Recently saved got this dog from someone I know who was less then kind to him who I believe threw water on the dog when he misbehaved.

He used to drink his water especially when coming in from a walk but recently I came in one night with out seeing it I kicked the dogs water bowl and it drench the dog now he seems terrified of the water bowl not drinking from it after walks and now he won't go near it or any container with water in it and if I bring one near him he tries to run away.

I don't know if this kicked in a memory so now he associates the water with punishment or what is anyone aware of a way to help him over come this fear?

Many Thanks

He will overcome it, you just have to be patient, leave water out, if you can put a ball in it, as in play time. That might help. Dogs can go a long time without water, so don't be worried about him. He will drink when he gets thirsty enough.

Tick

You could also throw a few kernels of dog food in their. Just make sure the dish isn't full of water and your dog doesn't bloat himself out trying to get to the dog food. Maybe just put 1/4 cup to start and once he gets the kibble fill the dish with fresh water with out the kibble in it.

Just give him some time, he probably will drink when you aren't in the room or while you are sleeping.

If you see him approaching the water dish on his own, praise him like mad, even offer a small treat for drinking the water on his own.

I commend you for choosing the adoption option! Good luck with your new family member and thank goodness there are people like you out there helping our four legged friends!

The suggestion above are great, I just wanted to add some more for future reference...

If you don't mind spending a bit of money you can buy special water bowls that have a pump inside them.
In the middle of the bowl is a big hump and the water comes out a hole in the top and cascades down the sides.
A lot of dogs love drinking from these as in the wild dogs drank from moving water sources so they feel more comfortable drinking from something moving.

You could also reintroduce water by giving your dog some ice-cubes to lick, if your dog really loves the ice cubes then you can put some in the water bowl to encourage him.

Puppy milk could work as well, it is a special lactose-free milk for dogs, most of them love it and that would get him used to drinking from the bowl again, you can just slowly dilute the milk with water until you are back to giving just plain water.