My cat won't drink from his new fountain?

auroraei

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3 days ago I got my kitty a Drinkwell Platinum fountain because recently he's became a faucet cat. He loves drinking from the tub faucet. The first day I set this fountain up, he immediately went to it and drank from it no problems. Now he turns his nose up at it and I haven't seen him drink from it since. I don't understand why because it's not loud, the water isn't dirty, and it comes out like a stream and I figured he loves streams.

This is so depressing! I thought he'd love drinking from this fountain.

Every time I turn on the faucet now, he comes running like he hasn't drank in weeks. I don't want to keep turning the faucet on for him (I only do it when I'm about to go to bed), but I also don't want him to dehydrate! He's on an all dry diet (won't eat wet food) so water is important.

I don't know what I should do now. I really don't want to pack it up and return it after only 3 days, but I just don't know what I should do.
 

mani

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Did you clean the fountain really thoroughly before you used it?  It could easily taste very different to the tap water anyway, especially since it goes through filters etc.

And (I'm sure you know this) if there's any way at all you can get him to eat wet food, it's so important.  There must be one that is so tasty he can't resist, and you can always add a little warm water for more fluid and to enhance the smell.
 
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auroraei

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Did you clean the fountain really thoroughly before you used it?  It could easily taste very different to the tap water anyway, especially since it goes through filters etc.

And (I'm sure you know this) if there's any way at all you can get him to eat wet food, it's so important.  There must be one that is so tasty he can't resist, and you can always add a little warm water for more fluid and to enhance the smell.
I disagree with wet food being "so important". If your cat drinks enough water I see no problem with it. If my friends and family's cats can survive up until old age with no health problems just from eating Meow Mix, I think my cat will be alright with Halo.

Anyways..........I didn't really clean it aside from rinsing it. The instruction didn't say anything about cleaning it beforehand (didn't even mention rinsing it). But I suppose I can take it apart tonight and clean it and see if that helps.
 
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catwoman707

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Yes! You need to clean it well with hot soapy water, then rinse in hot then in cold.

What I bet it is, the filter is supposed to be thoroughly rinsed, over and over. If not it will leave a taste.
 
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auroraei

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Yes! You need to clean it well with hot soapy water, then rinse in hot then in cold.

What I bet it is, the filter is supposed to be thoroughly rinsed, over and over. If not it will leave a taste.
I cleaned it with soap and water, he drank from it for a moment and walked away. While I cleaned it he kept trying to drink from it and lick it and stuff lol, but the other day when I first put it together he drank from it just like now, then ignored it. So I'll have to see....
 

Sa'ida Maryam

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Hi, Aeroraei,
I was thinking about a buying a drinking fountain. Thanks for sharing how your kittie thinks about our plans for them. Smiles, I was just curious , is there something unhealthy about kittie drinking from the bath faucet. I am wondering Is a nonchemically clean faucet ok. But, I have a lit'l wild kitten that has what appears as vitiligo (missing pigmentation of the lower lip. She must have been left to drink what ever she could find(Bad previous owners). So, I really want to know is there something unhealthy about facets & public water. I just installed a waterfall sink faucet. I am hopeful she will have less of an autoimmune response. These are just my concerns. Sorry , I have no real advice for you. Except can you return the fountain? Others may know best.
Sincerely
 
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auroraei

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Hi, Aeroraei,
I was thinking about a buying a drinking fountain. Thanks for sharing how your kittie thinks about our plans for them. Smiles, I was just curious , is there something unhealthy about kittie drinking from the bath faucet. I am wondering Is a nonchemically clean faucet ok. But, I have a lit'l wild kitten that has what appears as vitiligo (missing pigmentation of the lower lip. She must have been left to drink what ever she could find(Bad previous owners). So, I really want to know is there something unhealthy about facets & public water. I just installed a waterfall sink faucet. I am hopeful she will have less of an autoimmune response. These are just my concerns. Sorry , I have no real advice for you. Except can you return the fountain? Others may know best.
Sincerely
I doubt anything is unhealthy about a cat drinking from a bath faucet, it's just tap water, it's what people who don't drink bottled water drink, and brush their teeth with, ect....
 
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auroraei

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I took out the filter and replaced the water, then to get him to try and drink from it I dropped some treats into the bowl. Kinda icky but after he ate the treats he lapped up a lot of water and drank from the stream. I'll monitor to see if this was a fluke or not.
 

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Every time I turn on the faucet now, he comes running like he hasn't drank in weeks. I don't want to keep turning the faucet on for him (I only do it when I'm about to go to bed), but I also don't want him to dehydrate! He's on an all dry diet (won't eat wet food) so water is important.

I don't know what I should do now. I really don't want to pack it up and return it after only 3 days, but I just don't know what I should do.
 
