A Happy Accident

For the last 8-9 months, one of my biggest challenges every day has been trying to get Kino to drink water.  Since his stomach is frequently upset, he has almost no interest in drinking. I can understand that because I don't crave water when I have an upset stomach either yet I also know how important it is to keep him hydrated.

Multiple times a day we go through the frustrating ritual of me sitting on the floor holding his bowl and asking him to drink some water.  He will have a couple sips and then step backwards.  I ask him again to please drink some more water - sometimes he'll have a few more sips - sometimes he won't and sometimes the begging on my part continues.  If I don't hold the bowl and insist he drink some, he won't go near it. If I am wearing shorts, he thinks it's great fun to lick my legs instead of drinking from the bowl.  I try to roll with it most days, although I can't say I enjoy the sensation of his tongue all over my legs, but I often follow up my "bath" by saying, "You've got to wash all that salt down, why don't you drink some water." Fortunately, he will usually have a few more laps of water.

I realized in recent months that the whole "get Kino to drink water" is one of the biggest stresses in my life and one I really want to change.  I have tried giving him ice cubes because he likes them but his stomach is so sensitive to cold that if he swallows an ice cube, he vomits within about 2 minutes, sometimes sooner. Not fun for either of us.

A few weeks ago,  I cooked up a batch of chicken thighs and chicken livers in the crock pot, since Kino is now allergic to beef.  While I was attempting to stir it and ensure it was cooked all the way through, I somehow managed to fling a chicken thigh in such a manner that it went up in the air and then splashed back down into the crock pot, throwing water up out of the pot, all over the counter, down the front of the cupboard and into Kino's water bowl by my feet.  I was trying to contain my frustration at the mess I had just made when Kino came running into the kitchen to see what all the commotion was about.  He sniffed his bowl and then drank the entire contents.  I stood there in disbelief.  Had Kino really just drank a bowl of water - on his own??  Without me holding the bowl and begging him to drink???

Would it work again?  I wasn't sure if it was just a one time thing so I pulled out more of the water from the crock pot and put it in a bowl.  A while later, I put a teaspoon of the chicken water in his water bowl and within seconds, he had finished the entire bowl.  I was overjoyed!  And that may seem like a bit of an overreaction but if any of you have ever struggled to get your pet to drink water, I know you understand.

So, now we have a new ritual.  Kino and I play for a bit and when we stop I say, "Do you need some water?" and he stares at me.  So then I say, "Do you need me to add the magic juice?" and he excitedly runs into the kitchen and stands next to his bowl.  I don't even know how I began calling it the "magic juice" but in some ways, it truly is exactly that.

With each new batch of food I make for him, I strain off a cup of the water so that we have enough "magic juice" to last us until we make the next batch.  I am shocked at how much easier life is these days.  Kino is still throwing up every three to four days but the fact that I have a way to get him to drink water throughout the day is enough to keep my outlook positive.

When I told my dad about my "happy accident" he said I should bottle the "magic juice" and sell it to other people who can't get their pets to drink water.  I decided instead to just share my experience here so if any of you reading this are having an issue with getting fluid into your pets, maybe something similar will work for you.