Cats and drinking

one of our cats hardly drank any water and when I mentioned it to the vet he said not to worry as he would get all the water he needed from his food

Our cats originally came from desert regions and drink very little unless they are fed a totally unnatural diet like dried kibble. That might explain why kidney disease is so common in old cats.

Some cats I have had preferred to drink water from a bowl in the garden, rather than from one placed near their food dish indoors. Both bowls contained fresh tap water, but I suppose the water tastes different outdoors.

Come to think of it, it did to me when I was a child too.

A lot of cats seem to need very little water, even in hot weather.

In very hot weather, I add a couple of spoonfuls of water to the wet food. Stir it in and they don’t notice. It seems to work.

Yes she is fed on wet food. There seems quite a lot of gravy.

Please don't fret, she'll be getting enough water from the dirtiest pools and ponds she can find. They don't like the chlorine taste in tap water.
Cats and their likes and dislikes have puzzled humans for centuries. Its why we love 'em.

When I want my dog to drink eg after she’s had an operation I give her some water that I’ve boiled some chicken in. Not sure if it works with cats. I suppose if they’re having wet food they get liquid from that.

I've had cats fed on wet food that never drink water.
My current cats that live on dry food who think they're fogs and drink all the time

My little rescue cat will only eat dry food. The fosterers who looked after her and her kittens before I adopted her had tried her with a variety of wet foods, and so have I, but she refuses all of them.

Consequently I am not surprised that she drinks quite a lot, and made her preference clear after I'd had her a few weeks by sucking the end of the tap in the bathroom washbasin while balancing across it rather athletically. Now she has trained me and I know to turn on the tap every time she follows me into the bathroom.

My cat has water available all day and never drinks it! Like other cats she will drink from the loo! When she has wet meat I add water to it and she wolfs it down so I know she is hydrated. She occasionally goes to the cattery and they know to do the same. Cats are very fussy!!!!

Whitewavemark2

Ooooh soup as a starter😊. Sounds good.

Just told DH - his face was a picture.

HaHa. Yes if I come back again I'm coming back as a pampered cat.

Ooooh soup as a starter😊. Sounds good.

Just told DH - his face was a picture.

Even though I put clean water out for my cats, I see both of them drinking out of the saucers under the garden flower pots especially after it's been raining.
One of them will drink out of the bathroom tap, the clue she's standing in the sink!

Mine drinks out of his bowl indoors and drinks the water I put out for the birds.
As additional fluid in this heat I buy Felix soup. 6 sachets in a box for around £2. Bits of meat. not a lot and mostly a gravy. I give him one a day.

Might try the dripping tap system. At the moment it will have to be outside, as she has not yet jumped up any higher than the bed or chair.

Next doors cat drinks out of the bird bath in our garden, but I don’t think Roo has discovered it yet - it is on top of a big pot.

Cats don't usually drink much, but in this heat, so long as there is fresh water around every day, your cat will be fine. Wet feed gives some moisture.

Our cat would only drink water out of the toilet bowl, or Coca Cola from a glass when the children left one on a table or work surface.

He was also rather partial to brandy & coke if DH poured himself one after a hard day…

Sorry, saw you’d tried a fountain without success - have you tried a running tap - I used to leave mine outside dripping into a watering can, and Mr Fussyboy would stand with his front paws on it to drink.

My cat will only drink indoors out of a drinking glass (no bowls/fountains etc), or dirty water from the garden.

When we had cats a few years ago, one of them would only ever drink from a running tap, so I think their instinct must be that still water isn’t safe to drink. We bought a battery operated drink fountain for them from Pets at Home, which they would use provided there was no chemical smell from the water, so I used to run it before filling it up each day. They are fussy creatures!

Our cat has a constant supply of water indoors, but prefers to drink from the garden pond. Perhaps your cat does something similar. They are funny things