# Adding water to kibble



## cmoorewv (May 27, 2012)

Is this necessary or beneficial? I have heard conflicting things. If any of you do add warm water to your dog's dry food, how much do you add (ounces of water per cup of food-doesn't have to be exact) and how long do you let it soak before feeding it? Two of my dogs are breeds/mixes of breeds prone to bloat. I've never had an issue with bloating in them though. I feed them at night-they do not get a chance to run around following a meal.


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## ThoseWordsAtBest (Mar 18, 2009)

I've heard about water and preventing bloat, but I never really thought about how much stock there is in there. I hear a lot of things that supposedly prevent bloat but it was of my understanding that we don't know exactly what causes bloat? 

Anyhow, I don't add water with my dog's food, but I add water to the food with dogs at work to make it a little more enticing. They have to eat Science Diet, so I just put a splash of water in. Other than that, I only soak the kibble for mush for small/young puppies.


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## Nuclear_Glitter (Jun 20, 2012)

I only add water to my dogs food when I'm using it as a training device because it smells a bit better. It doesn't sit long enough to get soggy or anything, though. 

No clue if adding water really helps anything though. Like the above poster, I only seriously add water to small and young puppies food.


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## cmoorewv (May 27, 2012)

I'd be more worried about watering the food causing bloat rather than helping it, if it doesn't soak long enough. I'd be afraid it would expand in their stomach. I think drinking a lot of water directly after a meal has been warned against, too. I'm not really worried about bloat issues right now though. I have noticed every once in awhile my Shepherd/wolf hound mix's stomach makes really horrible growling gurgling noises and he refuses to eat, though. That's why I feed them right before they settle in for the night. I am curious to hear what people on this forum do. I have never made a habit of watering their food, but I wonder if it makes it more palatable. But on the other hand, it might not be good for their teeth. Who knows. Is it one of those things where it's just what method you and the dogs prefer?


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## ThoseWordsAtBest (Mar 18, 2009)

I chalk most things up to preference.  I have an 85 lbs dog, but we've not had any bloat scares and we don't do any thing special with his food.


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## Loki Love (May 23, 2010)

The latest study re: bloat indicates that moistening kibble can actually increase the likelihood of bloat. I take the studies with a grain of salt because at the end of the day, no one knows the real cause of bloat (I personally think it's genetics and stress).


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## cmoorewv (May 27, 2012)

I will probably just keep feeding them as-is. They eat fine without adding any water. There's always conflicting info out there. When I first got my St Bernards, raised feeders were "in". Later, they were implicated in actually increasing odds of bloating rather than decreasing chances. I used one for awhile, but not anymore. She is lying down when she eats now anyway.


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## sassafras (Jun 22, 2010)

I usually add water to Squash's breakfast because he doesn't usually drink much water on his own in the morning and I want him to be decently hydrated when we go out mushing later in the morning. Not that we've been able to go mushing lately, but I'm just in the habit of doing it anyway, I guess. 

I don't let it sit around or anything, my reason isn't to soften the food but just make sure he drinks enough water in the morning.... and he's on mostly raw anyway.


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## Candydb (Jul 16, 2011)

I have an old blind 13 yr old dog that hardly gets up off her bed (she is chronically dehydrated) so I add about 4 cups warm water to 2 cups dry with one cup cotttage cheese/ rice/ ground beef-- shes been on this for a couple years and is fine... (well food wise she is fine. her health is... well as good as it can be given thyroid issues kidney issues, a fatty lipoma and her arthiritis.....)


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## Losech (Apr 5, 2011)

My Shiba almost never gets dry kibble, mainly since I have noticed that he digests it way better when it's given with water, and because he tends to not drink very much on his own and the water takes on the kibble's flavor and gets him to finish it all. He also gets a variety of supplements, some of which he will not eat if they are dry, so when water is added they get mixed in better and he doesn't notice them. 
I'll add water to the Girl's kibble if I feed them (little brother usually does now), it helps to slow Sasha down. If no water is added they'll both take a drink when they are done eating, so so much for "preventing" bloat by not adding water.


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## MimiAzura (Jan 5, 2013)

the only time i ever add water to kibble is when there are are crumbs in the bottom of the bucket, and i make a paste out of it for my pet rats


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## gingerkid (Jul 11, 2012)

Before we switched kibbles, we had to soak Snowball's food or he wouldn't really eat it. We would soak the food in 1/2 the volume of water before heading out for a walk (15-30+ minutes) and he'd eat when we got back.

