# Annoying fountain



## Vivid Dawn (May 31, 2010)

So I got my cats one of those drinking fountains. Actually, my sister bought it and gave it to me for Christmas.
Anyhoo! I finally got around to putting it together and get it going. I hate it! The box said "quiet flow", which I thought was alright...soft trickling water noise is soothing to me, and doesn't need to be very loud anyway. But I was hoping for SOME water-trickle noise... nothin'. Absolutely silent.

I wonder if I can get some little flexible tubing from the hardware store, and attach it to the spout and divert it to run directly into the bowl of water, rather than the little ramp - which is the thing that makes it quiet, as it hits a slightly sloped surface rather than the water.

Nebbie's not quite sure what to think of it. She got interested as soon as I started pulling parts and equipment out of the box. The mat that it's on (and even the floor) vibrate a bit because of the motor. But I don't think that bothers her any... she stood in front of it, ears perked and just watched/listed for a good five minutes. Took a few laps from the water, then went back to playing.
Paizly just watched from the couch, and hasn't bothered to come over and investigate more, yet.
I wonder if either one will bat at the stream of water, as I've heard many cats do. Nebbie hasn't, but it's only been 15 minutes so far.










Oh... I guess the box says "nearly silent"... but still. It's actually *completely* silent. I wanna rig it up to make noise!


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## Sinatra-Butters (Aug 9, 2010)

I had the Whisker City before we threw it away and my mom got us a Drinkwell for my birthday. It really is very silent, but I liked that so I don't know how you could make it make some noise.I'm sorry I can't offer a solution to you, but I just wanted to tell you to keep the receipt! We didn't have one because it was a gift and it started leaking after a month. We had to get a tray for the excess and change it every night, because Sinatra loved it and refused to drink out of anything else (he even hated the Drinkwell for awhile, he loved the Whisker City). Yours may not leak, but I would watch for cracks or you may wake up one morning to a liter of water on your floor. 
Mine don't bat at the water, but Nutmeg cleans her paws in it when she thinks I'm not looking. 

Sorry to be negative, I just wanted to warn you!


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## raecarrow (Oct 27, 2009)

I had the Whisker City Fountain but the boys kept knocking it over and it broke and started to leak.

I now have the CatIt Fountain. I love it, the cats love it too and they can't knock it over. The only problem is that it makes a good deal of noise. You can usually hear the motor running but sometimes it will start burbling and that really bothers me.









I don't use the food dish on the side, it is removeable.

Hagen CatIt Fresh & Clear Water Fountain for Cats and Small Dogs at PETCO


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## saitenyo (Nov 28, 2010)

I have the Drinkwell and it definitely makes noise (I too find it pleasant). Not a lot of noise, just a gentle trickle. Between that and the fish tank, it sounds like it's gently raining in my house. 

Although when mine gets low, it starts making a horrible grinding noise. That's always my cue to refill it.

Neither of my cats bat at the stream, but they do drink directly from it usually, instead of drinking from the bowl part.


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## Vivid Dawn (May 31, 2010)

Don't got a receipt, as it was a gift.
Though I honestly won't be mad if it didn't last long. This is sort of a "trial version", as I don't know how it'll work over-all. And of _course_ Paizly seems afraid of it! She's the main reason I got it, because I heard they drink more from fountains and she has recurring UTI issues. BLEH! Why does she have to be afraid of _everything_??

I really would like the 360 (Drinkwell?) one, but I can't afford it.


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## Time Bandit (Aug 17, 2010)

I have a small water fountain from Drs. Foster and Smith, to see if my girls would use it before buying a more expensive one. I got it on sale for $20. You can see it here: Cat fountain: water bowl: Doctors Foster and Smith Cat Fountain

It's pretty quiet, but you can hear the small stream of water which I like. When it gets low though, you can hear the motor. I just refill when that happens with the Brita pitcher and all is fine again. The cats really love it, Alice uses the actual stream to drink, whereas the other two use the bowl part. I love the fact that the entire thing but the little motor is dishwasher safe...makes cleaning a breeze with this thing!


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## Susan (Mar 29, 2010)

I suspect Paizly will get more used to it in time. Try feeding her or giving her some treats in the area of the fountain, so she learns there's nothing to be afraid of.


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## saitenyo (Nov 28, 2010)

Yeah both my cats were a little wary of the fountain at first, but they warmed up to it eventually.


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## wEngelw (Jun 25, 2009)

I've been thinking about getting Zaya a fountain too as I heard it encourages them to drink more and I think now she drinks too little. I was wondering if they all need to be plugged in or are there kinds with batteries or some other kind of motor where it doesn't need to be plugged in? If there are, has anyone tried them? How was it? Thanks!


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## Vivid Dawn (May 31, 2010)

Mine plugs in. Just be sure that you have it set up so the cord "loops" in a U shape between the fountain and the outlet. That way, if the cord gets wet, the moisture doesn't reach the electrical source. Some people put the fountain up on a shelf to help with this. My outlet is actually up in the middle of the wall (I live in the basement, so the outlets are all higher up), so I have the fountain on the floor.... besides, Paizly is crippled and can't get up on a shelf anyway! So my set-up works just fine all around.


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## Goldtanker (Jan 9, 2011)

Midnight, the wild cat that lives under my porch and in the garage, has a heated water dish in the garage filled with fresh water. Sometimes he drinks from it but his preferred source is the heated bird bath that I put on the ground in the winter so the birds and animals can use it. I have explained to him what the birds do in there, but he is oblivious. :razz:


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## Salemcat2 (Dec 28, 2010)

It looks really nice, and sounds like a good idea in theory, but if we had that, we would return home to find the entire kitchen floor covered in water!! Because Dagny has an infatuation with water, he would play in it and bat at it all day if he had this! That's the reason his water dish is in the bath tub......


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## Vivid Dawn (May 31, 2010)

Goldtanker said:


> Midnight, the wild cat that lives under my porch and in the garage, has a heated water dish in the garage filled with fresh water. Sometimes he drinks from it but his preferred source is the heated bird bath that I put on the ground in the winter so the birds and animals can use it. I have explained to him what the birds do in there, but he is oblivious. :razz:


My ferals do that, too! I don't have a heated bird bath, so they can only drink from it when it's not frozen. (during the winter I put out a bowl of hot water every day about noon)

Cynthia drinking from the bird bath









Her daughter, Disco, follows suit!










They do this, even though I obviously already have 2 bowls of water out for them... which I rinse out and put fresh water in daily. The bird bath only gets rinsed out/refilled to keep mosquitoes from breeding...but I would still think it's more icky than cat bowl water!


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## Goldtanker (Jan 9, 2011)

Cats aren't the only violators of the clean water rule. I have two heated tubs for the deer, but nevertheless - They go to the birdbaths! :?


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