How Much Water Does My Cat Have To Drink?
The cat ( Felis catus ) is an animal that generally drinks very little water. This is due to its evolution from its ancestor Felis labica . This animal lived in the desert, so the available water was very scarce and it was adapted to concentrate urine much and, thus, reduce water loss.
As descendants of these felines, modern cats, relatively domesticated, continue to maintain many behaviors of their predecessor, including the low need to drink.
Water needs of a cat
Cats need to ingest between 55 and 70 milliliters of water per kilogram of weight per day. This volume does not have to come, necessarily, from the drinking water. A cat can get water from different sources:
- The fresh and clean water that we directly offer you.
- The water in the food you eat.
- The metabolic water, which is that produced by the body to oxidizing lipids and carbohydrates.
Thirst, in more complex animals, is regulated by a set of hormones and, in turn, regulated by a region of the brain called the hypothalamus. On the contrary, satiety is regulated, first, by the contact of water with the mouth, then by the distension of the stomach and, lastly, by cellular hydration, which is regulated by very complex interactions.
Cats are not very sensitive to water loss or , at least, they are less sensitive than dogs, and that is that they can withstand up to 8% dehydration.
Factors influencing water consumption
A cat will drink more or less water depending on several factors, such as diet, ambient temperature and the way the food is administered.
If the food that we offer to our feline is made exclusively of extruded feed, we will considerably increase the need to drink. In fact, your intake will increase by two milliliters for every gram of feed you take. This type of food only contains between 7 and 9% water.
Here we must emphasize that, although the behavior of the cat with respect to water changes, it does not matter, because the water balance is maintained. The problem can appear when a cat is changed from a wet to a dry diet, because it can adapt poorly to water consumption. As a consequence, kidney problems can develop, such as stone formation.
High temperatures can influence a cat’s need to drink. However, it is not as pronounced as in dogs, since they lose a lot of water through panting and perspiration.
Finally, if the cat has food restricted to only one time of the day, the water consumption will decrease. Drinking water is closely linked to food intake, so those animals that have food available ad libitum will drink more water.
Tips for my cat to drink water
Cats typically drink 12 to 16 times a day, but consume very little water each time. To encourage your feline to drink more, we offer you some tips:
- Have more than one jug of drink, in different places in the home.
- Change the water at least once a day.
- It is better if the bowl is made of metal, glass or ceramic material.
- The water should be placed away from the litter box and food, to avoid contamination, since the cat will notice it and will not want to drink.
- Offer the cat wet food once a day, never mixed with the feed.
- Some cats prefer to drink directly from moving water. Therefore, it would be interesting to get them an electronic fountain or allow them to drink from sinks or sinks.
