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Do I worry? Re: increased thirst
I noticed the other day that Bella has been drinking more water lately. Here is everything I can think of that might be a factor. Should I try to get her in to the vet ASAP, or give it a few more days?
1. I noticed it the day I got back in town (4/18). Because of family emergencies, she was with a pet sitter from 4/5-4/11 then again 4/14-4/18.
2. It seems to mainly be when she's eating. We just switched to TOTW in March, so she's on her 2nd bag of that now
3. She doesn't seem to be dehydrated...I did the pinch test on her skin between her shoulders and it bounced right back.
4. She seems to be having more allergy issues lately. I've noticed her rubbing her face on the carpet. She takes 2 benadryl a day (she's 120 lbs).
5. Her energy level seems normal.
6. I haven't noticed any vomiting or other tummy issues. She seems to be urinating like normal too. Yesterday after work was quite a bit, but it looked normal other than that.
So what say you, oh knowledgable Pesties?
Re: Do I worry? Re: increased thirst
If it were me, I'd just watch her a couple days now that you're back.
Cooper drinks like a frickin camel, esp when our schedules are all effed up. He got dehydrated a couple months ago when DH was OOT & he (Coop) was wearing his cone of shame. MH usually comes home every day @ lunch, so Coop would have (normally) gotten a break from his cone, but b/c MH was OOT, Coop didn't drink at all during the day while I was at work for like 2-3 days (so, in an 9 hr period he didn't drink anything), he hasn't figured out he can get into his bowl w/the cone on!!
Luckily he didn't get real sick or anything, thank god. Just acting funny, & like he was going to throw up after his dinner. I was SO worried. Once I figured out that it was b/c he wasn't drinking anything, it was like "oh duh".
Even though things seem normal w/her personality & bathroom habits now, I'd watch for any changes in her personality & changes in her bathroom habits (make sure she's pooping and peeing, evaluate the urine color & any differences in her poop- sorry if thats gross, but it really tells a lot about whats going on inside them!) But it sounds like you are already pretty knowledgable on what to look for!
In terms of the allergies, I feel her pain! Allergies are SO bad right now! Poor girl! Fwiw, Coop is rubbing his face/body a lot on the carpet lately & he doesn't have allergies, so could just be coincidence?? If it get excessive maybe try a bath? Not even w/soap, but just hosing her down to get the pollen off of her??
She normally drinks about 1/2 her bowl with meals, but now she's licking the bowl clean. I put some more in for her yesterday before I left for work but she didn't drink much of that. So maybe it's jus tthe food that's making her thirsty?
I wonder if maybe the pet sitter had to cut her normal food with something else since I had to stay longer than I planned OOT. Maybe she's just getting used to the food again.
I would have the her checked by her vet. Increased drinking can be an early sign of diabetes in pets. Blood work and urine test can rule that out. Not to worry though because they will probably be fine but it is better to be safe and sure.