How much is too much to drink?

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PottyForPiggies

PottyForPiggies

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My beautiful girl Treacle (aged 3 1/2) seems to have a very strong thirst. She can get through a 250ml bottle in one day (although a fair percentage of that ends up on the floor as she's a very messy drinker!), and she's had problems with bloat/water retention before. I've reduced her water intake a little, but she always has some.

My boys in comparison don't drink much at all. How much is too much/not enough? Is it worth getting her a smaller bottle if she can cope on less?
 
Generally, I have seen the measure of drinking 300ml per day or more bandied around that means a piggy needs to be seen and investigated by a vet (which is about the equivalent of a small bottle). Other piggies won't drink at all or won't drink much at all.
 
It's hard to tell exactly how much she drinks, because I think she spills quite a lot of it. The floor is always wet after I go out and check on her. Plus I have held the bottle for her before and I know she spills so much, or it dribbles down her.
 
Also, sorry to double post but have a bit more info: she eats a fair amount of dry food/hard veggies, so could that affect how much she is drinking? Or maybe she is drinking more because she spills lots :S
 
it doesnt help but i have one piggy who is almost always at the water bottle (well so it seems) but she spills a lot and for every 4 licks at the bottle she only gets 2 bits of water out, she doesnt appear to have mastered it.

I find cucumber is good. if your worried i'd say see a vet, otherwise you'll only worry. :)
 
Is there a recent increase with her water intake or has she always been like this....?
I have a boy that will sit there and empty a 500ml bottle but probably drinks about 100ml the rest goes all over the hutch...

If it's the norm for her then it's probably nothing to worry about...
If this is recent it could be a medical problem... And would need checking by the vets...

Also... Do you feed them veggies every day... As I have noticed my pigs that are on nil veggies drink alot more then the rest of my guys...

x
 
Pop a little dish under the bottle spout, then any spillage you can accurately measure, it could be she enjoys playing with the bottle & isn't drinking as much as you think. What dry food does she have & how much per day roughly do you give her? An accurate measurement of dry food would also help.

I agree with the veggie bit too, if she doesn't have a lot of veg that could be why she drinks more.

If in doubt I would get her seen by a vet.
 
My girls have always been messy drinkers, I think maybe it is that she likes to play with the bottle or just hasn't grasped it completely! So much ends up all over her hutch! It is the norm for her but I just wondered as my boys don't drink much at all: more a point of comparison. And she loves her veggies, gets some every day, but generally nibbles and goes to dry food.
I don't think it's anything to worry about, I was more curious that anything. Every piggie is different after all :)
 
I have 3 that get through a 500ml bottle a day between them, they've always been like that and then for another 3 it takes 2/3 days. They're all pretty good at getting it in their mouths though!
 
Its really hard to say to be honest, if she is spilling a lot or there is a lot of water around the bottle maybe its a bit leaky?

To be honest your best bet is a healthy check by the vet, it will at least put your mind at ease :)
 
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