Water intake on raw diet

[nicolelb]

My 4 month old kitty seems to be drinking a lot for a raw eater.  He drinks small amounts at a time, but the trips to the water seems like a lot.  Ive read time and again that cats on raw don't drink much, and sometimes go a couple days, so I'm a little concerned.  He's not dehydrated and acts like his normal spunky self.  Ive been giving him Lysine for a touch of a URI, but Ive read there is rarely side effects from that in cats.  If anyone is familiar, I follow the Alnutrin raw chicken recipe without bone, and add about a tbs of warm water when i serve his meals.  He gets around  7 ounces a day split between 3 meals.  Just a bit puzzled here, wondering if this is normal because he's a growing kitten with A TON of energy or if I should be concerned.  I dont really want to phone my Vet with this question unless its absolutely neccesary, Ive yet to mention he eats only raw, and probably wont mention it unless they ask about his diet. 

 

[peaches08]

My raw-only cats still drink water.  Not nearly as much as the new rescue who's still eating dry to get some weight on him, but they do drink water.  I would never deter someone from checking in with their vet, but unless you're seeing a lot of water drinking, he's probably fine. 

Is he on any meds for the URI?

 

[nicolelb]

Hi, thank you for replying.  He is taking meds for the URI actually, but is about to finish his 10 days.  He's been taking Azithromycin.  Were at the every 48 hour dosing stage.  And I agree with your statement, I will make a call to my vet and see what they say as well.  I tend to trust people with more experience in raw feeding when it comes to questions that relate to it, so I figured it couldn't hurt to ask here and see if anyone else had a similar experience.  Thanks so much!

 

 

[ritz]

Ritz drinks a fair amount of water for being on raw but that is her normal. I make sure the meat I buy is NOT enhanced, i.e., with salt. I was surprised at how often meat has added sugar, salt and of course water.

 

[silverpersian]

My cat is similar - he drinks a fair amount of water, even though I make his food really soupy. He has been drinking more since the weather warmed up.

URIs can cause dehydration. It is also a rare side effect of azithromycin.

 

[nicolelb]

Thank you everyone.  Definitely put my mind at ease.  I tend to over worry when I notice the slightest of changes, but I guess it should be expected since he is a growing boy.

I always add water to his servings to make my raw soupy as well, I prefer it over adding extra to the whole recipe.  I worried a little bit that adding extra water would some how mess up the balance of the recipe, so I'm happy to here others do it too.  I'm also holding out till his adult teeth come in to start doing a mix of ground with some chunks for him to gnaw on. So happy I started him on it right away, he took to it like a pro the first time it was offered, so I hope when I start introducing small chunks he'll enjoy it more.

Again, thanks so much!

 

[sophie1]

Could it be that your kitten just likes the water?  I have a water fountain and my younger kitten, who is also a ball of nonstop energy, constantly goes to it to drop his toys in, dip his paw, or just plain play with it.   He will often take a drink while he's at it.   Both my cats do drink from it regularly, in small amounts.

If he is not urinating excessively (2-3 urine balls a day is normal, can be more like 4-5 at his age especially if he's at that stage where he is eating a lot), then I wouldn't worry about it. 

 

[nicolelb]

He's not so much for playing in it, but I notice that its mostly just more trips then I expected for a raw fed kitten, but his intake isn't really much at all.  He will be 5 months on September 2nd, so he's still eating more then an adult cat would.

I'm just an over worrier I think lol.  I don't, nor plan, on having any children, so I tend to get a bit overly attached.  But I guess that's a good thing for him.  He's spoiled, babied, and just has an over protective catmommy

, and even though its been a couple months now, I think the heartache is still fresh from losing my other cat.  She was a free fed dry only eater (I didnt know what I know now so I'm new to feeding raw) and I sometimes blame myself for her demise, she passed due to liver failure, she was 7yrs old.  Part of me thinks maybe I should have waited a little longer to bring a new one into my life due to this worry so much.

Anyway, sorry to go off topic there.  Thank you everyone.  This community is so great and I love it here

 

 

[ritz]

(I didnt know what I know now so I'm new to feeding raw) and I sometimes blame myself for her demise, she passed due to liver failure, she was 7yrs old.  Part of me thinks maybe I should have waited a little longer to bring a new one into my life due to this worry so much.

Oh, don't beat yourself up: you did the best you could with the knowledge you had at the time. That's all we ever can do.