although we have summarized information we found about possible symptoms, causes, methods of prevention, and breeds at risk, we cannot attest to the accuracy. Please consult with your veterinarian for medical information. 



If you believe your dog is experiencing bloat, please get your dog to a veterinarian immediately! Bloat can kill in less than an hour, so time is of the essence. Notify your vet to alert them you're on your way with a suspected bloat case. Better to be safe than sorry!

The technical name for bloat is "Gastric Dilatation-Volvulus" ("GDV"). Bloating of the stomach is often related to swallowed air (although food and fluid can also be present). It usually happens when there's an abnormal accumulation of air, fluid, and/or foam in the stomach ("gastric dilatation"). Stress can be a significant contributing factor also. Bloat can occur with or without "volvulus" (twisting). As the stomach swells, it may rotate 90° to 360°, twisting between its fixed attachments at the esophagus (food tube) and at the duodenum (the upper intestine). The twisting stomach traps air, food, and water in the stomach. The bloated stomach obstructs veins in the abdomen, leading to low blood pressure, shock, and damage to internal organs. The combined effect can quickly kill a dog.

Be prepared! Know in advance what you would do if your dog bloated.


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## CapotesMom (Apr 3, 2007)

hmm...but what about the pupsicles made with chicken broth? I made those for capote and he loved them..never had a problem with them..


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## Jan D (Mar 13, 2007)

I give Havee ice cubes with a couple of pieces of kibble in them for a treat when it's hot...mmm..I'll have to think twice now!


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## LuvMyHavanese (Apr 13, 2007)

I asked my vet yesterday & she states the internal temperature would have to be about 105-106(?) degrees for ice water to be a problem. She said that would be extreme & rare. Most dogs normal activities would be just fine, even agility. She said i shouldnt worry about that.


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## Amy R. (Jul 1, 2007)

What exactly are the symptoms of bloat, other than obvious distress, discomfort, and distension of the stomach area? Esp. in a small dog?


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## SMARTY (Apr 19, 2007)

http://www.globalspan.net/bloat.htm

It is very quick. The symptons you noted are the ones I know of.


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