Best pet fountain for cats?

Hello all.

Our baby girl LOVES water and she will NOT drink it if it isn't running OR out of my glass.

Is the Drinkwell brand the best fountain on the market when it comes to pet fountains? I've also looked at the Catit fountain, but I am not sure she would use it. She likes running water just like how it comes out of the bathroom sink.

Feedback on what you have and how well it works would be much appreciated.

Thanks!

I have the Petmate fountain and Anya drinks TONS of water with it. With it, the water runs down a ramp rather than freefalling, so you have to make sure you keep it really clean.

My only complaint (and keep in mind I don't know if the other two brands are like this too, because I've never used them) is that when you're snapping it apart to get to the pump to clean the cat hair and debris out... that part is REALLY HARD to snap off. I always feel like I'm going to break it.

Other than that though, I'm a big fan, and so is Anya.

Originally Posted by emily_325

I have the Petmate fountain and Anya drinks TONS of water with it. With it, the water runs down a ramp rather than freefalling, so you have to make sure you keep it really clean.

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This is the one we have too - and I've noticed much more drinking from our babies now that we have it. They usually drink the water right from the ramp and cleaning it once a week has proven sufficient thus far. Ours does not have any trouble coming apart to change water and filter though - maybe I lucked out LOL

Good luck!

I've had all three. I prefer the Drinkwell and I think my cats do as well.

Right now I have a PetMate Fresh Flow in the basement and a Drinkwell in the kitchen. I'd had a CatIt in the kitchen for a brief time and got one of my old Drinkwells to replace it. I didn't care for the CatIt at all. The cats did drink from it, but since I do the filling and cleaning, my choice won out.

We have tried both the drinkwell and cat-it. Both went down well in this house but I prefer the cat-it as it was IMO easier to clean and maintain.... and also spare parts were easier to get.... the main dome cracked so had to be replaced.

My cats love the running water these fountains provide and so they tend to leave most taps alone now.

I have a Drinkwell fountain that I bought a couple of years ago after Midnight was diagnosed with CRF and the cats loved it. She would only drink from that and not drink any standing water. I still use it and Shaodw and the kittens both drink from the fountain and the bowl. Can't have too much water available for the little bubs.

Originally Posted by Nellers

This is the one we have too - and I've noticed much more drinking from our babies now that we have it. They usually drink the water right from the ramp and cleaning it once a week has proven sufficient thus far. Ours does not have any trouble coming apart to change water and filter though - maybe I lucked out LOL

Good luck!

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That's the one we have as well and I take it apart every Saturday for a thorough cleaning. I've had no problems taking it apart either. Last weekend I filled it with vinegar and left it overnight to clean off the lime buildup. Sunday morning I rinsed it out thoroughly and it was clean as a whistle!

We have a Cat-It and a fresh flow, mine love drinking from taps also and seem to have a slight preference for the Cat-It but don't discrimate against the freshflow at all.

I prefer the CatIt for cleaning as (like Emily said) the Fresh Flow always seems like it will break when you try to take it apart.

I think the Petmate fountain is made better (Drinkwell seems 'cheap' to me) and the fountain part runs along the spout whearas the Drinkwell pours out of a spout, so whichever you think your cat would like better.

I was also thinking about buying a fountian. However having a longhaired cat and a longhaired dog I was worried that it would get clogged or burn up the little pump. I was also concerned that it may not hold enough water for both of them to drink from. Anyone have any thoughts for me?

I know you can buy extra holding tanks that hold more water in them. I'd like to get a fountain too, but the whole idea of running water and an electric plug don't sit well with me. Plus I'd be afraid they wouldn't use. Now when I brush my teeth, they like to look at the water coming out, but don't drink it.

The Cat It has a dog sized one that hold loads, but we have a medium freshflow that gets filled up every day or so and the regular catit that gets filled up every 2 days (thats with 4 cats)

The regular CatIt holds 3 litres, the fresh flow is less than that and the dogit, 10 litres.

I wash mine once a week and change the filters about once a month and haven't had a problem with the pump. occasionally some gets stuck in there but you can just open it and pull the fur out

We have 2 cats and one of them loves running water and was in the sinks all the time. It was really getting bad and the other one wasn't drinking as much as they should. A couple of months ago we got a Drinkwell and it has made a huge difference. One is not in the sink much at all, and the other one is drinking more water. I found that the Drinkwell was better for them because of the water coming out of a spout like a sink does. They do like the water cool, not too cold, so I throw a few ice cubes at times. It seems to help them drink more and they play with the ice too.

Good luck on your purchase,
Skkelly

I've had both the Drinkwell and Petmate within the past 2 months and HIGHLY prefer the Drinkwell for various reasons.

1. Kitty drinks from Drinkwell more than the Petmate
2. Free flow of water is nice b/c kitty likes to drink straight from it. When I used the Petmate, he licked the water railing (for lack of a better word) but it left a rough residue...
3. Very easy to clean
4. On sale at Smith & Fosters and comes with a free cleaning kit!
5. Has a larger base from which kitty can comfortably drink from.
6. Drinkwell is MUCH easier to set up than Petmate but maybe it's b/c I don't read directions LOL.

we had a freshflow for several years. the motor broke. so i bought a CatIt (got a good deal on it). i didn't like it. the cats liked both. i didn't like that the catit was kind of fussy to set up after a cleaning. the filters are much more expensive, and didn't last as long as the ones in the Freshflow. so i gave it to a rescue group. i also didn't like how the fountains would get so gross even with weekly cleanings (i.e. take it apart, run through dishwasher, soak in vinegar, the works).

we are currently using regular cat bowls, elevated. their water bowl is always freshly clean out of the dishwasher and it seems to be working fine. their water is also fresh out of our refridgerated Pur pitcher. if we move to a bigger place i might get a fountain again. our current apartment layout doesn't really work well for fountains. (i've never seen an apartment with such ridiculous places for outlets!)

I don't have the drinkwell but mine love both the petmate and the Cat It, with a recent preference for the CatIt

Mine doesn't take much cleaning or get too gross, I rinse the reservoirs when refilling and give them a good clean once a week and change filters as needed