I own what I believe to be quite a thirsty pup! (Whippet, 11 wks)
He'd probably sit at his water dish and chug all day if I let him.
However, since we can't hook him up to a catheter, I have to limit his access to water, the way I do to food, while we housebreak him.
I've noticed different people have different opinions when it comes to whether or not you should limit your dog's access to water the way you do to food. I know water is important to a puppy for lots of reasons, etcetc, but unless you would like to come and let him out every hour, I just can't let him drink whenever he wants.
As a result, he gets to drink when he gets to eat, which is 2x a day right now. He eats and drinks at 5:15am, and then again from 3-5pm he's allowed to eat and access his water dish. Other than that, no deal. Both owners work full time so he's in his crate while we're at work until I come home to let him out at lunch. I don't let him have anything to drink at lunch because if I do, I'm worried he'll pee in his crate before we get home from work. So far he does not have crate accidents often, but if he does, they're in the morning because he's had so much to eat and drink for breakfast, plus I'm sure he's pissed off that he's alone so instead of sleeping, he cries and moves around a lot, thus stimulating his bladder.
What do you think about this? Yes, he paws at the baby gate blocking his access to his water, and he cries because he wants to drink. Currently he can sleep through the night (7 hours) because we stop him as of 5pm. Is this ok? I don't want to dehydrate my dog, but damn, housetraining is hard enough as it is - catching your dog squatting is VERY frustrating and we're eagerly awaiting the day he paws at the door to signal his need to pee...advice please!