Dog experts - advice needed

[mcar]

My 9 YO hound husky mix has started doing something really weird. Last couple of weeks, I'd come home to find water all over the kitchen and his water bowl across the room. He sometimes has trouble walking on hard floors so I thought maybe he had slipped those few times.

So, here I am sitting on my recliner enjoying popcorn and an adult beverage while watching the news. Dog goes to his bowl, drinks to his fill.....

then uses his snout to knock the rest of the water out of the bowl!

I hollered to him to stop and he came back to the living room, looking not a bit repentant. He's giving me this "well, what are you going to do about it?" look.

He gets plenty of fresh water in a clean bowl. Here's what's changed...

as some of you may recall, our little dog, his best friend, died several weeks ago. This new behavior started about a week after. Other than sometimes seeming to be looking for her, he hasn't reacted to her passing at all.

Could this be a reaction? Is he just bored and taught himself a fun new trick?

Help!

[True Dough]

1. Do you have any way to weigh down the water bowl?

Or could you switch it to a dish that is set inside a solid stand of some sort, making it impossible to knock over unless the entire stand goes with it?

[mcar]

9. Good ideas

Thanks!

[lettucebe]

2. Undoubtedly this is a reaction to the loss of his best friend

Any new strange behavior is usually due to something having changed. I'd give him tons of love and maybe a new stuffed animal for comfort while he adjusts

[mcar]

10. He tears up stuffed loveys

I've been trying to get him to play with a tennis ball again. He kind of gave that up when little dog came along.

I do think he needs more attention.

[Phoenix61]

3. Taught himself a fun new trick.

Huskies are, as a breed, very smart. He’s probably bored and irritated with you for leaving him home alone. My huskie would get irked with me if I was gown too long. To get even she would wait to poop until I got home and she could put it in the middle of the living room. The door would be open to the yard but no... middle of the living room.

[Harker]

7. One of my favorite beagles once filled

one of my old man's fancy loafers with soft serve.

Good doggie.

[mcar]

11. My Siamese mix cat would do that

She'd wait till a few days after we came home. Then boom!

[kozar]

4. or

diabetes in a dog,,not enough to drink is one of first signs

[mcar]

12. Oh, he drinks plenty

He just started tossing the rest.

[in2herbs]

5. Did they used to eat together? If so, maybe the husky just wants you to be near him when he's

eating (and drinking).

[mcar]

13. Actually, that was the only time they'd get growly with each other

We always had them eat in different parts of the kitchen.

[dempls]

6. Lab did this also

My lab used to do this when she was hot. Knocked water out of her dish onto the tile floor and the lay in it to cool off. She would look at me quite pleased with herself.

[mcar]

14. You know, I thought that

We are in FL and it's a slice of hell here now. But the house is cool and he didn't go lay on it.

[Karadeniz]

8. I wonder if one of those fountain bowls would distract him.

[mcar]

15. My neighbors had a Japanese Akita

They got her a baby pool and filled it up in the summer. Bet he'd like that. I wouldn't like muddy dog coming back in.

[samnsara]

16. all my goldens as puppies would do this..and dig!

[mcar]

17. He's a digger

Never did this, though. Nice to know it's not way out there.

[Liberty Belle]

18. Maybe take him to the shelter with you and pick out a new companion dog.

He's probably trying to tell you he's lonely!

[mcar]

19. Yeah, but no

I'll be honest - I love the big guy. Broke my heart when the little gal died. But hubby and I are close to retirement and looking forward to traveling without having to worry about fur babies.

[ProudLib72]

20. There was a mom and son pit bull team that used to come to the park

The mom's favorite thing was flipping the water bowl over (there were a bunch lying around the park) and "skating" it all over the place. She would place one front paw on top and push it around. She could do that for hours. If you picked up the bowl and tossed it, she would chase it down, flip it over, and start skating it again.

What I'm trying to say is that dogs can do some weird things with their bowls. Is this in reaction to the loss of your other dog? It could be. Is it a sign of something more serious? Not necessarily. The one thing I would ask is, "Does this constitute destructive behavior?" It could be that he is acting out to get your attention (and this is happening because he isn't getting as much attention now that his buddy is gone.) So my final advice would be to give him more positive attention and correct his water bowl shenanigans.

[Laffy Kat]

21. My one-year-old pupper will drink out of her water bowl and fling it...

As far as she can so my older dog can't have a drink. This started when I began giving them a water bowl while I'm in the bathtub, so they won't try to drink the hot bathwater. They love each other, but the puppy is a brat to her older sister. I get the same "so what?" look you get.