Product Query - Contech Waterdog

[Marnifer]

Hi all,

I recently bought one of these for my dog (http://www.vetnpetdirect.com.au/Comtech-WaterDog-Drinking-Fountain) and set it up.

Well I took the first one back to the store where I bought it because it leaked profusely from about two or three different places.

I tested the replacement at the store to make sure that it wouldn't have the same problem and it seemed to only leak from one place but that was avoidable so no major problem.

However when I get it home and set it up again, it leaks from a whole new place. Admittedly, this is just a small drip this time but a leak is still a leak.

Has anyone else tried one of these products? Have you had similar issues?

I expect that a lot of you will have some sort of automatic watering system set up for your best friends. Anybody care to share what they do?

Thanks for your help.

Martin

[Dogs4Fun]

I just stick to washing and refilling water bowels daily.

A couple of friends have tried automated waterers and they all leak, become a play thing with huge amounts of water wasted, or get destroyed by the dog.

[persephone]

I prefer water buckets which can be secured/placed in shade or shelter depending on weather , and cleaned/replaced cheaply I get too confused with hose fittings, etc !

[Maddy]

I honestly can't see how that style of water bowl saves you any work.

The bowl still need to be wiped out every other day (even if you use something like Trough Blox to minimise build-up) so you'd still have to refill it again.

For our dogs, outside we have a large plastic bowly-bucket-thing (that cost us under $10 from Kmart) that sits where the tap is and another regular bucket in the garage so they have somewhere sheltered to drink from if it rains.

Keeping things in the shade definitely helps reduce build-up (as does a tiny amount of Trough Blox) but the reality is, other stuff gets in the water anyway (leaves, dust blown in the wind, dirt off the dogs' muzzles) so to keep it clean enough, you actually do have to tip everything out and rinse.

[Marnifer]

I honestly can't see how that style of water bowl saves you any work.

The bowl still need to be wiped out every other day (even if you use something like Trough Blox to minimise build-up) so you'd still have to refill it again.

For our dogs, outside we have a large plastic bowly-bucket-thing (that cost us under $10 from Kmart) that sits where the tap is and another regular bucket in the garage so they have somewhere sheltered to drink from if it rains.

Keeping things in the shade definitely helps reduce build-up (as does a tiny amount of Trough Blox) but the reality is, other stuff gets in the water anyway (leaves, dust blown in the wind, dirt off the dogs' muzzles) so to keep it clean enough, you actually do have to tip everything out and rinse.

The one that I bought isn't actually a refillable trough/bowl. It is a drinking fountain that has an infrared (or similar) sensor in it. when the dog comes within about 50cm of it, water starts coming out of the spout. the dog just goes to town lapping it up as though it was coming out of a tap.

great idea - no algae to worry about. no leaves, dust, dirt, mozzies, etc to worry about. pity about the leaking...

[Maddy]

The one that I bought isn't actually a refillable trough/bowl. It is a drinking fountain that has an infrared (or similar) sensor in it. when the dog comes within about 50cm of it, water starts coming out of the spout. the dog just goes to town lapping it up as though it was coming out of a tap.

great idea - no algae to worry about. no leaves, dust, dirt, mozzies, etc to worry about. pity about the leaking...

Still not really getting the point

If it leaks, it's going to waste a fair amount of water and for the price, it seems that just keeping water bowls clean and filled is a much better idea and allows you to supplement through their water (things like Dog Rocks for summer and ACV).

[Marnifer]

Still not really getting the point

If it leaks, it's going to waste a fair amount of water and for the price, it seems that just keeping water bowls clean and filled is a much better idea and allows you to supplement through their water (things like Dog Rocks for summer and ACV).

Which was kind of the point of my original post. the leaking is unacceptable and i was looking for an alternative.

we tried the water bowl idea when she was a puppy - was a big disaster. she would splash about in the bowl having a good play and the water would be gone inside of about 30 seconds. it still wouldn't work even now. she eats her food out of a stainless stell bowl which gets carted around the back yard as soon as she is finished eating. same thing would happen with a water bowl.

at the moment, she has a terracota planter box. I have plugged up the holes in and sealed inside and out to stop it absorbing the water. This is good but when she drinks from it, the front legs are always in the water and the whole body often goes in as well, just to get a drink... as a result, the water gets dirty very quickly and the whole thing needs emptying and cleaning every two or three days.

This was fine in the beginning but after 18 months, it starts to become a chore...

Thanks everyone for your assistance.

[LizT]

The thing about any type of 'automatic' watering system (and I learnt this with horses) is that you have no idea how much water the animal is drinking and if they are drinking excessively or not enough. This can often be an important piece of information you don't have, particularly if the animal becomes unwell.

[poochiemama]

I have one of those water fountain things - I found it really indispensible in summer when the dogs would keep tipping their bowl over or splashing in it - the fountain ensured there was always water for them. Mine did leak as well though ...

[Maddy]

How large is she? A bucket of water raised up on something (and the bucket itself weighted with something to stop her from easily knocking it over) might work, position it low enough that she can get her head over the rim to drink but still high enough that she should have trouble getting her feet in.

Although I've had water diggers before (a few that were pretty skilled at it) and all of them seemed to get over the excitement of it after a while, most were younger dogs.

Another thought is, if she enjoys water that much, perhaps a clamshell wading pool out in the yard would be a good idea? It may take a little time and training but if you can provide somewhere that behaviour is acceptable, training her not to do it in her water may be easier.

[princesszelda]

We ended up getting a Torus water bowl - the water is stored in the edges of the bowl itself, and only goes into the main part of the bowl when it goes below a certain level (sorry, my explaination sucks...just google it!)

[Marnifer]

How large is she? A bucket of water raised up on something (and the bucket itself weighted with something to stop her from easily knocking it over) might work, position it low enough that she can get her head over the rim to drink but still high enough that she should have trouble getting her feet in.

Although I've had water diggers before (a few that were pretty skilled at it) and all of them seemed to get over the excitement of it after a while, most were younger dogs.

Another thought is, if she enjoys water that much, perhaps a clamshell wading pool out in the yard would be a good idea? It may take a little time and training but if you can provide somewhere that behaviour is acceptable, training her not to do it in her water may be easier.

She's a 23 month old lab.

We bought a clam shell last summer for her because we would often see her cooling off in the drinking trough. It seemed though that the only time she would use it was when my daughter was out playing in it with her. We will however try again this year...

Thanks for all your help everyone.