Drinking Fountain?

[tajkkj]

I should add that here in Tucson our water is pretty hard so we have a water softener that also has a two stage activated charcoal filter that serves the whole house. So the water we give our cats is purified by that filter.

 

[4cats1parrot]

I have the Dog it instead of the Cat it that comes with a white on one-side and carbon on the other filter.  But when I stick my face down their and smell the water it stinks! and I'm using distilled to fill it! and that's with cleaning it and changing filter monthly!  I am hunting for a good one that doesn't have to be constantly filled as I have four cats.  Wondering if the Glacier Water fountain is worth the $$$$ anyone know??

 

[4cats1parrot]

I was wondering if I should spend the $$$$ on that one.  Question I have two cats with kinda bad teeth and one that was a feral rescued with a broken fang, I would like to order the chiller but afraid that the cold water may keep them from drinking it if it hurts the teeth.  But I have one showing signs of renal failure so they say cold will encourage them to drink more.  Do you have the chiller?

 

[tajkkj]

We think the Glacier Point fountain is well worth the price. It's completely made in the USA of high quality parts. As I wrote earlier, it looks like a science fair project, but it is so easy to keep clean. There are four holes in the "bridge" that sits over the bowl to take the glass bottles recommended for holding water to automatically keep the bowl filled. It comes with a 16 oz glass bottle, and we've added a 32 oz glass bottle (old vinegar bottle) to that. With three cats (two 4 years old and one 10 years old), these two bottles last a full week. It takes about 15-20 minutes to clean and we do that once a week. The bottles can be washed in the dishwasher.

We bought ours in June of 2011, and have had zero problems with it. Their support folks have always been prompt and friendly when answering questions.I see it's now priced about $40 higher than what we paid for it, but I still think the price is worth it. I hand wash the foam filters as part of the cleaning, basically just removing any particles that might have been sucked into them. I replace the charcoal in the in-line filter every two weeks. You can get a cheap supply of granulated, activated charcoal that's used in aquarium filters. I haven't seen a recommendation for how often to replace the in-line tube itself. It is coated with a substance that releases silver ions for controlling biofilm forming molds, fungi, and algae, and probably should be replaced annually. That's what we do. Bottom line is there is only a minimal maintenance cost after the initial purchase.

If you're thinking of getting the chiller, I would recommend holding off until you know how your cats like chilled water. You can dump an tray full of ice cubes into the water and see the cats' reaction to it. If their OK, you can purchase the chiller if you think they're drinking more water than without the chiller. We don't have the chiller, and our now deceased 20 year old cat, who did have some kidney problems, seem to have no problems drinking all the room temperature water.he needed.

 

[jade14]

 
I have the Dog it instead of the Cat it that comes with a white on one-side and carbon on the other filter.  But when I stick my face down their and smell the water it stinks! and I'm using distilled to fill it! and that's with cleaning it and changing filter monthly!  I am hunting for a good one that doesn't have to be constantly filled as I have four cats.  Wondering if the Glacier Water fountain is worth the $$$$ anyone know??

Not sure why yours would smell bad.  I just checked mine (because honestly I had never smelled it before! Haha) and it had no smell to it.  I do use water from our brita pitcher, but only because it is easy to carry down to fill it when I hear it getting low.  

 

[red dog]

 
I have the Dog it instead of the Cat it that comes with a white on one-side and carbon on the other filter.  But when I stick my face down their and smell the water it stinks! and I'm using distilled to fill it! and that's with cleaning it and changing filter monthly!  I am hunting for a good one that doesn't have to be constantly filled as I have four cats.  Wondering if the Glacier Water fountain is worth the $$$$ anyone know??

You & your pets should never drink distilled water. Distilled water lacks minerals, drinking it flushes minerals out of the body that usually aren't replenished fast enough. Likely leading to future health issues.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Distilled_water

The World Health Organization investigated the health effects of demineralized water in 1980, and its experiments in humans found that demineralized water increased diuresis and the elimination of electrolytes........

Wash your fountain once a week in the sink with dish soap like you would dishes, & replace your filter about every 3-4 weeks. Four cats will shorten the time between cleanings, so you might have to clean the fountain sooner, but start off on a weekly basis, and go from there. Good Luck.

