Speaking of which, I believe that some of the little cuties have already realized: It seems that your cat really doesn’t like drinking water? But if cats don’t like water, don’t they need water? Wrong, the opposite is true. Neither the owner nor the cat will be willing to bear the consequences of not drinking water and drinking less water.
Because the food source of wild cats is often mice, sparrows and other small animals that contain 70%-80% water in their bodies,
plus Cats generally do not eat carrion, so in fresh food, they can absorb a lot of water, which can fully meet their daily needs.
However, due to natural reasons, domestic cats do not like to drink water when they eat dry food (usually for convenient storage, the water content of dry food is about 10%), which leads to many problems.
What is the approximate daily water intake of a cat?
The amount of water a cat needs to drink every day is:
40～60ml*per kilogram of cat’s weight
For example, a cat weighs 4kg
Daily water intake=40~60ml*4=160~240ml
You can first follow this standard to see if your cat’s daily water intake meets the standard ?
What’s wrong with cats drinking less water?
Just like people, toxins accumulate in the kidneys and are excreted through urine. If you drink less water, the urine will be relatively reduced,
That would then lead to a series of problems like the butterfly effect:
1. Bladder problems and urinary problems
2. Kidney disease and cat urination Road disease
3. Cystitis, ruptured bladder, tumors and stones
4. Bladder stones can lead to life-threatening blockages in the urethra
Cat urinary retention problems
Cat dehydration is a chronic process,
under normal circumstances , It is difficult for an inexperienced owner to detect that a cat is dehydrated, unless it causes more serious problems due to dehydration, such as the above-mentioned diseases.
However, if cats are dehydrated for a long time, their bodies will not be able to meet the water they should have. When they enter middle-aged and old age, various diseases will gradually appear.
How can I tell if my cat is dehydrated?
1. Judgment method of skin elasticity:
Generally, cats who ingest an appropriate amount of water will have soft and elastic skin like a baby.
To test whether the cat is dehydrated, just gently pull up its skin against the position of the cat’s shoulder blades, if the skin does not bounce back quickly within 1 second, then it may be dehydrated;
2. Gum Judgment
Open the cat’s mouth and look at the cat’s gums: if yes In a cat that is not dehydrated, the gums should appear smooth and moist.
The opposite is true in dehydrated cats, whose gums are sticky and dry.
In addition, you can gently press the cat’s gums with your hands.
If the cat’s gums turn white and slowly return to blood, the cat is likely to be dehydrated. . And the slower the recovery, the higher the degree of dehydration.
How to make cats drink more water?
1. Supplement from food
In addition to dry food, you can add some foods with high water content such as canned wet food to cats, Increase water intake (cats who often eat wet food should pay special attention to the health of their teeth);
2. Raw meat
If you have the time and conditions, and are proficient in the method, you can also feed raw meat to cats.
3. Flowing water
Ensure that the water in the water bowl is clean and hygienic, cats like to drink flowing water,
Conditional owners can prepare water fountain
s for cats (but it is not recommended to use them when there is no one for a long time to avoid electrical failure);
4. Try feeding with a syringe
If the cat really doesn’t drink water, you can try feeding it with a syringe.
Ps:
Don’t feed tap water, it can be boiled and cooled , or feed pure water, tap water is prone to parasite problems.
