Weaning cat off bathtub drinking

[carnivalnights]

I recently adopted 2 stray cats (brothers), Sherlock and Watson, the vets told me are about 1-year-old. Both of them would only drink out of the bathtub when I first got them. After reading a lot about different types of bowls and positions, such as whisker-fatigue-friendly bowls and moving the bowl further away from their food dishes, I finally got Watson to drink solely out of a bowl. He drinks out of it every day without an issue and never drinks out of the tub anymore.

Sherlock, however, will still only drink out of the tub. Obviously this is wasting water and I've actually broken a faucet washer due to how long this has been going on and had to have it replaced. So this really needs to end and I really need to get him trained on to a bowl! Does anyone have any tips on how I can get him to stop drinking out of the tub, aside from what I have mentioned above with the whisker-friendly bowls and placing it away from the food dishes?

I am not going to buy a pet fountain. I've done this with previous cats and actually find them to be very filthy, not to mention extremely high maintenance and expensive (filters). It also attracted unwanted insects that would drown in the water, which was disgusting. That's just not a route I want to go down.

Any tips? Please help!

 

[susanm9006]

Maybe start by putting a bowl under the faucet to encourage him to drink out of it. If he does then keep moving the bowl a tiny bit away and shutting the faucet a bit (filling the bowl yourself of course). If that doesn’t work, I would set a bowl in the bathtub near the faucet but leave the faucet shut. I don’t think a cat would let themselves die of thirst before drinking from it but it might take a day. Once he takes to a bowl then you move it just outside the tub and then slowly into it planned place.

 

[Tik cat's mum]

Maybe start by putting a bowl under the faucet to encourage him to drink out of it. If he does then keep moving the bowl a tiny bit away and shutting the faucet a bit (filling the bowl yourself of course). If that doesn’t work, I would set a bowl in the bathtub near the faucet but leave the faucet shut. I don’t think a cat would let themselves die of thirst before drinking from it but it might take a day. Once he takes to a bowl then you move it just outside the tub and then slowly into it planned place.

Sounds like a plan to me. You could also leave water in different places around the house my daughter has a cat with it's own cup he likes to drink from mugs.

 

[rubysmama]

Both above suggestions sound like things to start with, and hopefully will work.

Congrats on being a new cat parent, btw. Are those your boys in your avatar pic?

 

[Caspers Human]

Casper drinks from the bathtub faucet, a fishbowl and a watering can.

I was going to fix the bathtub faucet from dripping but he drinks from it almost every day.
I figured, what the heck? It only drips a little bit. It's not hurting anything.

We used to have a betta fish but it went belly up. Since Casper liked to play in the fishbowl, when the fish died, we cleaned it out and now it's his water bowl.

We got a watering can to water the house plants with. Girl-Human set it on the shelf, underneath the plant stand. Casper started drinking from that, too. We don't put any fertilizer or plant vitamins in the water. We just leave it sit out so that the chlorine will evaporate.

Since Casper has three watering places, we don't bother with a "proper" water dish. He gets enough water as it is.

Cats don't normally like to have their water bowl right next to their food bowl. They don't drink that way in the wild.
Since your cats were strays, they probably had to get their food and water from different sources. Drinking from a faucet is natural to them.

I don't see any reason why you need to "wean" your cats off drinking from the faucet.

If they like it, let them do it. They aren't hurting anything.

 

[carnivalnights]

Maybe start by putting a bowl under the faucet to encourage him to drink out of it. If he does then keep moving the bowl a tiny bit away and shutting the faucet a bit (filling the bowl yourself of course). If that doesn’t work, I would set a bowl in the bathtub near the faucet but leave the faucet shut. I don’t think a cat would let themselves die of thirst before drinking from it but it might take a day. Once he takes to a bowl then you move it just outside the tub and then slowly into it planned place.

All very good ideas, thank you! I will start by putting a bowl under the tap and see how that goes and then hopefully I will be able to turn off the tap and he will continue drinking out of the same bowl and I can slowly move it out of the bathroom. Fingers crossed! Thanks again for your ideas.

 

[carnivalnights]

Sounds like a plan to me. You could also leave water in different places around the house my daughter has a cat with it's own cup he likes to drink from mugs.

Yes, I've heard of people leaving various bowls around the house. I could try that too and see if he goes for any of them. Thanks!

 

[carnivalnights]

Both above suggestions sound like things to start with, and hopefully will work.

Congrats on being a new cat parent, btw. Are those your boys in your avatar pic?