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auroraei

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Nooooooooooo! I didn't mean to confuse anyone. My cat does NOT only drink from the faucet once a day. Before the fountain he had a water bowl with fresh water at all times of the day. Sorry I didn't mention that. He was drinking from his bowl just fine. I also let him drink from the faucet and now he's a bit obsessed over that, on top of the water from his bowl.

I bought the fountain to eliminate his obsession with the faucet, but yes, he was still drinking from his bowl plenty.

I also wanted to encourage more water drinking in general with this fountain.

I will keep an eye on his water intake with this fountain, maybe he's just wary of it like cats are when something is new. I don't want to give up just yet.
 
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auroraei

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He just drank a bunch from it on his own free will! Hope he continues to do so.
 

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He just drank a bunch from it on his own free will! Hope he continues to do so.
My cat also loves drinking from the faucet, wither its the bathtub, bathroom sick, or kitchen sink. I got her a fountain just like yours, and as soon as she seen it she turned it over, and ran to the faucet lol. She will drink from her water bowl, but loves the sink faucet. But, I sometimes leave in slowly dripping (we have well water) and she plays and drinks it. I ended up taking mine back, only wanted to give her a gift id thought she would like.
 
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auroraei

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My cat also loves drinking from the faucet, wither its the bathtub, bathroom sick, or kitchen sink. I got her a fountain just like yours, and as soon as she seen it she turned it over, and ran to the faucet lol. She will drink from her water bowl, but loves the sink faucet. But, I sometimes leave in slowly dripping (we have well water) and she plays and drinks it. I ended up taking mine back, only wanted to give her a gift id thought she would like.
Awwww phooey!

I'm seeing him drink from it, I've caught him a few times now. I guess he just needed to get used to it.
 

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Hi Auroraei,

My cats (I have 4) also drink from the bath tub faucet . I was watching a special on Nat Geo on how doestic cats and Big cats in the wild still share some habits like drinking from water sources away from their meals something about keeping the water source from getting contaminated if the food (or kill) spoils. I keep extra water dishes away from the food bowls and seems to work but still catch one of my cats in the tub for a drink. Maybe you can try placing the fountain in different locations about the house for your cat to respond.

cheers

vic
 

catwoman707

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Hi Auroraei,

My cats (I have 4) also drink from the bath tub faucet . I was watching a special on Nat Geo on how doestic cats and Big cats in the wild still share some habits like drinking from water sources away from their meals something about keeping the water source from getting contaminated if the food (or kill) spoils. I keep extra water dishes away from the food bowls and seems to work but still catch one of my cats in the tub for a drink. Maybe you can try placing the fountain in different locations about the house for your cat to respond.

cheers

vic
Correct, also moving water to them means it's cleaner/uncontaminated :) I guess that's the purpose for the fountains, I know with my girls I set it all up and they wouldn't use it, so I took it apart and soaked it in hot soapy water, thoroughly rinsed the filter again repeatedly, then they were happy to use it!
 

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Yes, you are supposed to run water over the charcoal filter before setting up. On the wet food thing, read what Lisa Pierson DMV has to say about dry. Basically a cat can't drink ENOUGH water to offset the dry food consumption.
 

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I took my kitty to the vet yesterday because her urine was dark, almost like root beer.  I thought maybe she had a UTI, but that was not the case.  The vet said that she needed to drink more water.  I really don't see her drink from the water dish like the older cat does, but she does like to drink from the water faucet when I hand wash dishes in the kitchen sink.  So I went to Walmart last evening and bought an Aqua Cube fountain.  So far she hasn't taken much of an interest in the fountain........
 

mani

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I took my kitty to the vet yesterday because her urine was dark, almost like root beer.  I thought maybe she had a UTI, but that was not the case.  The vet said that she needed to drink more water.  I really don't see her drink from the water dish like the older cat does, but she does like to drink from the water faucet when I hand wash dishes in the kitchen sink.  So I went to Walmart last evening and bought an Aqua Cube fountain.  So far she hasn't taken much of an interest in the fountain........
     Since this thread started ages ago, I've tried them with my cat.  I've found they have to be virtually silent, which is very difficult to find.  My cats are very sensitive, though.

      Did you clean it really well before use?  It could just be a matter of time.
 

jcat

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I took my kitty to the vet yesterday because her urine was dark, almost like root beer.  I thought maybe she had a UTI, but that was not the case.  The vet said that she needed to drink more water.  I really don't see her drink from the water dish like the older cat does, but she does like to drink from the water faucet when I hand wash dishes in the kitchen sink.  So I went to Walmart last evening and bought an Aqua Cube fountain.  So far she hasn't taken much of an interest in the fountain........
It can take several days for a cat to try out a fountain; the sound it makes is unfamiliar. Sometimes you have to try another location, too . :cross: that she takes to it.
 
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dandila

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I had mine for three days before any of mine would try it.  All it took was one of them to take the plunge and the rest of them lined up behind her.  Monkey see, monkey do.
 
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