One of my cats recently came down with renal issues. I got him a water fountain*. Costs about 30$ and I wish I found out about it sooner. His health degraded so much that it was starting to look like euthanasia was the humane option but he’s ok now, he’s gained back weight and he runs and jumps like he used to.
I don’t know if you’ve ever touched the inside of a water bowl but there’s a disgusting mucus film in it after a while. Cats seem to hate that. Washing the water bowl or, even better, getting a water fountain which you clean and swap filters of once in a while (depending on the number of cats) can really make a difference in how much water a cat drinks. I measured it and my 3 cats go through 2 liters of water in 3 days which works out to about a cup/day/cat.
Even if your cats don’t currently have renal issues, a water fountain is a good investment to prevent issues in the future and to make life more pleasant for your pet.
One of mine also seems to be mesmerized by the flowing water.
This is why I regularly wash the cat’s water dish. I use hot water and scrubbing to remove the layer, which I think is algae (although other people on the internet have suggested other things). Whatever it is, it definitely grows there, and isn’t desirable.
I got one, constantly running water, activated charcoal filters to change bi-weekly, waterproof mat to put it on, nearly $100 invested.
And they still prefer to go outside and drink from a dirty, muddy puddle in the back yard! Especially if I’m watching! I think it’s just a way to reinforce my position as ‘servant’.
I suspect that cat likes the way the water feels when it flows on his head and then naturally licks at the water when it drips from his face to clean up the messy spillage. He probably drinks most of his water the usual way.
Hey! My cat will drink water in a similar fashion, although not with a full stream. If I leave the water on at slow stream he will stick his head right under and drink the water that runs off the end of his nose.
He’ll also scoop his paw in water then lick it off and yes, he mostly drinks water the usual way.
We’ve found that leaving his water cup on the bathroom counter gets him to drink more water and we wash and refill it more often. I think he likes not being on the floor.
A lot of the protein that goes into cat food is chicken. Unfortunately feathers qualify as protein and are used as protein filler in cheaper cat foods. Feathers are very hard to digest so the kidneys are forced to eliminate the undigestables.
Actually they go out the cloaca. Everything goes out the cloaca. The issue is what part passes thru the kidneys on the way to the cloaca. If it’s truly indigestible, then saying it has something to do with the kidneys is absurd.
Anyway, we’ve been frequently told by vets to watch the amount of dry cat food given to neutered male cats since it increases kidney problems. Maybe something to do with reduced spraying behavior.