Other than hydration and perhaps making kibble more enticing to some dogs, I don't really think it does anything, health-wise. Although I do remember reading that study that indicated it made bloat slightly more likely a while back, but I don't think the water itself has anything to do with it, since when you swallow food it enters a bunch of liquids anyway.... Probably has something more to do with the mechanics of chewing/swallowing soft kibble vs. hard kibble?


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## georgiapeach (Mar 17, 2012)

I read on Dr. Karen Becker's (a holistic vet) website that feeding dry kibble is like a person eating dehydrated food without rehydrating it. The dog can get dehydrated b/c it's body has to hydrate the kibble from within its body if water hasn't been added to the kibble. I always add water to my dogs' kibble at every meal, until it's almost floating, then let it set for just a few minutes before feeding. They drink the water and eat the kibble. As a result, they don't drink an excessive amount of additional water during the day.


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## Xeph (May 7, 2007)

I only float my dog's food in the winter, when they aren't drinking enough water. Kibble is going to expand in a dog's stomach regardless....it's wet in there  It's not the amount of food that causes bloat (unless the dog has gorged itself), it's gas that forms in the belly.


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## SydTheSpaniel (Feb 12, 2011)

The dog boarding kennel I used to work at we always had to put warm water in the food, especially for the dogs that also went to daycare while they were boarding. My supervisor just said it would prevent them from getting sick after being riled up. I've never done it for Sydney except for when I switched her food from the nasty beneful she was being fed by her former owner, to TOTW because at first she didn't like it, but now it's not necessary - she loves her food!


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## Loki Love (May 23, 2010)

Xeph said:


> It's not the amount of food that causes bloat (unless the dog has gorged itself), it's gas that forms in the belly.


I think most people understand that  The real question lays in what causes that gas in the first place - and that's what no one really knows. Is it a combination of the water and kibble? Maybe. Is it a combination of food and stress? Maybe. Is it all genetics and food has nothing to do with it? Who knows. Even if a dog does gorge itself - that doesn't mean bloat will occur.


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## Xeph (May 7, 2007)

I know people that have had dogs bloat and no food or water or exercise was involved. The dogs were just in their kennel runs or crates....and bloated. No reason for it, they just did


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## w8ing4rain (Sep 4, 2008)

I remember reading somewhere that you shouldn't add water to foods that contain citric acid. Unfortunately I can't remember where I read it or why it is a problem. Has anyone else heard this?


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## gingerkid (Jul 11, 2012)

w8ing4rain said:


> I remember reading somewhere that you shouldn't add water to foods that contain citric acid. Unfortunately I can't remember where I read it or why it is a problem. Has anyone else heard this?


Yes! Although I'm not sure what the reasoning is? But there was a study done at Purdue University that showed that dogs who ate soaked kibble containing citric acid were more prone to bloat. I also found this thread about the study on this forum.

From DogFoodAnalysis:


> ...research at Purdue University has identified *fat in the top four ingredients of dry dogs foods as a factor increasing the risk of bloat* in large breed dogs...pre-moistening of foods preserved with citirc acid has also been identified as a factor increasing the risk of bloat


Here is the abstract of the Purdue bloat study. 


> Approximately 30 and 33% of all cases of GDV in this study could be attributed to consumption of dry foods containing fat among their first four ingredients or citric acid, respectively


.

One interesting thing is that the presence of bone-inclusive meat meals in the first four ingredients of the try food was protective against bloat. I'd be interested to know if anyone has heard anything about this - I was thinking the calcium in bone might neutralize acid in the stomach or something (but I really have no clue, and its past my bed time, lol).


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## EagleRiverDee (Mar 14, 2011)

Our oldest dog, Sassy, is a full blood yellow lab who has developed a paralyzed esophagus. She chokes on her food and treats if not carefully monitored. I have put water in her food as a "lubricant" for the past couple years and since doing that she never chokes on her dinner.


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## cmoorewv (May 27, 2012)

I have decided for the time being not to water the food down. I tried it to see if Cujo liked it, and she only ate half her normal amount. I don't know if that was because it made her full faster or she just didn't like it. She is an old lady-I don't think bloat is much of a concern anymore-she's almost 11 and not very active, so I think I'll just keep feeding her as I usually do.


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