Just How Much Water Does A Cat Need?

[cheeser]

Ever since we transitioned Buddy over to a completely wet food diet about three years ago, we rarely see him drink water from his bowls anymore. I understand that's fairly common. But since he used to have some urinary tract problems, we always add extra water to each meal, just to be on the safe side. So we thought we had our bases covered.

Well, Buddy has recently had a pretty bad setback re: his food allergies after his most recent course of Veraflox. So I've had to syringe feed him some baby food mixed with bone broth for the past few days to supplement what he was able to eat on his own. And ever since I've been assist feeding him, he hasn't been as prone to constipation, and his poop looks great! Now it looks like nice, soft-ish logs, instead of petrified pellets.

So is it possible that I need to add even more moisture to Buddy's diet on an ongoing basis?

Or is it more likely that the bone broth helped to soften his stool and make it easier to pass? Or maybe because we've stopped feeding him some proteins that were making him puke?

We're just trying to figure out why something has mysteriously gone right, at least for the moment.

 

[duckpond]

Im not sure how accurate it is, but i read 7 to 9 oz per day for a 10 lb cat. Im guessing that would include water from the food, and the water bowl. I think environment and activity may also play a part. Active cats in warm environments most likely need more?

 

[cheeser]

Im not sure how accurate it is, but i read 7 to 9 oz per day for a 10 lb cat. Im guessing that would include water from the food, and the water bowl. I think environment and activity may also play a part. Active cats in warm environments most likely need more?

I found this article via a Google search, My Cat Won’t Drink: How Much Water Cats Need & Dehydration Prevention, and it says:

Typically, cats need between 3.5–4.5 ounces of water per 5 pounds of body weight per day. If you have a 10-pound cat, they should be consuming between 7–9 ounces of water, or about half an average bottle of water. The key word here is “consume,” since cats don’t need to get their water just by drinking.

A can of wet food is about 70–80% water. So if your cat is eating wet food, which is highly recommended, they might get between 3.85–4.4 ounces of water from a single can (an average 5.5 once can). That’s half their daily water right there.​

Before Buddy got sick, he had been eating half of a 5.5 oz. can of food three times a day. Then he got a total of about 7-9 extra tablespoons of water a day, depending on who fed him (for some weird reason, he always wants half of each meal in the form of a slurry when I feed him).

FWIW, Buddy weighs about 14 lbs., is strictly an indoor cat, and is pretty much a couch potato that we have to coax to get some exercise apart from his evening zoomies.

I totally suck at math, but I'll try to crunch the numbers in a bit and see if we're anywhere near the ballpark of where we may need to be. I gotta go take care of some family stuff first.

 

[cheeser]

Okay, I crunched some numbers. But I still haven't finished my first caffeine fix of the day, so I may have seriously screwed up my calculations.

Per the article cited in the previous post, cats need 3.5 to 4.5 oz. of water per 5 lbs. So I'll use the midpoint of 4 oz. That works out to 0.8 oz. of water required per lb.

Buddy weighs 14 lbs., so if I multiply that by 0.8, he should require about 11.2 oz. of water per day.

Per the same article, cats probably get about 3.85 to 4.4 oz. of water per 5.5 oz. can of food. So I'll just use the midpoint again, which would be 4.125 oz. of water per can.

In a best case scenario, Buddy eats 1/2 a can of food 3 times a day. So if I multiply 4.125 oz. per can by 1.5, that puts him at getting about 6.19 oz. of water from his food a day. That means he would need an additional 5.01 oz. of some kind of moisture from other sources to reach his daily requirement of 11.2 oz.

However, he doesn't always eat 100% of his meals. So let's assume he only eats about 75% of his food each day. If I multiply that possible daily total of 6.19 oz. of water by 75%, that means Buddy is probably more realistically getting about 4.64 oz. of water from his canned food each day. Then he'd need an additional 6.56 oz. of water per day to meet his daily requirement.

Does that sound about right to anyone with far better mad math skillz than my humble efforts?

Buddy does get at least a couple of extra tablespoons (1 oz.) of water added to each meal, and he also gets a little extra moisture from his syringe meds, and the water chasers after he gets his pills. But looks like we may still be a little shy of our target, despite reassurances from our vet that he's just fine.

 

[white shadow]

Hey there !

I have to confess, I'm with you on the math thing.....except, my math thing is permanent, caffeine or no! Just an outright aversion to it!

That said, I think we can drive ourselves bonkers, over thinking/ruminating etc.

I'll give you (once again) a reference from my favourite 'guide' for facts and ideas/suggestions: Tanya's Comprehensive Guide to Feline Chronic Kidney Disease - Oral Fluid Therapy

Meantime, there's no reason you shouldn't continue to add that extra water - and, remember, water is everything where constipation is the issue.

If you've never been shown how to check for hydration/dehydration, ask your Vet at the next visit. There's a simple skin elasticity test- again, "Tanya" to the rescue right here: Tanya's Comprehensive Guide to Feline Chronic Kidney Disease - Symptoms of Fluid Imbalances and Urinary Issues
.

 

[Furballsmom]

Can you continue with the bone broth? Would he continue to eat some of the baby food?
PS - where did you obtain the bone broth by the way?

 

[Furballsmom]

Oh, that's right, you didn't buy it you made it, sorry I forgot you'd discussed about neck bones vs oxtail -

 

[cheeser]

Hey there !

I have to confess, I'm with you on the math thing.....except, my math thing is permanent, caffeine or no! Just an outright aversion to it!

That said, I think we can drive ourselves bonkers, over thinking/ruminating etc.

