Kitten not drinking

[smokey477]

We have a 13 week old ragdoll kitten just arrived. He is eating very well and putting on weight but does not want to drink at all. We have tried many different types of water bowls and have run the tap near him and placed him on the floor of a wet shower bay and still no luck. His urine is very strong and yellow. He has been desexed and has had the feline injections. Can anyone help.

[smokey477]

Thank for all your help.  I took him to the vet yesterday with urine sample!  Strong but ok am adding more liquid to his food and it is solving the problem thank you.  Interesting about some cats not drinking unless there is movement in the water I will try this.  Thanks again.  Smokey

[Shaggie]

Some cats are not good drinkers and if the urine is especially strong he may need to get more water.  Adding water to his wet food and limiting dry food would help.  You might want to take him into the vet for a quick exam to determine whether he's dehydrated.  Cats can be somewhat dehydrated without appearing sick.  One of my cats had to be rehydrated occasionally at the vets by subcutaneous fluids.

[Ghilly]

With the veggies and veggie juice in there, chances are he IS getting enough liquid from his food, otherwise he'd be dehydrated by now and showing the ill effects of the dehydration.

I've been thinking about it a bit, and there ARE some cats who, for reasons known only to them, will not drink water unless it is moving.  Sometimes they will paw at the water in their bowls to make it move in the bowl and then they will drink it.  Sometimes in cases such as these, the owners can help by putting the kitten or cat up on the kitchen sink, or on the bathroom vanity,and running the water in the sink at a trickle.  The cat then will drink from the stream of running water.  Three of my cats do the "pawing at the bowl" thing, and while I don't know why two of them do it, the one who started doing it first does it, I THINK, because he is cross-eyed and cannot see things right up close to him.  I think the other two may do it because as kittens they learned it by watching the other one do it.

Ghilly

[smokey477]

thanks for reply.  I give smokey canned/sachel food in the morning and cooked minced meat in the evening with about 10 per cent carrot peas and mashed potatoe with plenty of water gravy.  I have been told that raw meat is a no no in case it contains parasites!?  I am in contact with my vet and smokey seems to be healthy butu I just thought cats drank water from a bowl!  hopefully he is getting moisture from his meals.  His toilet is well moist though not runny so I think he is healthly.  I guess I panicked a bit when some one told me is was not normal for a cat not to drink.  If I have further problems I will get back to you and thanks again for your help.  Ingrid

[christy195050]

We normally add water about 20/40 mills to their cat food but you would have to feed them one of the canned/satchel foods that have already gravy in them so you can mix the water in with the gravy.  Cat food like meat/chicken casserol as he seems to have an allergy to fish if tuna gives him the runs. We do not feed cats vegetables as this is not a normal diet for them and their is not much nutrition in cooked meats. Cats should be eating as kitten raw meats especially raw chicken necks for calcium and healthy teeth. If your cat is an indoor cat you should have some potted cat grass for them to eat to help their digestion as this is normal for them. Starting them on a bad diet will mean at lot and huge vets bills later in their life. bestest...

[smokey477]

Thanks for reply so quickly.I am feeding him cooked mince with peas potatoes carrot and vegetable juice he seems to be ok with this.  Also he has a bowl of dried biscvuites always available with a bowl of water.  However he wont drink from the water bowl.  I will try cats milk today.  Maybe you are right he is getting enough from the wet food.  I do know not to give him milk or tuna as it gives him runny motions!  thanks Ingrid

[Ghilly]

Are you feeding him dry food or canned food?  If you're feeding him canned food, it just might be that he's getting enough moisture in the food to control his thirst.  If he's eating dry food, I don't know what the explanation is, but if he IS eating only dry food, you need to do something to try to entice him to drink.  Maybe buy him some of that Cat Milk that they sell in the little cardboard "juice boxes" in the pet aisle of the grocery store, or make him some beef or chicken buillon, anything to get him to drink.  If you decide to try the buillon, though, bear in mind that it's VERY salty, so instead of dissolving one cube in one cup of water like it says on the instructions, dissolve the cube in THREE cups of boiling water, let it cool down, and then offer it to him.  A cat's sense of taste is much more sensitive than that of a human, so even with a 3:1 ratio of water to buillon, it will still taste very beefy of chickeny to a cat.

Ghilly