 |
 | Home | Contact Us | FAQ | Search & Site Map | Link to Us |
 | Sign In | Join | Other 45 Sites in Network |
| HomeDiscussion GroupsGeneral TopicsCat AnecdotesHealth and BehaviorRescue CatKB.com Contact UsLink To UsSearch & Site Map |
Cat Forum / Cat Anecdotes / January 2007Zak + Drinkwell = So far so good
I bought Zak a drinkwell. I hoped it would help him drink more water. Up until now he got the most water from the soup I made from the Fancy Feast and lots of water. The problem is the soup needs to be exactly right for him to want it. The water can't be much above the meat chunks (which he never eats). I wondered if it was a vision thing more than taste. He could see the water surface better, it being fancy feast colored. Anyway I put the thing together and showed it to Zak and he already drank from it. He did not like when he put his head under the waterfall (yeah, Zak is not the brightest bulb on the tree) but he went back again and drank more. I am cautiously optimistic! Andy this is why we bought our first one, TV has some vision issue that no vet can determine and he drinks from the fountain fine. also if you think he needs reminding put in an ice cube, we now have the cat sized one in the living room and the dog sized version in the bathroom. I strongly advise my friends to get the dog sized one to start with, Lee, glad he liked it > I bought Zak a drinkwell. I hoped it would help him drink more water. Up > until now he got the most water from the soup I made from the Fancy Feast [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > > Andy > this is why we bought our first one, TV has some vision issue that no vet > can determine and he drinks from the fountain fine. also if you think he > needs reminding put in an ice cube, we now have the cat sized one in the > living room and the dog sized version in the bathroom. I strongly advise > my > friends to get the dog sized one to start with, Lee, glad he liked it A lot of cats seem to have an issue with drinking standing or still water. And it seems to be "worse" with the ferals than with those who have had a water bowl their whole lives. We depend of a series of dripping faucets and ice cubes in cups and filling glasses in front of them. I'm thinking it is instinct to know that moving water is safer than still water to drink. Jo TV is a special needs kitty, lovable but not all that bright, his mother, Miss Violette was a feral and when it came time to learn to hunt she took OEJ and taught her, after only a couple of tries she gave up trying to teach him, he even learned to eat regular food later and everything else he has learned he learned later than OEJ, the thing he learned early and is expert at is giving love, Lee > > this is why we bought our first one, TV has some vision issue that no vet > > can determine and he drinks from the fountain fine. also if you think he [quoted text clipped - 12 lines] > > Jo > this is why we bought our first one, TV has some vision issue that no > vet can determine and he drinks from the fountain fine. also if you [quoted text clipped - 18 lines] >> >> Andy Since I think Zak is nervous about the waterfall I wish I had asked about this first. For reasons I can't, now, understand I asked elswhere (yeah, that other place) and got no answer at all (?). I decided on the drinkwell (quality) even though I worried the waterfall would scare Zak. I think the big one would have lessened that issue [ok, wait for it] but that is water under the bridge now [egads]. He is still drinking but nervously. I think the hum also worries him a bit so he will need more time to trust it. I think he already drank form water than before and has not gone to the soup much so hope abounds. Andy OEJ didn't like the falling water at first and now drinks the fountain... she licks up on the fall part to get her water, so yes there is hope, Lee > > this is why we bought our first one, TV has some vision issue that no > > vet can determine and he drinks from the fountain fine. also if you [quoted text clipped - 31 lines] > > Andy "Outsider" <not@this_address.com> wrote in message > Since I think Zak is nervous about the waterfall I wish I had asked about > this first. For reasons I can't, now, understand I asked elswhere (yeah, > that other place) and got no answer at all (?). I decided on the [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > > Andy At the moment Jake is outside drinking from the dripping faucet. The drip is deliberate and there is a big water bowl under it as well. It is the favored water source for Jake, Molly and Kayla as well as for neighborhood cats who have the nerve to come into their back yard. We won't get into how much it adds to the monthly water bill to let a faucet drip. Just grateful we aren't having a drought so it is only money not water being wasted. Jo > I bought Zak a drinkwell. I hoped it would help him drink more water. > Up until now he got the most water from the soup I made from the [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] > > Andy He seems to be drinking 8 ounces a day or more. I have also made a little progress getting him to eat the wet KD food but I need to put small amounts out so when I go back to work Tuesday I don't know how that will hold up. I am not good at estimating his hydration level but it does not seem worse and I think he likes the fountain. He seems a but perplexed by it at times, though; sits and stares at it. Andy >> I bought Zak a drinkwell. I hoped it would help him drink more water. >> Up until now he got the most water from the soup I made from the [quoted text clipped - 19 lines] > > Andy cheers for Zak! MLB next time you take him to the vet ask to be shown how to check his hydration and what his skin does during "good" hydration, glad the fountain is working, if we took ours away, we would probably die in our sleep well before anyone became to dehydrated to dispatch us, Lee > > I bought Zak a drinkwell. I hoped it would help him drink more water. > > Up until now he got the most water from the soup I made from the [quoted text clipped - 19 lines] > > Andy > next time you take him to the vet ask to be shown how to check his > hydration and what his skin does during "good" hydration, She did in fact. My problem is I never took notice of how it feels when he is not well hydrated so I never feel sure. Also, I expect the change can come slowly if he starts dehydrating. I do notice a difference from day to day as his hydration goes up and down but I am not sure at what point I need to worry. Zak and I live alone. When I had to give Zak allergy shots for a year (they did not help) it was not easy. He sees no reason to sit still and fidgets. Since the shot takes only a second I could get by but having him sit for the longer time needed to "sub-q" him without a second person here is a large variable. I would like that eventuality to be as far off as possible. Andy totally agree on the SQ, ask the vet when you go at what point, sort of test him as you go and think on how you would describe it to someone else, I say this because it help in advance with the explanation from the vet. Lee, hoping SQ is way in the future > > next time you take him to the vet ask to be shown how to check his > > hydration and what his skin does during "good" hydration, [quoted text clipped - 13 lines] > > Andy > totally agree on the SQ, ask the vet when you go at what point, sort > of test him as you go and think on how you would describe it to > someone else, I say this because it help in advance with the > explanation from the vet. Lee, hoping SQ is way in the future That's a good idea, thanks. Andy
|
Reply to this Message |
 Sign In
 Join
 My Latest Posts My Monitored Threads My Blog My Photo Gallery My Profile My Homepage Start New Thread Enable EMail Alerts Rate this Thread
|
©2008 Advenet LLC Privacy Policy - Terms of Use
This website includes both content owned or controlled by Advenet as well as content owned or controlled by third parties.