Why does a cat drink little water: finding out the reasons

Reasons why a cat may refuse water

A cat does not drink water for a number of reasons:

Not accustomed to drinking water. This is because after weaning from the mother’s breast, the animal does not understand that water can be drunk. Here the owner should accustom the kitten to water in the following way: pour water into a bowl, dip a finger in it and wipe the animal’s nose and mouth with it. This action will be immediately followed by a reflexive licking. As a result, the pet will become familiar with the taste of water.
The cat's dirty dishes or the area where she eats. Cats are clean animals by nature, so it is very important to always keep their dishes and dining area clean, since this factor can cause a refusal to drink. You should treat the dishes with boiling water at least 2 times a day. We also note that the water container should be separate from the food container so that food does not fall into the water.
The inconvenient shape of the bowl and the material from which it is made are also the reasons why the cat does not drink water. If the animal is a flat-faced cat breed, then the dishes should be appropriate. Therefore, when choosing bowls, it is important to consider even the little things. As for the material of the dishes, it is better to choose ceramics rather than plastic, since the latter can emit an unpleasant, repulsive odor, and a cat is a creature sensitive to various odors.
The habit of drinking water not from the dishes themselves, but, for example, from the tap, from an aquarium, sink and other places. Then the owner should observe what exactly interested her in this place and try to create the same environment for her. So, instead of an aquarium, you can use a basin or pan, and a special fountain can replace a stream of water from the tap.
The quality of water that makes a cat refuse to drink, since many people fill the bowl with tap water, and it is known to be not clean. A person may not notice this, he may not even catch the smell, but you won’t fool a cat. In addition, the salts in it may not have the best effect on her health. Therefore, it is better to use filtered water.

Cats are clean animals by nature, so it is very important to always keep their dishes clean.

Important! The presence of certain diseases in an animal may also be the answer to the question of why the cat does not drink water. Then you may notice lethargy, drowsiness, gag reflexes, and diarrhea in the animal, in which case it is necessary to contact a veterinarian and undergo treatment.

What kind of water should you give your cat?

If the reason why the cat does not drink water is the quality of the water, then this problem can be easily solved. It is enough to go to the pet store and buy special water for animals: Purivitin Aqua, BIOlight, etc. It contains all the necessary vitamins and minerals for the normal functioning of a cat. However, you shouldn’t abuse it either, but give it to your pet as prescribed by the doctor.

Cats often develop the habit of drinking tap water.

If all the conditions are met, then the cat will sooner or later start drinking water. It is better, of course, if it happens as soon as possible, since a lack of water can lead to dehydration of the animal’s body. Therefore, you should monitor your cat’s fluid intake. However, if no other alarming symptoms are noticed in the animal, then you should not immediately panic. As a last resort, you can feed your pet with a syringe, placing it in the corner of the mouth. Don't forget to praise him every time.

Some people think that if they give their pet wet food, then the liquid it contains will be enough for him. However, it is not. For 1 kg of animal weight there are 20-40 ml of water. If you calculate how many sachets a cat consumes daily, it is obvious that she does not take in the required amount of fluid.

20-40 ml of water per 1 kg of animal weight

There is also an opinion that cats are divided into 2 types: water drinkers and light drinkers. But it is also wrong, because animals of the same age need the same amount of water, and the older they get, the less their need decreases. Therefore, starting from the age of five, owners should carefully monitor the amount of fluid their pet consumes.

Important! When feeding a cat with dry food, it should be given more water, since the lack of water in the animal’s body can cause not only dehydration, but also cause urolithiasis. That is why it is so important to understand in time the reasons for refusing fluids.

To understand whether your cat has enough water or not, you can conduct a kind of test, which consists of the following: grab it by the scruff of the neck and let it go. If its skin quickly smoothes out, then everything is fine. If it puffs up for some time and then slowly straightens out, it means that it has health problems, perhaps this is due to the occurrence of urolithiasis.

When feeding your cat dry food, she should be given more water.

How much water should a cat drink daily?

