Is it normal for my cat to drink less water on a wet food diet?

For some cats this is normal. This is likely the case with Tinkle, because she has been eating like this for so long. They will only eat as much as they need and will maintain a lean body weight. This is only concerning if the cat is too thin. Below is a link to diagram that shows what the various grades of body condition are: https://www.wsava.org/sites/default/files/Body%20condition%20score%20chart%20cats.pdf If Tinkle is a 3 or below, then I would be concerned. This could indicate a long history of parasitism (worms), or some other condition. If you are ever concerned that she is too thin, then I recommend having a vet doctor examine her for any abnormalities. Otherwise, if she is a 4-5 and acting normal, then it is great that she is so good at maintaining this lean body weight. Thin cats tend to be healthier and live longer than fat cats. I hope that helps and all is well with Tinkle.

Wet food does have a higher moisture content, so your cat may be getting enough water from the wet food that he doesn't need to drink anything additional. It's good that you see him drink a lot of water when he eats dry food, and you can add some more water to his wet food if you want just to make sure he is getting enough water :-)

Hi and thanks for visiting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Nothing alarming so far. She is at the age where her food intake will naturally decrease because she no longer needs the three meals a day regimen she was getting as a younger kitten. The only thing I would keep an eye on is her urination habits. If she is urinating more and it has a foul odor to it, you may want to get her checked for a UTI. Other than that this sounds like normal kitty behavior. Best wishes and I hope everything works out well for your kitty Mia and I hope her leg heals well so she can finally get spayed. Take care.

Wet food is actually biologically a better food for cats. Dry food is easier for humans, but cats are desert animals and tend to run a little dehydrated if fed only a dry food diet. Since Spunkers already likes wet food, you should be able to easily transition her over to a wet food diet. However, since you have noticed that Spunkers is drinking more water than normal, I would recommend having her evaluated by your veterinarian and run some routine bloodwork and a urinalysis to make sure there aren't any metabolic changes that are causing the change in her water intake. A canned food diet is always a good idea for cats, but we also need to make sure there isn't anything else going on that needs to be treated. I hope that was helpful. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Congratulations on your new addition! If you haven't previously fed 100% canned food before, you may not be used to how infrequently cats will drink water. My cats are also on a 100% canned food diet, and I rarely see them drink water (maybe once a week). That is because they get almost all the moisture they need from the canned food. It is important to have fresh water available to her at all times, but I would not be worried about not seeing a cat on 100% canned food not drink. If you're concerned, you might consider adding some water to her caned food or adding a running fountain since most cats prefer that to drink from. If Bronte seems stressed otherwise, you could try a couple of things. One option for decreasing stress is to add a Feliway Diffuser ( https://www.feliway.com ) to your house. This is a calming pheromone that will work for a month. I have also had luck with Rescue Remedy ( http://www.bachflower.com/rescue-remedy-pet/ ) which can be added to the food. You could also consider calming music specifically for cats ( http://throughadogsear.com/tace/through-a-cats-ear-1-music-for-calming/ ). Good luck! I hope that was helpful. Thanks for using PetCoach.

Water intake can fluctuate a bit even in normal, healthy animals, based on their activity level, environmental temperature, and how much moisture is in their food. As long as a pet is eating well, and playful and happy with a normal energy level, then a decrease in drinking doesn't concern me. The more worrisome change would be a consistent increase in water consumption. If you notice that Moosh seems to suddenly have a consistent increase in his drinking habits, that warrants a vet visit. I only worry about a decrease in drinking if it is also accompanied by a decrease in appetite. As a general rule, if a pet is eating normally, they're drinking enough for their body's needs. But an increase in water consumption is always worth investigating, as it can indicate kidney disease, diabetes, or other internal concerns.

Having an excess of fleas and drinking a lot of water doesn't typically go together. It could be if it's hot where you are, Cookie is drinking extra water to try to cool down. I do think a visit to the vet is a good idea, and be sure to mention this excess drinking. I hope this helps!