 

[cocobutterfly]

We tried several for our cat. Started out with this Catit flower fountain which came highly recommend:


... but our cat is very afraid of any kind of noise and wouldn't drink from the Catit because of the humming noise.

So we tried this one. It's very quiet so our cat isn't afraid of it and will drink from it!

 

[red dog]

Originally Posted by tajkkj  

Glacier_PT_Fountain_Rev_C.jpg

• red dog
• Mar 15, 2016

 

[4cats1parrot]

Thank You everyone for your reply's.  I am going to try it, after my next vet visit which will no doubt cost me at least $400. so I have to wait till I can save up.  My Hyperthyroid Cat got herself a Urinary tract disease, first time.  

I see what your saying Red Dog about Distilled, Its the only water I will drink as I am one who is sensitive to water and anything else makes me gag.  I dont trust tap water.  Chlorine is not good.  I used to live in a small town, and there was a high magnesium content in the water, tons of cats had urinary tract issues and the vet was I'm sure getting rich of the fancy diet food for it.  But someone who had lived there all their lives told me (then I found out that allot of people knew it was common knowledge) to stop giving tap water and use a filter, which I did use a brita filter.  Since then that cat never ever had a problem again and I did not need to use special food. Not many people have ever heard of cats getting uti's from water but it happened to allot of cats in that town, and allot were o.k when switched off of tap so I can't see it being coincidence. "Not something a veterinarian practice would want you to know".

Since giving steam distilled oppm we usually never have a problem....but I am finding it difficult to find more and more, I can no longer buy the big jugs only the 4L.  My usual place ran out twice....so we bought sobeys distilled that was not oppm and sure enough the male cat got a UTI but I was able to heal him with a natural product I bought and got her on the other water right away.  Again we couldn't get our usual distilled and that's when my elder cat started having difficulty urinating and there was blood in the urine...took her to emerg vet right away as she is older and with Hyperthyroid and always the possibility of an underlying masked kidney issue I am afraid to give anything.  So had to give her the darn antibiotics.  Got my usual water again...so I am afraid not to use anything but distilled.  I give minerals in the food as well as digestive enzymes.  They all only get wet food now, with digestive enzymes and added minerals and sometimes a bit of ditrumus earth. However the glacier fountain sounds trustworthy, so when I can afford it I will get it, though for the price you would think you would get 4 glass bottles, I have looked for vinegar bottles here and they are all plastic,not like the ones they show on the site. I would hate to spend all that money and then not find bottles, although I think I can find the other bottles they mentioned....having four cats I need 4 bottles to keep it full.  I will try cooling the water in the bottles in the fridge first, to find out if they will all drink it as so many of you suggested.

Once I get the fountain I am still Leary of using tap...I guess now I'm paranoid but I will feel safer not using the distilled perhaps i'll use the brita filter again?

Thanks all for your suggestions :-)

 

[4cats1parrot]

Thanks, I will order it when I can afford it, hope they will allow you to order extra glass bottles though, there are now Glass Vinegar bottles that I can find here in Canada they are all plastic. I think I will buy a Pur or Brita to fill it too. Good to know you have not had any problems with it.  I like that the filter is a better quality filter.  He has some great utube videos too.

 

[CrystalBecameACatLady]

So true. For ages, I wondered why my pumps kept breaking. I don't know how many replacement pumps I went thru. It turns out none of them were broken; they were clogged. Now I take the motor apart every week and soak it for a few minutes in hot water with a few drops of bleach. Then scrub each part with a small brush before a final rinse and reassembly.

Where do you find replacement pumps? I've been searching eBay. I bought one that was too small

 

[Kat0121]

Where do you find replacement pumps? I've been searching eBay. I bought one that was too small

Are you looking for a replacement pump for a Pioneer Pet fountain? If so, they are available on Amazon.

 

[CrystalBecameACatLady]

Are you looking for a replacement pump for a Pioneer Pet fountain? If so, they are available on Amazon.

That's the one that I bought. I have the Drinkwell Pagoda fountain. The pump that comes with it is "Resun" brand. I'm just super paranoid and like having a backup everything lol. Our pump is working great, but I bought it 2nd hand, so who knows how much it has been used? The cats love it and it sure beats having to be a slave to the tub faucet. I'm already a slave to the litter box lol.