# Is Mexico faucet water safe to drink for dogs



## dongringo (Dec 13, 2010)

I do not really need to know that , I am just curious. 
My "best friends" have always enjoyed snacking on cat poop, and preferred drinking from the toilet bowl when left open, and I never noticed any deleterious effects from faucet water both locally and traveling throughout much of Mexico.

I do wonder how other residents and travellers handle the issue.


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## conklinwh (Dec 19, 2009)

We're probably not the best source as we adopted 2 street dogs from the SPA in San Miguel 5 years ago. They seem to think fresh water daily from the faucet a real treat given other options. I've never heard of tap water being a problem for animals of any kind but I'm sure that there are exceptions.


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## maesonna (Jun 10, 2008)

Since our dogs are from the street, I’m sure the water they used to drink is much worse than tap water. 

The only doubt I have is that sometimes our water comes so heavily chlorinated that you can smell the chlorine. So I don’t give them water directly from the tap, but I keep a pitcher full of water that has been standing for some hours to let the excess chlorine evaporate.


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## arturo_b (Sep 17, 2009)

Mexico is a big place, but generally speaking even humans can drink the tap water. It tends to be chlorinated and not have a good flavor, however.

Check with your local water authority.


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## q_vivar (Sep 6, 2012)

dongringo said:


> I do not really need to know that , I am just curious.
> My "best friends" have always enjoyed snacking on cat poop, and preferred drinking from the toilet bowl when left open, and I never noticed any deleterious effects from faucet water both locally and traveling throughout much of Mexico.
> 
> I do wonder how other residents and travellers handle the issue.


I have a cat and a dog and both have been drinking the tap water with no apparent bad effects. They are both 'locals' though.


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## mickisue1 (Mar 10, 2012)

If you let your pets be the species they are, and not treat them like miniature humans, they'll be fine.

We have safe tap water here in MN, but if given the choice, our cat will, the entire Xmas season, drink what we call the scented water from the base of the tree. Needles and dust are free extras!


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## johnmex (Nov 30, 2010)

dongringo said:


> I do not really need to know that , I am just curious.
> My "best friends" have always enjoyed snacking on cat poop, and preferred drinking from the toilet bowl when left open, and I never noticed any deleterious effects from faucet water both locally and traveling throughout much of Mexico.
> 
> I do wonder how other residents and travellers handle the issue.


Tuffy likes her water straight from the hose...


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## Longford (May 25, 2012)

Where I've been in Mexico ... If I wouldn't drink the tap water I'm certainly not going to let my pet/companion drink it, either. I know many dogs in Mexico ... companions of friends ... who have continual GI problems, I believe from the water.


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## conklinwh (Dec 19, 2009)

arturo_b said:


> Mexico is a big place, but generally speaking even humans can drink the tap water. It tends to be chlorinated and not have a good flavor, however.
> 
> Check with your local water authority.


I would never say that OK for people to drink the tap water. There are isolated locations I suspect where OK but better rule of thumb is bottled water.

That being said, we have never seen or heard of animals having a problem. I suspect for US raised pets, which ours aren't, there could be a transition as they adjust.


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## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

conklinwh said:


> I would never say that OK for people to drink the tap water. There are isolated locations I suspect where OK but better rule of thumb is bottled water.


I agree, as do all the Mexicans I know. When in Rome ...


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## RVGRINGO (May 16, 2007)

We, and our pets, have been drinking it since arriving in Mexico. We do not rely on any magic drops; simply filtration and a UV light if we remember to check it. So far, so good. We are in our mid 60s and mid 70s and that means that we are probably terminal. Will it be because of all these many years of Mexican water?
Oh, the pets drink it too, as well as street puddles when they go outside.


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## Souper (Nov 2, 2011)

conklinwh said:


> I would never say that OK for people to drink the tap water. There are isolated locations I suspect where OK but better rule of thumb is bottled water.
> 
> That being said, we have never seen or heard of animals having a problem. I suspect for US raised pets, which ours aren't, there could be a transition as they adjust.


and I say what is good for me is good for my US raised dog.


