Dear Most Esteemed and Knowledgeable Kitties:
I got a rescue kitten for a retirement gift. I have had him since he was a 7-ounce kitten; now he weighs about 24.5 pounds. He is great; however, no matter what I use for his water dish, he will paddle in it until empty. It is a worry for me when I am gone. What can I do? I cannot always be home to turn on the tub spout, which is his favorite place to drink.
~ Russ
Thomas: Well, Russ, it sounds like your kitty really loves moving water, and since you can’t be around all the time, there is a very good solution out there.
Bella: And that solution is a pet fountain! Like the one shown above, pet fountains have constantly moving water, which might give your kitty the “fix” he needs without splashing water all over the place.
Tara: Pet fountains are pretty easy to find at pet stores and online outlets.
Thomas: They range in degree of fanciness from plastic dishes with flowing water all the way through custom-made clay fountains that can cost well over $100, so you have a lot of choices.
Bella: We have fancy fountain that Mama got from Thirsty Cat Fountains. It’s one of those super-fancy ones, but Mama said that if we didn’t drink out of it, at least she could use it as a feng shui feature in the house. Tee hee hee!
Thomas: Please forgive the mineral deposits; we have kind of hard water here.
Bella: It was a housewarming gift for us when we moved across the country to our new home in 2013.
Tara: Maybe someday I’ll drink out of that fancy fountain. *sniffle*
Thomas: Oh, Tara, come on. You’re a brave kitty, and all we want to do is be your friends!
Bella: So, Russ, what we’d recommend is that you get your big guy a fountain. We’d also suggest you put some sort of tray or other waterproof material under his water bowl, just so that when he does splash water, it doesn’t ruin your rugs or floors.
Tara: Now, we do want to talk a little bit about your cat’s weight. Obesity can set your kitty up for lots of future problems like diabetes and early arthritis, so it’s really worth it to talk to your vet about a plan to get your cat to an appropriate weight.
Thomas: You can’t put a cat on a “crash diet,” so you and your vet will need to work on a weight loss program that will allow him to lose weight slowly.
Bella: We know fat cats can be cute, but we do hope you’ll consider helping your big guy to be a slightly smaller guy.
Tara: Best of luck to you and your cat, both with resolving his drinking problem (tee hee hee) and with reducing his weight.
Thomas: How about you other readers? Do you have some tips for Russ on how he can get his cat to drink more neatly or on types of pet fountains you’ve tried? Please share your advice in the comments.
Bella: We’re so thankful to all of you who comment on our posts and help our letter writers help their kitties. We’re grateful to have such a wonderful community here!
Tara: Yeah. What Bella said!
JaneA Kelley is a punk rock cat mom and award-winning blogger. She is a regular columnist for Catster Magazine, and she and the Paws and Effect Gang share a home in the beautiful Pacific Northwest.
Plastic fountains are pretty cheap but I wouldn’t recommend them. Plastic can cause chin acne in cats. Plus they would be too easy to swat around!
I got a ceramic one which I was actually worried that they wouldn’t use. But my big scaredy cat Punkin was actually the first one to use it!
I also use bottled or filtered water. And Thomas, Bella and Tara, that would help with those mineral deposits!
Plus it’s heavy enough to withstand a shove from a cat!
we use large ceramic (dog) dishes since angel Maestro used to drag water dishes around the kitchen. we have tried a couple of fountains and LOVE them but the ones we tried required more maintenance than mom’s car and she gave up
I also got a rescue cat that refused to drink with grace. He always pawed at his water before drinking, making the water dirty for my other kitty and making a mess. No matter how often I changed the water or what dish I used, he’d always splash before drinking. After a little research, I bought a fountain drinking station for cats. I honestly was hesitate because they are pricey, and no guarantee that either of my cats would use it. I bought it from Amazon, it came, I set it up, also has a filter which is nice because it keeps the water clean. My cats were both intrigued with the moving water and the noise running water makes. After a couple hours, both drank from it. I’ve had it now for about 6 weeks, and my little water splasher, splashes no more. I purchased the CatH2O Cat Fountain for 34.99 from Amazon and my cats love it.
Your cat will never empty this one, and all that splashing will just sent the water down the drain.
Here is the easiest way to give your cat fresh water: AquaPurr
No Cleaning
No Filters
No Refilling
No Electricity
The cat stands on the AquaPurr to trigger the flow of water through a spigot. The AquaPurr attaches to a faucet with a diverter valve in place of the aerator.
Always fresh water
Always full
Always clean
http://www.AquaPurr.net
Steven