catlovesbest main retina logo

Why Won’t My Cat Drink Water From Her Bowl?

Photo of author

The information mentioned here has been fact checked and reviewed by experts to provide you original and accurate content. When you buy via links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission at no extra cost to you. Learn more.

Cats are notorious, and they are very picky when it comes to eating food and drinking water.

They put you in charge of the entire house and refuse to eat their food. She’ll be thirty and still refuses to drink from her bowl, preferring instead to run and drink from the bathtub. If you’re wondering why won’t my cat drink water from her bowl, it could be due to the temperature of the water or whisker fatigue.

There are many reasons related to it. Do you want to know? Then keep reading!

why won't my cat drink water

Why Does My Cat Don’t Drink Water From Her Bowl?

The answer to why the cat won’t drink from the bowl is given below; you can read and know your cat’s reason.

cat won't drink water

1. Shape and Size of the Cat’s Bowl

Do you know of whisker fatigue?

Well, cats have super sensitive hairs on their snort, which is called whisker, also known as vibrissae. That provides her with a lot of information. Like can she make herself fit in a tight spot or not.

When she drinks the water from a small bowl, her whisker collides with the bowl, and she doesn’t like it. You can get a whisker-safe bowl from any pet store. It will help her to eat food and drink water easily with no more pressure on her whisker.

To know more check out best cat dish for whisker fatigue bowls, and choose from the best whisker relief cat bowls.

You can order Dr. Catsby’s Bowl for Whisker Relief cat food bowl for your kitty. It is deep and won’t trigger your cat’s sensitive whiskers. The patent design helps to avoid whisker fatigue.

You can go for this it is made of stainless steel and cats like water from metal cat bowls. It is non-allergic and won’t absorb germs and bacterial like a plastic bowl. Easy in cleaning and made with silicon non-slip base.

Also read

2. Taste Of the Water

Cat going to water bowl but not drinking it is because of the taste.

The taste of the water varies based on the bowl’s quality. Drinking water from aluminum can have a distinct flavor, while water from a glass has a distinct flavor. Cats prefer ceramic or stainless steel bowls.

In ceramic bowls you can get personalized cat bowls with name of your cat. It will be a good gift for both cats and pet parents.

Cat is seeking taste in the water! And, if you don’t know, let me tell you that cats can taste water, unlike humans. If the water is not fresh they won’t drink it, To prevent that go to Gravity Water Bowl & read for more information.

3. Temperature Of the Water

If you ponder why won’t my cat drink water from her bowl? It’s because some cats won’t drink water if the water is at room temperature. If your cat consumes water from your bathwater, she may prefer warm water to drink.

And, if she runs and drinks water from your running tap, that means she prefers cool water. Water temperature can be one of the reasons why she looks for other water supplies.

If you live in a cold area then you can consider the electric water bowls for cats, this might give you perfect hot water to your cat.

4. She Doesn’t Like Her Drinking Place

A cat will not drink water if it is not placed according to her choice!

cat doesnt like her drinking place

Cat is a very choosy animal; they don’t like her things the way we want them to be.

We humans think according to our comfort. So, we place water in the corner of our houses so that the floor won’t get dirty much. And, our cute cats prefer their water to be placed in between the home because of their natural animal instinct.

When she drinks water facing the wall, her back is open, and she feels vulnerable due to the risk of being attacked by someone as she won’t be able to see anything behind her back.

You can check the elevated cat food bowls there are numerous advantages of feeding your cat from an elevated food bowl such as it alleviates her indigestion, helps underlying joint problems, and prevents bloating from water.

5. Suspicious of Still water

If you think Why Won’t My Cat Drink Water From Her Bowl? That’s because cats won’t drink water from the water bowl. Due to is the stillness of the water, she likes running water.

The reason for a cat to go for running water is that she finds it safe. As we know, still water can develop a stale taste because of carbon dioxide and air reactions. Also, in still water, bacteria and germs keep developing.

Cats are clean animals, and they want clean water too! So, when they get water in a bowl, she assumes the still water is unsafe to drink. This behavior comes from her wild cats’ ancestors.

And, one solid reason why they prefer running water more is that it has more count of oxygen which makes the taste much better.

