How to choose a drinker for a cat?

Proper water regime is no less important for a cat than proper nutrition. Tailed pets, especially those permanently living in apartments, must receive daily fresh water in sufficient quantities.

Of course, cats are predators, and they can get moisture from their prey, but as a rule, things are not very good for pets with prey. It is problematic to catch a mouse whose blood will replenish the necessary moisture, and canned food or even natural meat cannot fully satisfy this need.

So, it is necessary to teach the cat to drink water. But these pets usually have a very independent disposition, and getting them to drink from a bowl can sometimes be difficult. Often cats prefer to hunt for running water from a tap or attack even a toilet bowl. What is it connected with? Most often, the problem is in the water bowl: either the shape or the smell repels the animal.

What are the bowls

The choice of dishes for cats is very wide. Bowls can be plastic, metal or ceramic. The shape is also amazing: wide and low, narrow and high, on a stand and as spread as possible on the floor.

Ceramic dishes are considered the most hygienic. It can be washed in the dishwasher, it is quite heavy and due to its weight it will be stable. In addition, the color range of ceramics is so great that you can choose it for any interior. But its inconvenience for owners lies in its fragility: it is very easy to break ceramics.

Plastic and metal in this sense win a lot. But many cats do not like the smell of plastic, it scares them away from bowls. In addition, due to the low weight, it is very easy to turn such a bowl even for a kitten.

The metal usually does not have a specific smell, but due to prolonged contact with water it can rust, despite all the manufacturer’s assurances of stainless properties. Just like plastic, it usually has a small weight, which contributes to the tipping of the bowl with a light blow of the paw; however, metal bowls can be equipped with both suction cups and non-slip feet, which should prevent water from spilling.

It is impossible to unequivocally recommend dishes made of one material or another for a cat. Pets also have individual taste. The only point: for long-haired cats, it is better to use “spaniel bowls”, that is, narrow and high enough so that the animal does not wet the coat when it drinks. Exactly the same bowl is suitable for pets who do not like to wet their mustaches.

Cats that like to play with water will appreciate a wider bowl that allows them to splash around freely. True, not all owners are ready to appreciate such an unusual habit for feline representatives.

There are also large-volume drinking bowls, which are a synthesis of a bowl and a capacious “flask”. This solution is suitable for owners who are forced to leave their pet alone for a long time. Or in the event that the cat claims to be a water drinker.

Whatever dishes you choose, we must not forget that you need to change the water at least every other day, and preferably daily, because stagnant water has an unpleasant odor that scares away the cat.

Automatic drinkers

Cats often refuse to drink from any bowl. But non-compliance with the water regime leads to very sad consequences. Do not reassure yourself that the animal receives liquid from wet food. Water is needed anyway. For those who are especially picky, there are automatic fountain fountains, which, thanks to constant filtration and movement of water, do not allow it to get a specific smell that can scare away a cat.

Usually these units are represented by two types: direct fountains that create one jet that constantly falls into a container, and dome-type drinkers, where water under the action of a motor creates a constantly renewing film on a special dome of the drinker. It is difficult to say what to choose for a particular animal. If the cat prefers hunting for a stream from the tap, then a drinking fountain is more suitable for him; on the other hand, the trembling film of the dome drinker can also attract a pet.

It is not worth focusing only on the price of the unit. Inexpensive models equipped with a filter are in no way inferior in reliability to their more expensive counterparts. But, having decided to buy an automatic drinker for a cat, be prepared that the minimum cost will be about 1500 rubles, and the maximum will depend on the specific model.

Photo: Collection