I'll give you (once again) a reference from my favourite 'guide' for facts and ideas/suggestions: Tanya's Comprehensive Guide to Feline Chronic Kidney Disease - Oral Fluid Therapy

Meantime, there's no reason you shouldn't continue to add that extra water - and, remember, water is everything where constipation is the issue.

If you've never been shown how to check for hydration/dehydration, ask your Vet at the next visit. There's a simple skin elasticity test- again, "Tanya" to the rescue right here: Tanya's Comprehensive Guide to Feline Chronic Kidney Disease - Symptoms of Fluid Imbalances and Urinary Issues
.

The funny thing is that my dad and my son are so good re: math it's almost scary. I guess that part of the DNA must have skipped a generation, because I'm utterly hopeless!

Thanks oodles for the links. One of these days when I have an hour or two to myself, I really need to spend some time on that site browsing around a bit, and see what else might be applicable for some of Buddy's issues.

We just got complacent about water since Buddy hasn't had any more urinary tract problems after we transitioned him over to a completely wet food diet. But after reviewing our journal earlier today, looks like the constipation issues started when Buddy developed food allergies, and we had to switch him from shredded textures to pate style food.

Hopefully now that we have a better idea where we need to be, we can do something about getting there.

 

[cheeser]

Oh, that's right, you didn't buy it you made it, sorry I forgot you'd discussed about neck bones vs oxtail -

Don't feel bad. It's easy to lose track of what's going on so many threads. Heck, I'm lucky half the time to remember my own name!

 

[Furballsmom]

A quick note about Tanya's site, --double-check the dates. I'm seeing that a couple people have mentioned that some things regarding food may be a year or two old. Depending on what you're looking for, that may or may not not matter.

 

[tinydestroyer]

I have found that adding bone broth helped with my cat's constipation, and both my cats are hydrophobic to a degree and generally drink quite a bit from their fountain. I know it's not a scientific control, or anything, but maybe there's something specific to the broth. I can't find the thread again, but I got the bone broth remedy for constipation on TCS. I mix some in with both my cats food a few times a week (generally when I'm having some,) because they like it, and it helps to warm up the wet food on cold nights, and my cat hasn't experienced constipation since, although I'm not completely confident in causation. I hesitate to make it sound as if bone broth is a miracle food, but as long as it isn't made with any cat-harming ingredients (like garlic,) it can add moisture, glucosamine, and protein to your cat's diet easily (and flavorfully,) so I don't see any harm in utilizing all your options for adding water.

 

[white shadow]

...I can't find the thread again, but I got the bone broth remedy for constipation on TCS......

A few years ago, Dr. Karen Becker posted in her blog about making bone broth. It's gone missing from my favourites but, Mr. Google shows several references....including this one - with a video: Bone Broth Is Excellent Nourishment for Older Pets
.

 

[Furballsmom]

white shadow Thanks very much for that info! cheeser likely didn't need it since bone broth is/was working so well in that household , but I'm certainly going to benefit as is the Big Guy

 

[cheeser]

A quick note about Tanya's site, --double-check the dates. I'm seeing that a couple people have mentioned that some things regarding food may be a year or two old. Depending on what you're looking for, that may or may not not matter.

Oh, okay. Thanks for the heads up.

 

[cheeser]

I have found that adding bone broth helped with my cat's constipation, and both my cats are hydrophobic to a degree and generally drink quite a bit from their fountain. I know it's not a scientific control, or anything, but maybe there's something specific to the broth. I can't find the thread again, but I got the bone broth remedy for constipation on TCS. I mix some in with both my cats food a few times a week (generally when I'm having some,) because they like it, and it helps to warm up the wet food on cold nights, and my cat hasn't experienced constipation since, although I'm not completely confident in causation. I hesitate to make it sound as if bone broth is a miracle food, but as long as it isn't made with any cat-harming ingredients (like garlic,) it can add moisture, glucosamine, and protein to your cat's diet easily (and flavorfully,) so I don't see any harm in utilizing all your options for adding water.

Cool! Glad the bone broth helps your kitty.

Buddy does seem to be less prone to constipation when we mix bone broth in with his food instead of water. I don't know if that's due to the bone broth itself, or because he's more apt to lap it up since it tastes better than water. But as long as he's getting more moisture in his diet, I'm happy.

I just wish we could get him to drink more fluids without quite so much fuss and drama. We've tried different types of water bowls, locations, elevations, number of bowls scattered throughout his part of the house, fountains, types of water, as well as adding broth, ice cubes, and a ping pong ball. Nothing seems to tickle Buddy's fancy to encourage him to drink more water. Argh!

 

[cheeser]

A few years ago, Dr. Karen Becker posted in her blog about making bone broth. It's gone missing from my favourites but, Mr. Google shows several references....including this one - with a video: Bone Broth Is Excellent Nourishment for Older Pets
.

I have to admit, I was a little scared off at first when I realized how long it takes to make bone broth. I don't have much experience cooking with a crock pot, and was nervous about leaving it on all night. I don't think I got a wink of sleep that first time, afraid that the house was going to burn down or something. But we're still here, and have another batch in the crock pot at this very minute.

 

[cheeser]

white shadow Thanks very much for that info! cheeser likely didn't need it since bone broth is/was working so well in that household , but I'm certainly going to benefit as is the Big Guy

Our guys have become big fans of bone broth, including Mr. Cheeser. I'm afraid I may have created a monster.

 

[Furballsmom]

I don't think I got a wink of sleep that first time, afraid that the house was going to burn down or something.

I had that thought too - wow

I'm afraid I may have created a monster.

LOL not that the Big Guy's not worth it

 

[Lalka]

water bowls in each room...change the water everyday. For years i had a single bowl of water next to their food and it was never empty. For my cats it was about location and how cold it was.