Is my 6-month-old cat's fluctuating water intake normal? When to worry?

If your kitten is eating well and is playful and otherwise normal, I would not be too concerned. However, if he is drinking so much that he is vomiting up water or urinating excessively, then I would recommend an examination by your veterinarian.

Hello and thank you for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Excessive thirst in cats is always a concern and should be investigated. Squishy may drink a lot of water because of diabetes, kidney problems, overactive thyroid gland, liver disease or even tumor development. You should take Squishy to your local vets for an appointment as she will need full clinical examination and possibly a blood test to find out what the problem is. In the meantime, you should let her drink as much as wants to maintain normal hydration - she will not get into any problems because of that.

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.

Since you cat’s behavior has changed so abruptly I would recommend taking him in to the vet to be checked out. He may have an underlying infection or virus causing his symptoms or may have intestinal parasites, which isnfaily common in young kittens. I would also recommend keeping him inside (if not already) so you can keep a closer eye on him. I hope this helps. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Best of luck with your little cutie!

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.

It's definitely unusual for cats to noticeably drink a lot of water, since they usually don't drink much at all - this can be a sign of many different illnesses, including liver or kidney disease, diabetes, or a thyroid problem. If you feel that Lucky's water intake has increased lately and is more than normal, I would recommend taking him to the vet for an exam as soon as you are able to. Your vet can do blood work and a urinalysis to help determine if anything is wrong, and get him started on appropriate treatment if any problems are found.

Great question! I would measure how much June is drinking, and how much she is urinating. Cats typically drink 60ml/kg per day. June is about 3.2kg, so she should be drinking 191mls per day. I would measure out 500ml into her water bowl in the morning, and the next morning, measure the remaining amount. If it's more than 200-250ml, then she is drinking excessively. As for measuring urine output, that's a little harder, but you can leave a litter box out for her without litter. If she does use it, you can measure out her urine produced in a 24 hour period. Typically, she should urinate about 30ml/kg in that time period. That's 96ml for June. If it's more than that, then she is peeing excessively. At that point, I would have her seen by a vet for blood tests and a urinalysis to diagnose what is causing her symptoms, such as diabetes, kidney disease, or hyperthyroidism.