An adult, healthy individual needs to consume approximately 40-50 milliliters of fluid per kilogram of body weight daily. The amount of moisture in the feed is also an important point. For example, a pet weighing 4.5 kilograms requires approximately 200 ml of liquid. If a cat eats 170 grams of wet food daily (moisture content 80%), it covers more than half of the daily water requirement, receiving 135 ml of liquid with the food. If he eats only 70 grams of dry food (moisture content 9%), he needs to drink another 180 ml per day. The activity level of pets should be taken into account. The more active your pet is, the more fluid it needs. Also, if the air temperature outside or indoors is above 20 degrees, the need for fluid consumption increases. It is worth noting that sometimes a different drinking regime may be required. So, for certain diseases or after operations, you must strictly follow the veterinarian’s recommendations. Stress factors, for example, a change of place of residence, unknown people at home, a neighbor's cat, affect the behavior of four-legged friends. Often cats drink less in such situations. Let her get used to the new life situation, observe her behavior. The required amount of fluid for the body also depends on age. A kitten's young, growing body requires more fluid. And in old age, this need decreases. It is completely normal for an older cat to drink less than normal.

How does water affect a cat’s body and the rate of its consumption?

If a cat does not consume water, then its body will respond by slowing down all processes, thickening the blood and lymph, and disrupting the water-salt balance, which, in turn, will lead to serious health problems and it is unknown how long it will live, since it quickly becomes dehydrated. will die.

Important! As for the rate of water consumption, according to veterinarians, a cat should drink water according to its weight.

For every kilogram of it there is from 20 to 40 ml of liquid. Usually, the question of why a cat doesn’t drink water is asked by owners who feed their pets canned food, as well as foods that contain a high percentage of moisture. The fact is that by consuming them, the cat needs to drink less, since it receives moisture from the food. When animals that like dry food need liquid intake much more. This is perhaps the most logical explanation why a cat does not drink water.

If we talk about why a cat drinks little water, then the reason lies in the low need for water laid down over centuries due to the fact that the ancient ancestors of cats lived in arid areas and over time adapted to drink less liquid. In addition, the cat has the ability to obtain moisture by concentrating its urine. In fact, it is normal for cats to drink little water in a healthy state, so asking why this happens shouldn't worry you. Especially if the animal receives wet food.

Liquid consumption rate

When feeding an animal with dry food, it is necessary to provide it with constant access to clean water. On average, a cat should drink about 100-150 ml per day, depending on the weight of the pet. Particularly obese cats need more fluid, kittens need less.

You can accurately calculate the amount of water based on the frequency of supply. On average, one part of dry food should be three parts of water per day. If, in addition to dry food, the animal consumes canned cat food, the amount of water may decrease, since such food is wet and covers half of the daily fluid intake.

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Why does a cat drink water often?

If we are talking about an old cat, then the answer is quite obvious why she often drinks water. After all, the amount of fluid in the body only decreases over the years, so there is a need to replenish your water supply. Also, you should not worry in the case of a kitten, because its body is growing, and at the same time the need for fluid is growing. However, if the daily norm is exceeded by one and a half times, then you should sound the alarm.

As cats age, they begin to drink more water.

If you notice frequent drinking of water in large quantities, you need to seek help from a specialist who will examine your pet and determine the reason why he began to drink too much liquid. Perhaps the reason lies in the occurrence of kidney failure, urolithiasis, diabetes, hormonal imbalance. Then the doctor will prescribe the necessary treatment, as well as a diet. This phenomenon is also observed with an unhealthy diet, which includes sweets or salty foods. Perhaps the cat is simply trying to quench its thirst in hot weather.

However, if at the same time you notice vomiting in the animal, then you should immediately consult a doctor. Especially if they have an unpleasant odor and drooling is noticed.

If your cat starts drinking water frequently, contact a specialist.

Causes of urinary problems

There are many reasons why a cat does not pee as it should, so diagnosing the disease is very important. Only after receiving accurate results can the doctor prescribe the correct treatment.

The most common causes of difficulty urinating are:

Kidney diseases. There are quite a few of them, they can be congenital or acquired, appear as a result of injury or disease.
Urolithiasis disease. This is the most common and dangerous cause of urinary obstruction.
Cystitis, or inflammation of the bladder and urethra. Occurs during infection or as a consequence of hypothermia against the background of a decrease in immunity.
Atony of the bladder, appearing after injury, surgery, as a result of illness or old age.
Anuria (lack of urine) is a critical condition, often leading to the death of the animal.
Complications on the kidneys after infectious or systemic diseases.
Spinal injuries with spinal cord damage.
Formation of tumors (benign or malignant).

