Cats & Drinking Water

melon_collie

Just looking for some advice on the best way to present water to my cats for drinking. For the last 18months I have been leaving water in their food bowl (half and half food & drink bowl type) next to their food but they would never touch it. So recently I started putting it in a separate bowl (metal type) away from the food but again they never touch it. Last week I went into the bathroom to find one of the cats drinking from the toilet after I had just flushed.

Can anyone tell me If I am doing something wrong here? I am just concerned that they may not be getting enough water in the hot weather.

Malari

I was just looking through this forum for similar topics last week!

My cat is uber-fussy. He used to drink standing water from drains and puddles, and from bowls if I would *hold it* for him :rolleyes: Now he's decided it must be RUNNING water direct from the tap please. This can also work if you pour from a watering can.

I reckon he drinks from standing water when we are not there to pamper him, and he won't dehydrate. You can get cat water fountains though, which I'm considering investing in :pac:

redbel05

http://www.zooplus.co.uk/shop/cats/cat_bowls_feeders/cat_fountains/freshflow/280454?gclid=CjwKEAjwh6SsBRCYrKHF7J3NjicSJACUxAh7jcqJE6qxm51ACruTSCF4G3MGBixxq7ci41HhHnvIgBoCbobw_wcB

Cats are such picky creatures sometimes! Had a friend whose cat would only drink from a running tap, so she eventually bought one of the above for her cat and it worked a treat. Moving the water bowl away from the food bowl was a step in the right direction. Maybe also try putting a few water bowls in places that they frequent and use different containers to see what they like.

Nody

Welcome to the world of cat slaves; one of our cats insists only the water we put in a glass to our bed stand is worthy of drinking. Another insists that the best water by far is the 1 liter jug I keep next to my PC for my own drinking (she'll come and paw my leg to be lifted up because jumping is too much effort; if I'm not home she'll drink from the water bowl)while the third drinks from the water bowl . The long and short of it is each cat has it's own perks but often a free flowing water fountain like this where there's a clear fall of the water rather has a relatively good success rate but there is no guarantee what they will prefer except through experimenting.

melon_collie

Thanks for all the replies. I think i might invest in one of those fountains. It just seems as if they'll drink out of anywhere only the bowl I have left the water in. Even if I put a glass of water on the coffee table, the male fella will try to get his nose in!!!

RangeR

melon_collie wrote: »

Just looking for some advice on the best way to present water to my cats for drinking. For the last 18months I have been leaving water in their food bowl (half and half food & drink bowl type) next to their food but they would never touch it. So recently I started putting it in a separate bowl (metal type) away from the food but again they never touch it. Last week I went into the bathroom to find one of the cats drinking from the toilet after I had just flushed.

Can anyone tell me If I am doing something wrong here? I am just concerned that they may not be getting enough water in the hot weather.

The cat will drink the water when they have to. If they don't, they are getting water from somewhere else. Not much to worry about. Monitor them for 3 to 5 days. I'm not being funny here but if they are still alive after 5 days, they are getting water from somewhere.

My cats sometimes drink from their bowls, sometimes from the dog bowls, sometimes from the hose out the back and sometimes they lick rain water off the windows and doors. They will get their water. The water you put in the bowl is a "just in case". If they need it, they will go to it.

pawrick

Check their stools if you have a litter tray, it's a good indicator of if they are getting enough water.

My gf has one of those fountains for one of her cats who prefers flowing water, her cat uses it but it's far too irritating imo to be left on the whole time as the motor makes a constant low noise. She bought it on zooplus.de

my guys tend to drink more when ever i replace their bowls with a new one until the novelty wears off. The one who appears to drink the least amount goes around the house licking condensation off the windows even if there is a fresh source nearby.

Pumpkinseeds

We got a drinking fountain as 1 of our 4 was prone to urinary tract infections and will only drink running water. He absolutely LOVES it and hasn't had a UTI in well over a year. The other 3 won't use it and don't like to drink indoors so we leave a big steel dog bowl of fresh water in the back garden and they drink from that.

bsh108

My experience is that when I stopped giving my lad the dried biscuits (on vet's advice), he stopped taking water from the little cup that I used to leave out for him, like he's now getting all the hydration he needs from the tinned food. He's an indoor cat, so it's easy to keep track on if he's getting it from anywhere else.

chanelfreak

I got one of those drinking fountains (the ones with the motor) and my two love it, although they still make a dive for the tap whenever it goes on and of course there is nothing better than slurping from my glass

I read somewhere that cats dont trust standing water and that they prefer running water and I have to say, since I got the fountain thingy they are drinking a lot more water, which is great as they are on a dry food only diet.

Capercaillie

My cat had bladder stones so getting plenty of water is essential. He is on a special diet low in calcium/magnesium to prevent stones again. Got him a water fountain but he was afraid of it. He drinks from the garden ponds. He has a pint glass on table which he drinks from inside. Have to keep fresh or he will refuse to drink.