Cats need fresh, renewed water every day. They may be a little special with food, but when it comes to water, they’re even more special. In addition to its scrupulous behavior, it is common for owners to have difficulty calculating the daily amount the cat has been drinking throughout the day. Some tend to drink little and others, on the contrary, too.
In this Animal Expert article, we explain how much water a cat should drink a day, entering variables such as age, sex and food. These are some of the things to keep in mind when answering our veterinarian about this very simple but at the same time problematic question.
- This can be a very complicated response.
- Water consumption may depend on the size of the cat.
- The time of year it is in and.
- As we all know.
- Its feeding.
If our cat feeds only on commercial food, which contains only 10% water in its composition, we must give it between 60 and 120 ml more than cats that ingest wet food, which can contain up to 80% water. Therefore, a cat fed only with dry food should drink more water than cats fed wet food, all to stay well hydrated.
If we mean the age of the cat, it is worth knowing that puppies and older cats should drink more water than adults. But there’s no rule for this in ages, just by weight. A 5 kg cat should drink 250 ml of water per day under normal conditions. It is always important to know how much water the feline watering hole can contain and, if possible, not fill it until it is empty. However, a cat should drink as much water as he wants, so it’s always a good idea to encourage it with different containers in different places in the house, so you never forget.
Finally, it varies in small proportions depending on the time of year. It is not the same in summer, where they suffer the heat, that in winter, when they do not want to separate a second from the radiator, nor drink water. You have to be rational in these cases so as not to be unnecessarily alarmed.
Extremes are never good, so you should start paying more attention to your cat if you drink too much or too little water. A dehydrated cat may have some symptoms, such as the following:
Water deficiency, in very extreme cases, can cause urinary problems in our cat, such as crystals in the urine, kidney stones, etc. Chronic kidney failure is the most common cause of death in older cats. Other problems will be visible on the skin, but there may also be bad odor in the mouth, i.e. halitosis.
Excessive water consumption or polydipsia may indicate that the cat loses fluids, either through urine or other means. Polydipsia is usually accompanied by polyuria, a condition that causes the cat to urinate more than normal. We can detect it if we see more than three urine a day, even outside the sandbox. Changes should be gradual, but when you notice them, it may be too late. We should consult the vet when we see something is wrong.
This article is for informational purposes only, in Animal Expert.com.br we cannot prescribe veterinary treatments or make any kind of diagnosis. We suggest that you take your pet to the veterinarian in case of any type of condition or discomfort.
If you would like to read articles similar to, we recommend that you visit our Prevention section.