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## arturo_b (Sep 17, 2009)

conklinwh said:


> I would never say that OK for people to drink the tap water. There are isolated locations I suspect where OK but better rule of thumb is bottled water.


You are operating on out-of-date information, mythology, or prejudice. Check with your local water authority to get up-to-date information; the other two causes, unfortunately, are beyond objective discourse.

Here in Tijuana, our water has been safe to drink since the early 1980s, when tertiary treatment and chlorination were introduced. Even so, we continue to hear "don't drink the water" advice -- not only from the NoBs but also from many of our own residents. Our supermarkets continue to sell Micodin disinfectant tablets. And bottled water does a brisk business.

The truth is that I also buy bottled water -- for its organoleptic qualities rather than its hygienic ones. I have drunk our tap water but I don't like its flavor. I give my cat water from both sources; she doesn't care.

Now, were the water in your area not treated for biological contamination, your body would be absorbing _E. coli_ and whatnot every time you bathe or shower. Skin is not impermeable. If you have been bathing and you haven't gotten sick, chances are the water in your area is safe to drink. But your local water authority knows for sure. Ask them. They're the people who send you your water bill.


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## mickisue1 (Mar 10, 2012)

No matter what is done to the water at a treatment plant, once it's gone through the pipes to get to your house, it can become recontaminated.


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## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

mickisue1 said:


> No matter what is done to the water at a treatment plant, once it's gone through the pipes to get to your house, it can become recontaminated.


That's the case with the water in Mexico City: it leaves the treatment plant safe to drink, but after passing through the pipes to get to your residence, there's a good chance it has become contaminated, mostly through leaks in the antiquated city plumbing system.


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## Longford (May 25, 2012)

Isla Verde said:


> That's the case with the water in Mexico City: it leaves the treatment plant safe to drink, but after passing through the pipes to get to your residence, there's a good chance it has become contaminated, mostly through leaks in the antiquated city plumbing system.


Yes. Exactly.

The water treatment plants do their job. But the supply system is compromised, allowing for introducton of bacteria and other contaminants which can cause illness. GI problems are endemic in much of Mexico.

Firstly, there are perforated pipes which carry the water. The city often talks about the challenge of replacing the infrastructure in an area where earthquakes and settling ground are commonplace. 

Secondly, it's typical for a home/building's water supply system to be fed by storage tanks on the roofs. Some of these tanks are sealed and/or sanitized regularly but many are open-air or have compromised covers and/or aren't regularly sanitized. 

Thirdly, many of the structures are old and not well-maintained and the pipes leak. The most impacted are those who are chronically ill and/or suffer from compromised immunity for whatever reason.

It's the _perfect storm_ which presents challenges the immune system.


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## Hound Dog (Jan 18, 2009)

My dogs, or at least some of them ( i have five at present) , prefer the polluted waters of Lake Chapala where they go walking daily along the beach to bland local tap water. What they really used to like, though, was those areas along the beach where broken sewage lines emptied raw community sewage into the lake . That water was like a Doggy Margarita to them. Unfortunately, over the past few years the Chapala Municipality has gotten its act together and, where there used to be numerous broken sewer lines emptying untreated sewage into the lake unattended to by the city for months, they now fix these problems immediately. As a consequence, my babies must satisfy themselves with polluted lake water containing only effluent from industrial and agricultural pursuits upstream generated by extensive industrial and agricultural activity in the vast Lerma River Basin plus diluted, partially treated local sewage and carp poop.

They seem to be doing quite well on this water plus occasional snacks of cow patties and horse manure. They never get sick and are irritatingly vigorous at all times. They don´t even glow in the dark. Yet.


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## GARYJ65 (Feb 9, 2013)

Yes, it is safe for pets, as for humans, I would not take too many chances and install a good filtering system or drink bottled water.


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