Need help encouraging kitty to use fountain

[riona]

I have been told that BratKat needs to increase her water intake and that a fountain would help. Well, I bought her a good one and she won't use it. Now what? Please, someone help!

[bicentennial_baby]

1. Is she drinking from anywhere else?

Eating wet food?

Our kitteh insisted on drinking from the faucet, but I didn't want him to, so I got the fountain and banned drinking from the faucet, while supplementing with more wet food until he got into it. He likes it fine now. :)

[riona]

3. She was three when I adopted her

and I've had her about two years since. So far she has had three urinary tract infections. She has never shown an interest in faucet drinking. Her bowl water is filtered or bottled. She also came with the problem of not liking any wet food. So, trying to get more fluids in her, I have tried all the really good wet brands recommended by DU'ers, and others prescribed by the vet. Finally I gave up, and tried Fancy Feast. She will eat some of that. (Thankfully, she does like the good dry food.) I don't know if I dare take away her water bowl. She's pretty stubborn.

[BrklynLiberal]

2. Which one did you get? I just bought a Drinkwell today. I hope there will not be a problem.

[riona]

4. I bought the Drinkwell Platinum

I can only conclude that she doesn't like the sound of the motor because she will drink from it if it's unplugged. She does like to watch it flow - maybe an interest will develop?

[BrklynLiberal]

7. hmmm That is the exact one I bought.. Oh well. Here's hoping for the best.

[huskerlaw]

5. Give her some time...

cats are weird (I'm sure this is not news).

I got an automatic scooping litter box and had one that refused to use it (I'm assuming it was a motor problem as well), so I left the old litter box next to it. Within a week, the cat realized that the new box was much cleaner and that it wouldn't kill him. He uses it happily now.

If she's interested, that's good. In all likelihood her curiosity will get the better of her and she'll figure out that the thing won't kill her and the water's actually pretty tasty. ;)

[riona]

6. Thanks. I hope you're right.

[demnan]

8. Your cat may want a glass bowl

Everything tastes better from glass. I figured this out because I had one of those changing light mood fountains, it has a large shallow glass bowl, very pretty blue. Well even though I have the drinkwell fountain, Lily and Charley both love drinking from that bowl, so I fill it for them. I guess they like the glass and the way it keeps the water cool.

Another thing you could try is to put ice cubes in the drinkwell. I do this, especially on very hot days.

[riona]

10. So far she hasn't really shown a preference for glass or ice cold water.

She's still "interested" in watching her fountain, goes right up to it when it's running, but can't seem to drink from it.

[badgerpup]

9. Here's an idea...maybe.

There's a cat rescue/no kill shelter here in town...and about 40 of the cats live in the house*.

The ladies who run this operation O8) have several of those cute little decorative 'waterfalls' set about here and there on tables where the cats can easily access them
http://www.discountfountains.com/desktop-fountains.html
I has teh dumb when it comes to posting images...

The cats use these as well as waterbowls for drinking. I was told that several of the kitties had 'need to drink more' issues, and this seemed to do the trick. The fountains do double duty...as decoration and drinking fountains.


* place did NOT smell like 40 cats lived there, BTW. Only way you tell there was that many cats was that you saw them. No catbox odor, if you get me drift. Happy, mostly healthy, friendly, and beautifully socialized kitties.

[riona]

11. Wish I had known about these before

At the rate we're accumulating kitty paraphernalia, we're going to need a larger home.