Water: a cat drinks less than it needs
The cat descends from a desert animal and barely feels thirst. Getting it to drink enough protects its kidneys and bladder, which are its weak spots.
Why it drinks so little
The ancestor of the domestic cat is the African wildcat, an animal of dry regions that got almost all its water from its prey, which is mostly water. So the cat has a weak thirst drive and concentrates its urine a great deal. On wet food or prey, that is not a problem; on a diet of dry food only, which is around ten per cent water, many cats drink less than they should. Total needs are roughly 50 ml per kg of body weight a day, counting the water in food.
What happens when water runs short
Very concentrated urine encourages crystals and stones, and feline idiopathic cystitis, a bladder inflammation closely linked to stress. In males, crystals, mucus plugs or stones can block the urethra, which is narrow, and that is an emergency that can kill within one or two days. In older cats, poor hydration worsens chronic kidney disease, which is very common. Drinking well does not prevent everything, but it is one of the things most within your control.
How to get it to drink more
Put several bowls around the house, away from food and the litter tray: in nature a cat does not drink next to where it has eaten. Use wide, shallow bowls of ceramic, glass or stainless steel that do not smell of plastic and where the whiskers do not brush the edges, and fill them to the brim. Change the water every day. Many cats prefer moving water, and a filtered fountain encourages drinking; clean it as often as the manufacturer says. And the most effective measure of all: include wet food in the diet.
If it suddenly drinks a lot
The opposite is a sign too. A cat that starts drinking much more, empties the bowl, seeks out the tap or fills the litter tray with huge clumps may have kidney disease, diabetes or hyperthyroidism, three common conditions from middle age onwards. Do not wait for it to get worse: take a urine sample to the vet if you can and, if you know, how much it used to drink and how much it drinks now. A measuring jug and a couple of days of notes give a pretty good idea.
Urinary warning signs
A cat that goes in and out of the litter tray many times, strains, cries when peeing, leaves only a few drops, sometimes with blood, or licks its genitals a lot has a urinary problem. If it is a female, or a male that is passing some urine, see the vet that same day. If it is a male and nothing comes out, it is an immediate emergency, day or night: retained urine raises potassium in the blood and can stop the heart. Many owners mistake it for constipation and lose precious hours.
Wet food in the diet, several wide bowls away from food, fresh water daily and perhaps a fountain. If it drinks much more than usual, see the vet; if it is a male and cannot pee, it is an emergency.
Educational content from Michipedia. It does not replace the advice of a vet or a feline behaviour specialist. Every cat is an individual.