Let’s face it: your cat is too much picky when it comes to drinking water. And we always wonder why they’re behaving so. She would come to her bowl, give a look and go and sometimes she even knocks the bowl over as if she hates the water I give her.
These little furballs are very picky and specific about satisfying their thirst. Unlike Dogs, they would not touch the water kept beside their food, will let you force to turn on the faucet and drink from the stream of the water. They won’t touch plastic or metal bowl, but sometimes, simply a glass bowl will do the job. Or they would knock down the flower vase and lick spilled water on the floor.
Don’t get mad at her, they’re being themselves…well, cats! Yeah, they have their wild instincts in their genes that make them peculiar and quirky about drinking. Maybe you’re sometimes worried about their water drinking habits. Keep reading and you will know what you need to know about their drinking habits and how much water their body requires.
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They Are Obligate Carnivores
Cats are obligate carnivores. There’s a difference between carnivores and obligate carnivores. Obligate carnivores have to eat meat to survive as meat is a necessity in their diet. In fact, domestic cat ancestors used to be desert cats. Not to mention their diet pattern in the desert. They catch their prey and used to satisfy their thirst from their food itself.
Approximately, the mouse has as much as 75% moisture in it. To put this in a perspective, most cat canned food has around 76-80% of moisture content and the kibble has only 10%. Their thirst drive works the same way as they would have while being in a desert.
This doesn’t mean cats don’t have to drink water. It’s just their most thirst is satisfied with their food and for the rest, they actually drink water.
How Much Water They Need to Drink
Being realistic, your cat is not living in a desert and she eats kibbles as well as canned food living in room atmosphere with you, you should know how much water a cat should drink. In fact, your cat’s thirst drive depends on the way you feed them.
According to PetMD, A 10-pound adult cat on the diet of kibble needs a cup of water to drink each day. Whereas, the same cat on canned food diet needs two-thirds of the cup.
If your cat is not drinking enough water or drinking too much water, you need to go to your vet for the check up. Major changes in cat’s thirst drive warrant a vet visit.
Location of Their Food and Water Bowl Matters
If you put your kitty’s meal bowl and the water bowl nearby, there are high chances that your feline furball won’t drink water from the bowl. This has a reason. Cats in wild tend to keep their food away from the water resources to keep them free from bacteria.
Remainings of their prey after eating can mix up with the water resources and can contaminate them. The same way when they eat, there are chances that food particles from their bowl can go into their water bowl and that makes them not drinking water from it.
Moreover, Many cats don’t like the smell of their food while they drink. So, this makes sense and you should not put their water bowl near their food.
Nay to Old Water
Their gut sense can sense the water if it is old or not. I kid not. They can smell the dirt or any foreign particles. Their bodies are wired up the way that makes them think the old water may contain the harmful bacteria and won’t drink it.
So here is the solution, you need to clean up their water bowls or water fountains every day with a gentle soap. There’s a caveat here. Cats may feel aversion to the smell of soap you used and won’t drink water. Moreover, soap residue tastes bad and can even burn your cat’s tongue.
To avoid this, rinse and clean the bowl properly with plenty of fresh water. This will do the job.
They Like Running Water
Involuntary, your kitty knows the still water in her bowl can be foul and can cause her a harm, appreciating the fact that still water isn’t always safe, says Dr. Deb Greco to VetStreet. This makes them not to easily trust the stagnant water.
The reason is their wild gene tells her that still water can be contaminated of foreign organically degrading bodies that might make her sick and die eventually. This is one of the reasons why your cat would not drink water from her bowl.
I hope now you’ve got the idea of why your cat just abandons her water bowl and laps up the streaming water from the tap or the sink. Moreover, Greco says, “It’s hard for cats to get water because they can’t really see still water well, and they may feel vulnerable sitting at a bowl, especially if it’s in a corner, so they have their back to other cats who might jump on them”
This also explains why she would drink from the bathroom floor and not even touch her bowl. If this is the case, try out the best water fountains, that might work instead of water bowls.
Bowl Size and Shape Matters
You might have heard someone suggesting to try different bowls and see what suits your feline pal. This indeed is true and there’s a reason. Cats have sensitive whiskers. When he or she leans his head in the bowl, his whiskers touch the bowl and can have discomfort known as ‘Whisker Fatigue’.
The whiskers are sensors directly connected to the neural network of their system. And maybe if you’re thinking of trimming them, reject that idea. It will hurt your kitty. So get your her different size and shape of bowls and see what she is comfortable with.
However, it might seem an easy option to bring ceramic or stainless steel bowls. But generally, cats prefer shallow glass bowls.
Multiple Bowls at Different Locations Is Necessary
My Lucy would through tantrums when she doesn’t like something. A cat can be a fickle thing, really. Even a tiny change to the surrounding make the location of her water bowl suspicious and she wouldn’t drink from that.
To avoid this, you can put multiple bowls at different places, mostly where she likes to hang out most. Just make sure they are equally filled and cleaned well.
Maintain the Water Level
Cats don’t like much changes. And it also works the same with their water bowls. Even if the water level of the bowls are different every day, they might see it suspicious and avert those.
You should refill their bowls frequently and maintain the water levels every day. Not to mention the cleaning part of the bowls.
The EndNote
I hope the article has helped you understand why your cat is so quirky about drinking water and also how much water your kitty should be drinking every day. The small changes I have explained here will definitely help you your kitty drinking enough water.