Cat Drinking Fountain DIY...safety first...

Hellooo!

I was hoping you all could help me!

I want to make a fountain for our kitties to drink out of. I will be copiing this design...

http://www.amazon.com/gp/reader/1580...63#reader-link

But will be making out of matirials you guys suggest. Should I stick with seramics? Are unpolished stones ok? Like river rock? Something I would get in a pond store?

What about terracota for the top pot?

I want to make sure the kittes are safe AND stylish.

Thanks!!
Kristin

some ceramics and terracotta pots have some lead in them from my research. If you do these make sure of what they are made with/of. Most all rocks you can put in a fish tank should be fine. If you use rocks you want something like a slate or shale. something that will not dissolve or leach into the water

That's pretty but looks like a b---- to clean, and since your cats will be drinking out of it, you will want to clean it periodically. If you're set on it, I'd suggest sticking with aquarium rocks -- they're polished and sealed and will be easier to clean the gunk off.

I'm afraid cleaning that would be a nightmare. We have a regular Petmate that's intended for the purpose, and even that gets slimy every couple of days. Terracotta and rocks would be so porous... it would be impossible to clean adequately, and it could easily breed bacteria. It's a lovely design, but... really, the safest thing for your kitties would be a Petmate or something similar.

I hate to be so discouraging! Maybe you could make that fountain just for your own enjoyment, as an outdoor piece, where your kitties couldn't drink from it...?

ETA: And yes, there is lead in many ceramics, especially terracotta. I wouldn't chance it at all.

Ditto on what the others said..it looks really nice but it does seem difficult to clean.