Monday, June 3, 2013

Why do some cats love water?

Allie loves her mani/pedi ablutions. Faraday could care less. Maxwell is fascinated by running water, but only from an engineer's perspective: how does it come out of that spicket?

No, Allie is unique in our home. How about yours?



You may not ever come across you cat when she drinks. Experts speculate this is because cats are descended from desert dwellers who are typically fairly stealthy about water consumption - as a way to protect their water source from competitors.

But then there are always exceptions to the rule. Perhaps Allie is just a bit fastidious and wants those pink toenails to be clean at all times. Or maybe it's because she prefers fresh, running water. We did notice that she has done less of this once we introduced a water fountain into the home.

Did you know your cat's water consumption is an excellent way to gauge his or her wellness?
If you notice your cat has suddenly started to drink more, then it's time for a quick trip to the vet to get things checked out. Increased water consumption could be an indicator of diabetes or kidney disease.

In the case of diabetes, the excess glucose that is flushed from the body tends to take a lot of water with it, so the cat will be using the litterbox more often. To compensate for this, a cat will often develop a powerful thirst.

In the case of kidney disease, what's happening is that the kidneys are gradually losing their ability to concentrate the urine. So in this case, too, you'll find kitty using the litterbox a lot, and then hitting the water bowl to replenish.

Hydration is encouraged in all living beings, and it could just be that your cat is a "social drinker" and enjoys lapping the wet stuff in your company. But when in doubt, please have your vet check it out.

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sources:
FabCats on Diabetes
Vetstreet
Little Big Cat







14 comments:

  1. We just got a new dog friendly water fountain in our park. I was just thinking how great it was and the idiot peeps hit the button and I got water all over my furs. So now I am not so keen if my human is there. We now have trust issues. Have a marvellous Monday.
    Best wishes Molly

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  2. Have to keep that pretty madi/pedi nice and clean, Allie. We just like to drink water from the sink.

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  3. It is interesting to see the different approaches the 5 kitties who live here exhibit when they go for the water bowl.

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  4. It's just like a day at the Spa!!!
    Allie is SO adorable! ...what a cutie-girl.
    : )

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  5. Allie you are soooo adorable <3
    Me I drink straight from the tap or from the watering can :)

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  6. Hi cute Allie! With warm weather here it's important to stay hydrated.

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  7. So cute! Neither of the boys like the faucet but Fin LOVED it!

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  8. Allie, your technique is way too wet for me!

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  9. We've never been the kind of cats that try to drink from the faucet though we like to play in our water fountain sometimes. :)

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  10. We like to stick our heads under the stream in the water fountain, but we don't usually let Mom Paula see us drinking. She usually hears our lapping during the night at the water bowl in the bedroom.

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  11. Tutu is the only one who likes water. And she is very fascinated with water that comes out from the tap.

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  12. My cats have always like to drink from dripping faucets but I've never had one that would actually enter water

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  13. Dad just got us a nice new big ceramic water dish and... We don't use it. Toby and I like the nice big bowl in his wash room.
    Then Rumpy Buddy and Buttons eat the home made food in the morning and that has water in it. Fitz is cat-ch as cat-ch can.
    Just sayin.
    That is good info! Thanks!
    Timmy T

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  14. My cats are obsessed with their water fountain and get so angry when I have to take it apart to clean! So they're always hanging around the water and drinking :) I love it, because, as you've said here, diabetes and kidney disease are so serious.

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Coolio! A comment? For US?