A cat water fountain can make a nice addition to a room, but beyond the decorative aspects, the fountain is good because it stimulates the cat to drink more water, therefore minimizing the chance of developing urinary tract infections.

In the wild, cats don’t usually need to drink water, because their pray contains enough of it. However, with domestic cats that live mostly indoors, things are completely different, as they can’t hunt (actually they can, but none of us is happy to find dead birds and mice under the furniture, so we aren’t encouraging cats to use their hunting skills on living things). Most of us feed our cats with processed, dry food, therefore the additional water intake is vital for the cat’s health.

Water is the element that helps flushing the toxins out of the body, it helps moisturizing cells and tissues, it prevents the cat from developing conditions such as renal failures or constipation and it has a contribution in making the fur look better. A cat water fountain is so much fun that the cat is tempted to drink more than usual. Moving water seems to fascinate felines: they can sit and watch their fountain like a good movie for hours. This is why, without being an essential piece of cat furniture, a drinking fountain is always welcome, if you can afford it.

Types of cat water fountains

The dome cat water fountain

The water inside a dome is pushes through a top nozzle with the help of an electric pump, then it flows on the dome surface and gets collected into a water tank, then it passes through a carbon filter and is re-circulated into the pumping system. Cats can drink either from the collecting tank or directly from the dome surface. In hot summer days, a cat will find much fun in touching the dome with her paw and then licking the water or spreading it all around.

The 360 degrees cat water fountain

This is very similar to the fountains where we drink from in the parks. The basic pumping system is the same, but instead of flowing onto the dome surface, the water is pushed through the four holes at the top of the fountain, then falls back freely into the circular tank at the bottom where it gets sucked into the pumping system again.

The standard water fountain

Less spectacular for humans, this type of fountain is probably the most entertaining for cats, as the water falls from an enclosed tank pretty much like a mini-waterfall, thus being very appealing to playful cats.

All types of pet fountains feature a filtration system, so tap water can be used safely. However, some people still prefer to put bottled water into the fountain, as they fear for the health of their pets. Either way, the fountain system is very convenient both for the cat and the owner: the cat has a permanent source of fresh water and the owner only needs to change it once a week. Be careful and always remember to thoroughly clean the pump when you change the water, because its ventilation system attracts a lot of hairs, so it may become clogged and less powerful after a while, or even stop working. Yes, cleaning the drinking fountain is a more tedious job than simply washing a common water bowl, but isn’t your cat worth at least this little attention from your side?

Cat water fountain prices may range from as little as $25 to $70, depending on the model and on the brand. Dome fountains are at the top of the pricing scale.

Cat water fountain maintenance

Pet fountains need periodical change of the carbon filter. In case of only one pet using it, the filter can last as long as a couple of months before it becomes clogged with hair and food residues, but if you have more pets sharing the fountain, you may need to change the filter more often. A set of three filter cartridges for the dome fountain costs about $6-$7, so it’s not such a big expense, taking into consideration the advantages a cat water fountain has to offer. Filters for other types of fountains are within the same price range.

If your cat has been used to drink from a common bowl, she may be afraid of the fountain in the first two-three days, so she may avoid drinking from it. Be so kind and provide your cat an alternative water source until you're sure she's comfortable with using the fountain.