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In any case, if the cat cannot pee, contacting a veterinary clinic is vital, since without an accurate diagnosis it will be impossible to carry out the correct treatment.

What to do if your cat doesn't drink water?

If you notice that your cat has stopped drinking water when everything was fine before, try to find out the reasons why she refuses it and force her to drink the liquid. How can you do this:

If your cat receives only dry food as food, it is necessary to give it liquid, which must be poured into a water container and placed nearby. Remember, the water must always be fresh and clean, otherwise the cat will not drink it.
Diversify her diet by adding wet canned food, as well as milk or kefir. In addition, you can cook soup or broth for her, but only without adding spices and salt.
You can add some canned food to the liquid. The animal will immediately feel the familiar and favorite smell and want to lap it up.
If there are no problems with the genitourinary system, you can feed your pet something salty, for example, a piece of fish. This will make him thirsty and he will look for a source of drink.
As you have probably already noticed, cats are creatures that love to drink not from specially designed containers, but from any that come their way. You can leave water, for example, in a bucket or sink, and she will definitely drink.

The water must always be fresh and clean, otherwise the cat will not drink it.
You can water your cat using a syringe, especially if the doctor discovers diseases of the urinary system, the treatment of which requires drinking plenty of water.
You will have to force water, since the animal may resist and not give in, but it still needs to be done.

The cat does not drink water, what should I do?

If the cat stops drinking from the bowl, it is necessary to assess his condition and analyze his diet. If the cat is given mushy natural food or wet canned food, enough moisture is supplied. However, some owners believe that the cat must drink and to do this they open the water tap or purchase a drinking fountain. Other felinologists consider tap water unsuitable for pets and purchase bottled water.

If the cat does not lap up water, then it is necessary to monitor its behavior. When a pet is depressed, its eyes are sunken, its fur is disheveled, its skin is flabby, it is necessary to force it to drink. You can draw water into a syringe without a needle and pour it into the mouth drop by drop. The animal may not like it.

Then they resort to an alternative option: saline or Ringer-Locke solution is injected under the skin. The latter remedy is preferable because it contains Potassium, Sodium and Calcium chlorides in the same proportion as blood serum. Glucose binds toxic substances. converts them into safe compounds that are eliminated in the urine.

Up to 150 ml of liquid can be administered per day. After the injection, bulges are formed, which decrease before the eyes. When the cat begins to lap on its own, parenteral administration of the electrolyte solution is stopped. If the animal's general condition does not improve, seek veterinary help.

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Features of water consumption by a cat

You can often observe the process of a cat drinking water with its paw, so the question arises as to why it does this. The thing is that these creatures cannot determine the surface of the water when it is in a calm state. Therefore, so that their nose does not scoop up the liquid when it is in it, it is easier for them to drink water from their paw. After a certain time, the cat will learn to “see” the surface of the water with the help of its paw, tongue or whiskers and will drink the liquid, as is customary to do.

To help her, you can purchase a special container for drinking cats, which also contains a filter for additional purification of water from harmful elements for the animal’s body.

You can give your cat water using a syringe.

As mentioned above, cats generally drink very little water or do not drink it at all. There are a number of reasons why they behave this way. However, you should always remember about the purity of the water, which should contain all the microelements necessary for the normal development of the animal, and it should not wash away calcium and potassium from the body. Therefore, distilled water should be discarded, since it will not bring anything useful to the cat.

Knowing the full range of reasons why a cat refuses to drink water, you can eliminate them and return the animal to a normal lifestyle.

Little age

Kittens separated from their mother cat early do not know how to lap at all. They do not know the taste of water, which seems tasteless to them. The owner of a small cat has to develop the reflex.

When a kitten's teeth change, the ability to eat food and drink water is impaired. The reason why the kitten does not drink liquids and does not eat is a baby tooth that did not fall out in time, which prevents it from biting and lapping. Unbearable itching in the jaws forces kittens to gnaw and swallow the most inappropriate objects. A foreign body can get stuck in the throat, making it impossible for kittens to drink water at all.