Just like us humans cats are made out of two thirds of water and need to drink it to survive. The thing is what temperature do cats prefer to drink their water? Well, it depends on your type of cat and sometimes it depends the time of the year.
What Temperature Do Cats Like Their Drinking Water?
Generally cats like to drink cold or lukewarm water. Some cats also like to drink warm water. Kittens might like to have it on the warmer side because they associate it with their mothers milk but they might not be like other kittens and want it colder.
Others like ice cubes in their drink as well. You cat might not even like to drink out of a bowl either and would rather drink it from somewhere else like the faucet.
You should also consider the time of the year as well. The spring time lukewarm is probably the way to go. If its really hot during the summer they probably want their water to be colder. If its really cold during the winter they might prefer warmer water.
Play Around With Temperatures
If your cat doesn’t like room temperature water try making the water a little colder by putting it in the refrigerator and see if they enjoy it or maybe even putting ice cubes in their bowl.
Is It Safe To Put Ice In My Cats Water?
This is something that is safe to do but you should watch what they are doing, don’t make the ice cubes too small and don’t give them ice too often. Your cat will probably just lick the ice like most cats but some of them like to eat it as well which could possibly make them choke if they are careless enough and other possible things you don’t want to happen to them.
Risks Of Putting Ice In Your Cats Water
Damaged Teeth: Cats generally will lick the ice cubes but some of them might try to bite them thus resulting in damaged teeth. This can eventually cause digestive problems or mouth pain. If you have an adventurous cat that does this you might want to find another way to chill their water. Bottled water from the refrigerator is a good way to do this.
You could also avoid this by making a ice ball by freezing a balloon with water then taking the balloon off when its fully frozen. Just make sure its not too big and it fits in the dish of course.
Stomach Upset: Cats have high temperature digestive systems and their metabolisms are also like this as well. As a result giving a cat cold water too often can potentially cause them stomach discomfort. it can also cause their metabolism to slow down.
Brain Freeze: Ice water is tasty to cats but they could potentially get brain freeze if they drink too much of it too fast which can be very uncomfortable for them.
Benefits Of Putting Ice In Your Cats Water
Keeps Your Cat Cool During Hot Weather: When its really hot outside putting ice in your cats water can help them stay cool during the summer time.
Helps Them Drink More: If your cat doesn’t like room temperature water making the water colder with ice can potentially make them drink more water. If your cat isn’t hydrated enough this might be something you might want to do.
Gives Them Something To Do: If you take the ice cubes out when they are done with all of their water there is a good chance they will start playing with it by knocking it around the floor. This also helps them cool down because they are touching it with there paws which is one of the ways they expel heat from their bodies.
The only thing that you might not like by doing this is the floor will be wet because it will eventually melt.
Some Cats Don’t Like Tap Water
Another thing to consider is some cats don’t like hard water and might not even try to drink it. Its filled with chlorine and other nasty particles that don’t really taste all that good. If that’s the case you should try bottled or filtered water when making ice cubes for them which will please even the pickiest cats.
Do Cats Like Water Fountains?
Cats really like running water since there hearing makes it easier for them to find compared to a dish but I’ve seen cats not really like these things very much and won’t drink out of it at all. It all comes down to what your cats personality is like.
Flavoring Your Cats Water
Putting ice cubes in your cats water is a great thing to do but you can make this experience even better by flavoring it for them. Before you freeze the ice cubes you can put things like tuna juice in the water. Make sure to also have a bowl that isn’t flavored so they don’t get bored and have variety.
How Much Water Should A Cat Drink In 24 Hours?
Now that you know what the temperature of water your cat should drink what about the amount? Your cat should drink roughly around 3.5 to 4.5 of water in a day. If you have a larger cat the amount will be a little more which should be roughly around 7 to 9 ounces of water.
Conclusion
Most cats like drinking cold water and you probably won’t have too many problems as long as your cat isn’t too picky. Just experiment and you will figure out what they like the most.
