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My cat won't drink water after move. Is wet food enough for hydration?

Updated on September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Cat | American Shorthair | Female | spayed | 9 years and 7 months old | 17 lbs

Hey guys! My poor cat (9 year old American shorthair) recently was adopted from another family, just before I moved. So, she's moved three times in the last few months. She is very stressed, and since the most recent move, she hasn't been drinking water from her bowl. I have tried 3 different "kinds" of water and she's not interested. I've been feeding her 100% wet food, and she seems otherwise fine and happy (minus stress), but I'm wondering if I should worry. It's been 5 days since the move.

1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

Answered By Dr. Heidi DVM, CVA, CCRT, CVTP, CVSMT, CVCH

Veterinarian, Certified Veterinary Acupuncturist, Certified Canine Rehabilitation Practitioner

Published on August 7th, 2018

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.

1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

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