what can i give my cat to keep her hydrated

angelap

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I give my cat milk but some times she has diarrhea. She also won't drink water and i can't afford to buy cat milk. Anyone have any suggestions please.
 

Willowy

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The best way to keep a cat well hydrated is by feeding wet food. Canned food is more than 75% moisture so if your cat eats only canned food, she doesn't need to drink anything more (but still leave a bowl of water out just in case). Milk is not generally well tolerated by adult cats. You can also boil meat (no seasonings!) and use that water for her. With the meat flavoring I think she'll like it better than plain water.
 
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angelap

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Thanks. I feed her with the sashes of meat also used to give her tinned tuna. And left some of the brine in it
 

Willowy

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That's good; wet food is best for cats :D. You don't want to give her too much tuna---there's the mercury issue to worry about, plus it usually has a lot of salt added---but very occasionally for a treat is OK. If she were eating dry kibble she would need to drink a lot of water :/. But since she eats wet food she should be fine. You can mix a little water into her food if you think she needs more, but usually wet foods have enough moisture.
 
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angelap

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Thank you very much not long found out she is about 11 so was getting a little worried sue to her age
 

raintyger

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I added water to my cat's wet food. Not necessary, but I just did it as an extra safety measure. I added 1 tablespoon per 2.5 oz.
 

sherrymyra

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My kitten won't eat her wet food with added water but I really think she gets enough water in the food.   
 

betsygee

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Thank you very much not long found out she is about 11 so was getting a little worried sue to her age
I have a couple of older cats, one of them with kidney disease, who could use extra hydration.  They both eat wet food but I add a little bit of very warm water to their food.  Not enough to make it soupy, but enough to give it a gravy consistency--hard to explain.  
  Probably couple of tablespoons.  They seem to like it that way and it gives them a bit extra water.
 

chasetheblue

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I add water to my girls' wet food too. It was the only way they would eat it at first and I just never stopped :)
 

abbyntim

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I also add a bit of water, plus homemade broth, the the cats' wet food for added moisture. My male doesn't care and will eat anything, but the female doesn't like much added water. But I learned that heating the water until it's hot then stirring into the female's food seems to release the scent of the food and she gobbles it all up. This was something I tried when she was being finicky about her food and had the nice benefit of adding moisture.
 

pinkdagger

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What kind of dish does she have for water? Our male cat drinks so little water, and at 9 years old, we worry about him getting a UTI as well. We bought a cat drinking fountain so it seems like fresh running water and entices most animals:

We got this one for the cats:
I got this for my birds (who love it - they drink from and bathe in it all the time):
I also water down the wet food. It'll depend on the individual cat how much you can get away with watering it down. Some will be more than happy to lap up the extra "gravy" and some will snub their noses at a few extra drops. Start small and add bit by bit. Our male is perfectly fine with super soupy wet food. Because we free-feed dry food, I supplement it with two wet meals in the morning and evening. If you're very concerned about her hydration, feed more wet canned food - just make sure if you're planning on replacing a lot of her dry food with wet, don't let the wet sit out for too long until it dries out and loses flavour.
 

meandthegov

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your cat won't drink water....at all? that would concern me enough to bring it to the vet. 

i purchased a water fountain for my cat because he really prefers moving water, but it was a big expense (~$80). he also likes when i throw ice cubes in his other water dish. he's picky about when that gets dirty so i wash it weekly. 

you can buy one of those plastic water cooler things like this one as an alternative to the water fountain, since it replenishes when he drinks. it's also very easy to mark the container to keep track of how much water he intakes. they have them all over the place, pretty much every pet store plus target and walmart (check the dog section too). 

my cat had a kitten cold when i first got him, and i was told he can have the flavorless kind of Pedialyte. that was because he was REALLY dehydrated from being sick and i was worried. 
 

abbyntim

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your cat won't drink water....at all? that would concern me enough to bring it to the vet. 
I think it depends on what the cat eats. After I transitioned my cats from mostly dry to all canned, they stopped drinking water. But I could tell by what I scoop from the litter box that they are plenty hydrated. A recent visit with the vet confirmed the cats are hydrated and healthy, and their urine is perfect. A cat on a canned food diet will be getting just about all of its moisture from food and won't have the need to drink additional water. That being said, I still keep two water fountains clean, full, and running just in case.
 

raintyger

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your cat won't drink water....at all? that would concern me enough to bring it to the vet. 
After I switched to 100% canned with 1 tablespoon extra water in the food per meal, my kitty did not go to the water bowl. I kept her water bowl full just in case, but she never used it. The litter box was adequately full of golf-ball size urine clumps.
 

meandthegov

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I think it depends on what the cat eats [. . .] A cat on a canned food diet will be getting just about all of its moisture from food and won't have the need to drink additional water. That being said, I still keep two water fountains clean, full, and running just in case.
 
After I switched to 100% canned with 1 tablespoon extra water in the food per meal, my kitty did not go to the water bowl. I kept her water bowl full just in case, but she never used it. The litter box was adequately full of golf-ball size urine clumps.
my mistake, i take it back. my cat is only on dry food. 
 

WittyKat

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I give my cat milk but some times she has diarrhea. She also won't drink water and i can't afford to buy cat milk. Anyone have any suggestions please.
I used to do this, but learned that cats and kittens cannot easily digest lactose so it is best NOT to give cats any dairy. There is a product that many cats like. It's called cat milk, but does not actually contain any dairy.
Whiskas Cat Milk, 6.75-oz carton, 3-pack
There are similar products on the market, but I haven't tried them.
 
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