Thank you so much! Just under a year ago I lost my previous baby boy, Salem, whom I had for 18 years so it has been a very rough year for me trying to deal with that loss. So although it has been an adjustment, adopting these boys has really been a blessing, having some love and furbabies in my life again. Yes, those are my boys in the avatar, snuggled up in a Diet Coke case (LOL)!

 

[carnivalnights]

Casper drinks from the bathtub faucet, a fishbowl and a watering can.

I was going to fix the bathtub faucet from dripping but he drinks from it almost every day.
I figured, what the heck? It only drips a little bit. It's not hurting anything.

We used to have a betta fish but it went belly up. Since Casper liked to play in the fishbowl, when the fish died, we cleaned it out and now it's his water bowl.

We got a watering can to water the house plants with. Girl-Human set it on the shelf, underneath the plant stand. Casper started drinking from that, too. We don't put any fertilizer or plant vitamins in the water. We just leave it sit out so that the chlorine will evaporate.

Since Casper has three watering places, we don't bother with a "proper" water dish. He gets enough water as it is.

Cats don't normally like to have their water bowl right next to their food bowl. They don't drink that way in the wild.
Since your cats were strays, they probably had to get their food and water from different sources. Drinking from a faucet is natural to them.

I don't see any reason why you need to "wean" your cats off drinking from the faucet.

If they like it, let them do it. They aren't hurting anything.

Unfortunately, like I said, leaving the tap dripping has actually caused it to break. And I live in an apartment so I don't own it. The landlord had to come and replace the faucet washer. Leaving it running not only wastes water but it will also break down the washers over time. It's not good to do that. So that is why I need to wean him off of it, as much as I understand it is natural for him and as much as I would love to just allow him to drink from the tub!

 

[rubysmama]

Thank you so much! Just under a year ago I lost my previous baby boy, Salem, whom I had for 18 years so it has been a very rough year for me trying to deal with that loss. So although it has been an adjustment, adopting these boys has really been a blessing, having some love and furbabies in my life again. Yes, those are my boys in the avatar, snuggled up in a Diet Coke case (LOL)!

Condolences on the loss of Salem. I hope Sherlock and Watson are helping to mend your broken heart.

About drinking water, do they eat canned or dry food? If they eat some canned food, you can always add a bit of water to that, if you're concerned about Sherlock not getting enough water.

 

[She's a witch]

I don’t have water fountain for the same reasons you mentioned, but if you ever find yourself considering it again if all else fails (and hydration especially for male cats is very important), you could try the ceramic/porcelain one, they’re at least less gross. And keeping them higher, not at the floor level, also helps.

 

[Caspers Human]

Unfortunately, like I said, leaving the tap dripping has actually caused it to break. And I live in an apartment so I don't own it. The landlord had to come and replace the faucet washer. Leaving it running not only wastes water but it will also break down the washers over time. It's not good to do that. So that is why I need to wean him off of it, as much as I understand it is natural for him and as much as I would love to just allow him to drink from the tub!

I live in a rental unit, too. I fix my own faucets and toilets even though I could call the landlord to do it. Replacing a faucet washer is trivial.

We would dump out his water bowl, wash it and refill it every day if Casper had a regular water bowl. The amount of water that goes down the bathtub drain vs. what would have gone down the kitchen sink is about equal.

I leave it drip for the cat because he likes to drink from it.

 

[carnivalnights]

Condolences on the loss of Salem. I hope Sherlock and Watson are helping to mend your broken heart.

About drinking water, do they eat canned or dry food? If they eat some canned food, you can always add a bit of water to that, if you're concerned about Sherlock not getting enough water.

Thank you so much. Although I will forever miss my Salem because we had such a close and special bond, they are definitely helping. Animals have always had such a positive impact on my mental health and well-being.

They eat both canned and dry, so I could definitely add some water to his canned food if I feel he is not getting enough. I have done that with some of my previous cats. Thank you for the tip. Fingers crossed I can get him drinking out of a bowl!

 

[carnivalnights]

I don’t have water fountain for the same reasons you mentioned, but if you ever find yourself considering it again if all else fails (and hydration especially for male cats is very important), you could try the ceramic/porcelain one, they’re at least less gross. And keeping them higher, not at the floor level, also helps.

Thank you! If I do ever consider one again, I will look for one. That does sound like it would be less gross. Both of my cats are young and don't mind jumping right now so keeping it higher is also a good idea. Thank you for the tip!