My Cat Isn't Drinking Enough

[AnnaLeyah]

Well as the title says, my cat doesn't drink enough water. She's also a Manx. Both of these things cause constipation. This week she got backed to the point where she stopped eating and moving. I had to administer an IV line to get her hydrate enough to get her bowels moving again. She's doing much better now, I just want to keep her that way.

I'm wondering if there's anything I could do to help her drink more. I've tried adding tuna water into it but she won't drink tuna water when diluted. I've added more water bowls in the house.

Please help me out here. Any suggestions are good!

 

[GGG]

Well as the title says, my cat doesn't drink enough water. She's also a Manx. Both of these things cause constipation. This week she got backed to the point where she stopped eating and moving. I had to administer an IV line to get her hydrate enough to get her bowels moving again. She's doing much better now, I just want to keep her that way.

I'm wondering if there's anything I could do to help her drink more. I've tried adding tuna water into it but she won't drink tuna water when diluted. I've added more water bowls in the house.

Please help me out here. Any suggestions are good!

You could try a water fountain, I used to have water bowls around the house for my kitty but since I got her a water fountain she's been drinking more. The water movement encourages them to drink and keeps the water fresher!

 

[LTS3]

What are you feeding? Dry or canned? Extra water can be added to canned food but I wouldn't add water to dry food since that will encourage bacteria growth if the bowl of mush is left out for hours.

There are tips to increase water intake here: Tips To Increase Your Cat’s Water Intake

 

[Mamanyt1953]

This may seem silly, but make sure that your water bowls are low and wide enough that her whiskers don't touch the sides. Many cats (mine included) have hypersensitive whiskers, and shy away from narrower dishes.

 

[kmoulus]

My cat takes lasix, she is thirty all the time. She was not interested in her water fountain but she loves to drink from the faucet. Yeah it's a little gross, I basically gave Speedy the guest bathroom and I drink from other faucets in the house. She has learned to meow and signal me when she wants me to turn it on.

What does she do when I am not home? Speedy never took much to a water bowl either, she prefers a tall glass, like a pint glass or solo cup.

 

[Genesis123]

When I give my cats dry food, I wet it. Often, I add more than necessary to just wet the food -- so there's water on the plate. They always drink the water before eating the food. They like flavored water.

I used to soak their dry food until the kernels were totally saturated. They ate it right up, so it didn't sit around long enough to encourage bacteria, as someone suggested above. (Now, I just wet the food, rather than saturate it.)

My cats love the liquid from canned vegetables -- peas, potatoes, spinach, carrots, mixed vegetables....

If you're feeding you cat dry food, maybe switch to wet? (Making your own food is a great idea.)

 

[fallandriseandfall]

I had a cat who loved to drink out of the faucet, to the point where she didn't even want the water, she just wanted to play in it. Every time someone would walk into the kitchen, she would happily hop up on the counter and chirp at them until we turned on the faucet for her, held it up, and let it drip in front of her. Then, if we stopped before she was done, she'd chirp at us until we returned. If she finished, hopped down, and someone else came in, she'd hop back up and start all over again with the new person.

Moral of the story: moving water might really help.

My new cat also likes to drink out of a tall cup filled to the brim, so that she doesn't have to lower herself all the way down to a bowl. Yes it's a waste of water, and yes it has spilled more than once, but it's the only thing she'll drink out of now. Yes, she's spoiled. But maybe try a tall glass or cup with your kitty?

I think I've read that you can put ice cubes in a bowl of water and rattle them around as well, and hopefully your cat will be curious enough to come play with them and drink a little water in the process. It's never worked with mine, but mine are a little stuck up!

 

[AnnaLeyah]

I started her out on a water fountain but the moving water and the sounds of it freaked her out. Which means that a faucet may not work but I will try and get her to drink it from it.

I'll try a series of different size bowls and maybe cups!

She's on wet food and I normally add a small amount of water.

Thank you all for posting!

 

[Mamanyt1953]

Actually, if you are feeding wet, and adding water, your cat may be just fine. Remember, our domestic cats descended from wild desert cats who got over 90% of their water requirements from their prey. To a huge extent, this holds true even now. If she is getting wet food with water added, she may only require a few sips here and there.

 

[Genesis123]

This, in no way, is meant to answer the OP -- it's just an observation. My cats are mainly outdoors (though they are, generally, welcome to come in). They have two large pans of water (fresh daily) on the porches, where the cats usually are. Yet, as often as not, they drink from puddles in the driveway & on the porch floors, unused flower pots that filled with water, and the like. I, regularly, observe them drinking off the porch floor, a foot or two away from a pan of fresh water. I suppose it's natural to them -- or just as acceptable -- to take water wherever they can get it. I just find it interesting that choose some of these other sources over a pan of clean water, poured specifically for them, and made so convenient.