Are you living in drought conditions? When thinking about water conservation measures around your house, from checking your toilet for leaks to turning off the water while brushing your teeth, don’t forget to think of conserving water used by dogs in your home.
You’ll always, always want to have plenty of fresh water available for your dog–but there ways to conserve water relating to the serving of that water and water used in other aspects of your dog’s life.
Our Current Drought
Texas, like so many places in the country, is undergoing a drought right now. It has been going on for several years, leaving lakes like the scene below.
Boat ramps, which should backing up to water just below the level of these orange barrels, are now far, far from water and closed.
The water situation has us thinking very carefully about our own water usage and that of our pets.
Since we rely on water from our own well, we’ve always been really careful not to waste water.
However, the current drought has us tightening our water conservation measures even more…including our water use with our pets.
Our dogs always have plenty of fresh water to drink but we work hard to make sure that we don’t waste any water.
Here are five ways we’re helping to conserve water used by our dogs:
Use a Pet Fountain with a Filter
We have a large fountain that filters the dog (and cat) water.
The filter helps keep the water clean longer, filtering out loose hair and dog food that finds its way into the water with that after-dinner drink.
The movement of the water also keeps it fresh, extending its use for another day or so.
Don’t Pour Water Down the Sink
When it’s time to change out the fountain water for cleaning (every few days), we take the fountain outside and pour the water on the plants or grass.
We don’t waste the water by pouring it down the sink.
Use an On-Off Switch for Outdoor Baths
We have a Woof-Ahh bath mitt from Pet Zen that I bought several years ago because it has an on-off switch right by the mitt, great for outdoor doggie baths.
You can also buy an inexpensive on-off garden hose valve like the one here or a sprayer that turns off when you’re not spraying. (Irie and Tiki hate the sound of a sprayer, though, so I skip that option.)
Use Dry Dog Shampoo
OK, this might be Irie and Tiki’s favorite way to save water: skip the bath and use dry dog shampoo!
There are many excellent (and great-smelling) commercial dry dog shampoos on the market or you can also make your own dry dog shampoo for just pennies.
It only takes minutes to give a dry dog bath, extending the time between regular baths.
Conserve Outdoor Fun Water
Dogs love kiddie pools but, to conserve water, it’s best to purchase a small one that you can easily dump over to water plants when it’s time to change the water.
Even better: take your dog swimming at the lake or river if water conditions are good.
We don’t take Irie and Tiki to lakes near us now because they are stagnant and there is a risk of contact with deadly blue-green alage; when we have flowing water in our creek, we take them there twice a day to swim.
Looking at the size of the drought, our water conservation measures may seem like just a drop in the bucket…but every drop counts!
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