Cat Fountain

Mice_Elf

Just after some advice, really. Have 4 cats, 3 at 15 years old & 1 at 13 years old.

Has anyone got one of these fountains? I was thinking of using some of my Nectar points to buy one through Amazon, as I'm battling constantly with my cats' water bowl, trying to keep it limescale & hair-free.
They seem to prefer drinking from bowls / plant pots outside anyway, no matter how clean the bowl is, so has anyone used one of these fountains?
Are they easy to clean? Do cats really like them?

superstylin

We bought one of these things

http://www.zooplus.co.uk/shop/cats/cat_bowls_feeders/cat_fountains/67700

after our little boy got a UTI to encourage him to drink more.....he never uses it, nor does his sister. They prefer to drink out of the sink or out of my glass!

That said, there are reviews to say some cats loved it. In it's defence it's not too big, is relatively quiet and takes hardly any cleaning.

sheep-ali

My cats use the petmate waterfall & they love it ( some more than others). It is a bit of a fiddle to clean but worth the hassle in my opinion.

Mice_Elf

Sheep-Ali - why is it worth the hassle? Do they drink more, or is it just that it's easier to clean? I'm still in 2 minds, as I've seen good & bad reviews & am concerned with how fiddly they are.

As my cats become older, am just concerned that they stay as healthy as possible & drink plenty of clean water.

KittyLady

We have a petmate waterfall too, keeping bowls for six cats was just impossible. It's great, quiet and lasts for a few days. I do tend to give it all a good wash and rinse the filter through every week. Sometimes the pump can get blocked by some cat hair or fluff but a tap on the sink and it falls out easily enough. In my case it was worth the £25 ish we paid for it. It lives under a table and we can't hear it.

amszephyr

My mother, sister, friend and I all have the Catit Fresh & Clear fountain which is/was about £20 to buy. All of our cats love it and drank from it almost immediately - I've definitely noticed they're drinking more now they have the fountain.
It has a filter that needs cleaning/replacing more of less regularly depending on the cleanliness of its location as well as how much muck the cats drop into it - mine lasts for a month or two. I clean the unit every two or so weeks, having run white vinegar through it for 30-ish minutes to keep any limescale to a minimum.
Because the water is 15cm or so off the floor, it does prevent a significant amount of fur, etc. floating into the water and the cats are in a more natural position to drink rather than bending down to floor level.

Mice_Elf

Thank you for your replies. I think I shall look into the purchase of one.

Yolina

I used to have a cat fountain, which was great, until I got a Bengal kitten - she decided that the fountain was to play in rather than to drink from . Went back to using a bowl after that (in which she would dunk her little plush toys and then drop them in my bed at 3am cos she wanted to play)

dawnfuller

Both my cats use the petmate waterfall & they love it. Easy to clean + all parts (not the motor ) are dishwasher safe.The filters are a bit pricey though but worth it.

Dawn F

sheep-ali

Mice_Elf wrote: »

Sheep-Ali - why is it worth the hassle? Do they drink more, or is it just that it's easier to clean? I'm still in 2 minds, as I've seen good & bad reviews & am concerned with how fiddly they are."
Given a choice between a bowl of still water & the stuff in the fountain, most of them ( I have 10 elderly cats at the moment) prefer the fountain. Also, because it is filtered, it is cleaner - the hairs get caught in the filter.
My cleaning problem is because of the amount of algae we have, I find myself with a toothbrush cleaning down inside the fountain.
Hope this helps.

bella-h

we have the catmate water fountain and it is brilliant - we have 3 cats who were a bit unsure at first (used to drinking water out of any pot going!) but now they all use it regularly and it is so much easier, plus helps with not having to worry about topping up cat bowls!