Picking The Right Cat Water Fountain
Pet owners love their pets, but at the same time we are always looking for ways to make our lives a little bit easier. One way to do just that at the same time as we are making our cat’s lives more interesting is with the addition of a cat water fountain. There are quite a few different fountains on the market, so it pays to do just a little research so you can find the one that is best suited for your home and your pets.
The first thing you will notice is that these fountains are made from several different materials. In general, most pet fountains are made out of plastic. But there are also some that are made from ceramic and stainless steel. A pretty good case can be made that a stainless steel pet fountain is the healthiest choice, followed closely by the ceramic version. The reason is because bacteria simply cannot survive as long on these types of surfaces as they can on plastic. This can be overcome with more routine maintenance if you own a plastic fountain, but it is worth thinking about and considering the slightly higher cost of those ceramic and stainless versions.
Once you get into the details of the various fountains on the market, you will see that there are really just a few major manufacturers of these pet appliances. Perhaps one of the oldest and best known fountains for cats is the Hagen Catit Drinking Fountain. The Hagen design features a globe of water, unlike most other fountains which feature some type of waterfall. The Hagen fountains consist of a round bowl that has a globe on top of it. the water is pumped up through the middle of the globe and then allowed to run back down the surface of the globe until it winds up back in the main bowl. Cats just love to lick the globe and drink the flowing water from its surface.
Regardless of which fountain you choose, it is sure to make your life easier at the same time as your cat is being made healthier simply by drinking more water. Just keep the regular maintenance in mind and you should be able to avoid any of those bacteria issues. In general, the filter will need to be changed every couple of weeks while the fountain itself will need a good cleaning weekly. Other than that you can just top off the water as needed and enjoy your extra free time to spend with your cat!