6. Difficulty in Seeing Water

Do you know the cat’s front face has a blind spot that starts around 10 cm from her nose?

She can no longer see the water right in front of her when she draws closer to the water bowls. A few cats prefer to drink water from fountain water dishes also called water fountains because the sound aids in hearing and drinking the water.

This is maybe one of the leading reasons why a cat doesn’t drink water from her bowl.

Don’t forget to check out the ceramic cat dishes to know more about the best ceramic cat bolws.

How to Get a Cat to Drink Water From Her Bowl?

make cat drink water

It isn’t easy to make your cat drink water from her bowl. But, not anymore. If the cat is not drinking water from the bowl, then read this.

We have given you multiple tips by which you can make her drink water easily.

  • You should change the kitty’s water daily and wash her water bowl regularly cats don’t like an unhygienic bowl.
  • Get her a different size and shape bowl. You can also switch to different materials too.
  • Keep the cat’s water bowl accessible to her. Possibly place it in every room of your bowl.
  • Fresh water is preferred by cats. They are at ease with drinking from rushing water. You can give cat water by getting a pet fountain, which is a fantastic solution because running water is more oxygenated, which improves the water’s taste. You can also change your current water supply is she refuses to drink water.
  • If your cat prefers the taste of Tropiclean water additive it will help her to have good oral hygiene.
  • You can ask for help from vets too. If you see a change in the drinking habit of your cat then contact your vet for the best.

    You can make your cat drink more water by adding flavor, or you can switch to wet food. Put some ice in the water, you can also change the water source if currently you are giving her faucet water then maybe you should switch to bottled water.

Did you know that bowl is not just a bowl! and a wrong bowl can have a huge impact on her health. There are various factors that you must know before buying a cat bowl for your kitty, Here you check out the tips to choose the best food bowl for your kitty.

FAQs

Why is my cat not drinking water?

If your cat won’t drink water, that means something is bothering her. She is either seriously ill, or maybe she is not liking the hygiene of the bowl or maybe because of the taste. It is important that she is drinking enough water on a daily basis.

The cat must drink enough water as if not, then it can make her sick, so you should contact your vet if you observe any change in her water drinking habit.

Why do cats drink out of the toilet?

The reason why cat prefers drinking water from the toilet is that the taste of the water is fresh. As the water keeps changing every time you flush, the taste of water gets better. It is not still and won’t get stale. And, as it is running water, the level of oxygen is also more which boosts the water taste.

Why don’t cats like water near their food?

The reason why your cat won’t drink water next to her food is because of her natural instinct.
Yes, it’s her natural behavior that is programmed not to drink water near her food or near her litter box area as there is a high chance water will get pollute if it is near that. It can stale and get contaminated.

As we know already, cats are clean animals; they love hygiene. Therefore, they won’t like their water bowl next to the cat food bowl.

Can my cats see water in a bowl?

Cats have poor close vision. If we compare her long vision to close-distance vision, it is much better. So, when your cat is at the water dish see finds it difficult to see water as the blind spots are located right in front of her eyes.

If she wants to check there is any water left in the bowl, she moves the bowl? This will form ripple and splash, by which she will get to know the presence of water in the bowl.

How to know if my cat is drinking enough water?

Dehydration in cats can lead to loss of appetite, or if your cat is dehydrated severely by not drinking enough water or urinating more, her skin could become dry. You can see the tent.

Cat’s gum will be dry; her mental state won’t be healthy. Her heart rate can also increase. These are some signs by which you can know.

Well That’s a Wrap

There are multiple answers to why won’t my cat drink water from her bowl. In this article, we have covered that.

Leading reasons for this may happen because of the placement of the water bowl or maybe because she doesn’t find it safe to drink.

Well, if you want to know in detail, then you can read the article above. We have listed various factors and also how you can fix this.

I hope you have understood this topic, and if you like it, then we would love to know your opinion. Do leave a comment down below.

References

  1. What Do You Put Your Cat’s Food In? – PetMD
  2. Suggestions to Make Your Cat Drink from a Bowl – Hill’s
  3. What to Know About Feeding Your Cat – Pet WebMD

Leave a Comment