Expert: Jill Connor, Ph.D. - 10/21/2008

Question
Dear Jill,
We have a beagle we got three years ago from a Beagle Rescue and his age was estimated at five years then.  We assume he is around eight years old now.  He had a hunter’s tattoo in his ear and had some bad habits dogs that are not pets tend to have.  He eats his food faster than any dog I have ever seen and will drink any bowl of water dry.  We had him tested for kidney disease and diabetes, which were negative.  The vet diagnosed him with a psychogenic disorder and said that after he drinks to remove the water.  He continues to drink more than our other beagle and has accidents in the house.  He is crate trained and will not go to the bathroom in his crate, but will urinate in the house if left unattended, even if we are just in another room.  Our vet thinks it is an anxiety disorder and we have him on an anti-anxiety medication.  For five months he was accident free, but lately everyday he is back to his old bad habits with no other changes in his schedule or routine.  I think part of the problem is that when he is offered a large bowl of water he drinks it dry. I’m not sure if this is a behavior question or not.   How much water is enough water for a 30 lb. dog each day?  Our vet believes that we shouldn’t limit his water intake, but the amount he drinks is excessive.  Thank you for your help. One more thing, we crate him when we go out but when we try to crate him at night he barks like a junk yard dog all night long.    Linda

Answer
Ear tattooing is not limited to hunters; it's used by puppy mill breeders and laboratories.  While it's unlikely your dog was "liberated" from a lab, it's more likely he was rescued from a puppy mill breeder.  Dogs like this are undernourished and refused water; they are simply there to reproduce.  Such dogs eat whatever is put in front of them and drink excessively, as they have been denied (for their lifetime) the basic elements required for survival.  It's almost impossible to extinguish this behavior.  You can attempt to help him to eat more slowly by feeding him by hand over the course of a couple of hours, thereby (hopefully) potentially adjusting his strong biological impulse toward survival.  To attempt to manage his excessive drinking, you can introduce a water bottle.  My guess is that this dog is well acquainted with a water bottle as puppy mills use these (as do laboratories and large kennels.)  A water bottle will make it more difficult for him to consume (immediately) the water contained in it.

Psychogenic disorders can cause physical problems (medullary wash out), it's a self continuing condition.  Some things that cause excessive water consumption are diabetes insipidus, diabetes mellitus, liver shunt, renal dysplasia, polycystic kidney disease, nephroblastoma, infectious nephritis and the list goes on.  Your veterinarian should have ordered abdominal x-rays, abdominal ultrasound, a urine culture and various hormonal assays.  While your dog's behavior MAY have been caused by abusive treatment, it also MAY be the result of genetic problems and/or physical abnormalities caused by neglect and abuse.

My advice would be to take this dog OFF the Clomicalm (anti-anxiety drug) as this drug can affect the liver (if your dog has a liver shunt this is BAD.)  Carefully reevaluate his diet (watch sodium content!)  DO NOT restrict water intake for any reason.  You can actually measure how much your dog is drinking by offering two cups at a time over the course of a day and adding the volume he ingests.  The normal water intake for a dog that size is approximately 33 ounces.  Pituitary tumors can also cause excess water consumption.  My knee jerk reaction to this is that your dog is suffering from an occult illness, that this is not merely behavioral, and that you need a second opinion from another veterinarian (look for a teaching hospital, even if you have to drive to get there.)

Regarding his urination: if he drinks he has to eliminate.  When you are at home, put a long leash on this dog so he cannot leave the room and "hide" his urination.  Take him out OFTEN...VERY OFTEN (every two hours) and reward his appropriate elimination.  Do NOT fault him for his mistakes; this dog has come from an abusive situation; puppy mill breeders are kept on wire and must eliminate where they eat, sleep, etc.; kennel dogs must eliminate in confined spaces, also.  The fact that he has obtained some house training is an indication of his strong desire to please and his intelligence.  If he is breaking through his training, there's a very good reason.  Be supportive.

In terms of his being caged overnight, long night hours for a dog that has a strong need to urinate are HELL.  I understand why you are confining him in this manner, but you must remove the water (only at this time) well before you retire.  If you take him out for the last time at 11PM, remove the water at 7PM.  My guess here is that when you leave the house during the day, no one reports to you whether or not this dog is baying in his crate.  YOU notice it (of course!) at night when you are trying to sleep and ANY INTERACTION with the dog (including shouting at him from another room) is a REWARD.  You can move the crate closer to your sleeping area to make him feel less isolated but you CANNOT interact with him in any way if he begins to bay in his crate; if you persist in refusing any interaction, his baying will stop.  This might take quite a while (a week or more.) Of course your goal SHOULD BE to remove the crate totally; the dog has suffered enormously in his innocent lifetime; you want to provide him with a safe, structured, loving and free environment, if possible.