Healthy Hydration for You and Your Animals
June 25, 2022
When outdoor temperatures inch closer to the triple digits, it’s important to hydrate yourself and your animals. The alternative is dehydration, and that’s not healthy for anyone. To help you out we’ve put together some quick watering insights for the whole family, including your four-legged friends.
What is Dehydration?
A person, dog, cat, cow, or horse can get dehydrated due to reduced water intake or increased fluid loss. This can be caused by overheating, sickness, or a lack of fresh water. The result is often a loss of appetite, dry mouth, lethargy, and sunken eyes. In addition, people suffering from dehydration show symptoms of depression and irritability.
Preventing dehydration starts by always drinking plenty of liquids or providing fresh water to your animals at all times. Here are some of the basic options.
Dog and Cat Bowls
Filling up a stock tank for your goats is simple enough, but it can get tricky with dogs or cats. Generally, you need to supply enough water to match one ounce of water for every pound of animal per day. If your dog weighs 75 pounds, provide 75 ounces of fresh water. That might mean you need to refill the water bowl several times per day.
Plastic pet bowls are sturdy, inexpensive, and easy to bring with you on vacation or out camping. But some cats are allergic to plastics. And the lightweight nature of plastic bowls means they will tip over or slide across the floor when bigger dogs take a drink.
Stainless steel pet bowls These easy-to-clean, dishwasher-safe, durable, double-walled stainless steel bowls look great, stand up to the toughest dogs, and are built to withstand anything.
Looking for a specific color? Or just want the coolest pet bowl for your home? Coastal carries the YETI Boomer Dog Bowl in several colors. These easy to clean, dishwasher safe, durable, double-walled, stainless steel bowls look great, stand up to the toughest dogs, and are built to withstand anything.
Ceramic pet bowls are heavy enough to stay in place, but are easy to break or crack. Be sure to clean your ceramic bowls often to avoid contaminating water with bacteria.
Gravity fed pet bowls make life easier for you and your pet. Just choose a size that works for yours, fill the reservoir with water, and forget about it.
Watering Livestock
Fluids, which include water, make up 60% of a dairy cow’s total weight. The number is similar in horses, goats, pigs, and just about any other animal you have on your farm. It’s vital that you keep your animals well hydrated to avoid a costly veterinarian visit.
Plastic troughs are easy to move, easy to clean, and even easier to maintain. Just watch for cracks in the plastic that can cause slow leaks. These cracks are relatively easy to fix with some quick tips.
Galvanized/Metal stock tanks come in all sorts of shapes and sizes. Be sure to check out our article Stock Tank Basics and Repairs for information on these versatile watering systems.
Personal Hydration
Water has become very trendy over the past couple of years. From bottled glacier water to Hydro Flask® water vessels, there are plenty of options when it comes to maintaining your water intake.
The amount of water you need per day depends on where you live, your activity level, and the time of year. If you live in Bend and go on 20-mile horseback rides, you’ll need more water than someone who lives in Sumner and likes to take leisurely walks. Experts agree that for every pound of sweat you lose due to heat or exercise, you need to replenish with a pint of water. Here are some of the best ways to hydrate yourself.
Plastic bottles and camping containers are excellent ways to stay hydrated. Just be sure to recycle plastic bottles when you’re done.
Hydro Flask® offers containers, tumblers, coffee cups, and more. Just choose the size (up to 64 ounces), the color, and the type of Hydro Flask you want. Hydro Flask containers look great. They’re also great for the environment. That’s because, unlike plastic water bottles, Hydro Flasks aren’t thrown away. People hang onto them forever.
Every Hydro Flask comes with TempShieldTM double wall insulation. This keeps drinks cold for up to 24 hours and hot drinks hot for up to six hours. Plus, with the 18/8 pro-grade stainless steel interiors, your beverages won’t suffer from flavor transfer. And to help you hang onto your Hydro Flask, the signature powder coating adds a slip-free grip to your container.
Stay Hydrated at Coastal
Your nearby Coastal Farm & Ranch has pet bowls, the YETI Boomer Dog Bowl, livestock water tanks, camping gallon jugs, as well as Hydro Flask® tumblers in stock. Just tell us what you need to water and we’ll point you in the right direction. Be sure to check out all of the new shapes, sizes, and colors of Hydro Flask® in stock and on sale now!
Coastal Extra: Signs of Dehydration in People
When someone is moderately to severely dehydrated, it can affect how they think and act. Here are a few of the telltale signs:
- Excessive toddler-like crankiness
- Fatigue due to the heart working overtime
- Nonstop sweating as the body tries to control its temperature