# paws in water bowl



## Motoko (May 21, 2004)

I did a search on this topic and found that there's a few cats who dip their paws into their water/food and drink/eat off their paws. Antigone does something similar to that.. she dips her paw in the water and then starts drinking from the bowl. We took care of a friend's kitten once and she did the same thing. Just a dip and then drink.

The reason why I bring this up is because as some of you might know, Antigone has a huge splint on one front limb, and just now I watched her as she dipped the huge splint into the water bowl, take it out, and started drinking normally from the bowl. Before when she didnt have the splint she would do that, and I thought she was testing the temperature or something... but now I see her do it with her splint and it makes no sense!! (but then again, she's starting to think that huge peg leg is her own since she licks and cleans it regularly now). 

So.. I wonder why some cats dip their paws in the water... anyone know?


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## MerytBast (Feb 21, 2005)

*paw drinking...*

Paw drinking is about the only way my cat Mulder will drink, he very _rarely_ drinks normal. His mother Fitty likes to skim or scoop the top of the water before/during drinking. And our other cat K2 kneeds the ground while drinking...the only normal drinker is Abyss (Mulder's brother). 
Ever since Mulder was born he's been drinking this way. I'm not exactly sure why he or other cats do, but I think it's just about their personality and preference. Mulder favors his left paw-- in drinking, batting toys, etc--so it makes my think that cats _do_ favor one way/thing over another. I'm just glad none of our cats are toilet drinkers :wink:


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## Judy (Jan 22, 2005)

Bailey Jane does this too. I always thought she was moving the surface of the water so she wouldn't stick her whole nose in the bowl. Now we have a tube dish for them. It acts like the old water coolers that send bubbles up when the water is disturbed. NOW SHE CHASES THE BUBBLES!


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## tornangel012 (Feb 18, 2005)

My First cat never did that But My Kiala does that sometimes. He'll always paw his food out of the bowl and eat it from the floor and same with his water. Sometimes he'll drink or eat directly from the bowl but the his head is so far to the end he can't even see the food or water and he just keeps doing his thing. I don't worry because as long as he is eating and drinking and playing I'm happy and he's happy. 

He is afraid of Bubbles though. I got him catnip bubbles it scares the **** out of him when they pop.


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## Payge (May 12, 2004)

I read about this on a Bengal information site(Envy does this too but Chaos does not) they stated the reason for doing this is to brush away any debris on the surface of the water so they can take a 'clean' drink. It goes back to their wild roots. Whether or not this is true I cannot say, but it makes sense.


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## RarePuss (Jun 16, 2004)

My Marsh does this, he'll paw at the water, and only then starts drinking. no biggie


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## Motoko (May 21, 2004)

Payge said:


> I read about this on a Bengal information site(Envy does this too but Chaos does not) they stated the reason for doing this is to brush away any debris on the surface of the water so they can take a 'clean' drink. It goes back to their wild roots. Whether or not this is true I cannot say, but it makes sense.


Ohh now that is very interesting and makes sense...even though there tends not to be any debris in their water (except for the usual chunk of cat food that they fling outta their mouths so gracefully). 

I just thought it was hilarious that Tiggy would dunk her huge peg leg into the water haha


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## SylvestersMom (Nov 16, 2004)

:roll: My cat does this, too. Makes a heck of a mess on the floor (he splashes) and if he's just been in the litter box, it messes up the water, too!


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## EqusArch (Oct 7, 2004)

Our does it as well. 
She also eats her food that way. Each individual piece she picks up whith her paw and eats it. I think she's part raccoon.


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## SylvestersMom (Nov 16, 2004)

Yes! I finally separated the water bowl from the food bowl and its a little less messy.


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## Sashka (Jan 7, 2005)

Denzel does this too but he'll then jump on the bowl and spill all the water out. Thats his way of telling me he wants to play. So I fill a plastic laundry basin with about 2 to 3 inches of water and he goes crazy, slapping the water with his paws and then goes in with all fours and does.

Funny little things aren't they.


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## tigersmom (Sep 9, 2004)

Tiger does this, I thought he liked to watch the ripples in the water (and to test the depth.) At least we know our cats aren't the only ones doing it!


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## AnimalLover4ever04 (Jan 11, 2005)

Well i know someone that lives next to me and thier cats do that she said the reason why they do it is probably because the cant see the water nad wants to know where it is and also probably to see how cold the water is. Well that is all i would guess why so i hope this helps you some.


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## PainIsOnlyMe (Mar 6, 2005)

My oldest cat Rokey does this, I find it funny :lol:


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## zoeae (Feb 21, 2005)

Chloe does this, each time she drinks from the water dish, and Connor does this also, but Connor will tip over his water and food dish on purpose. While i am cleaning it up then he will come to me for attention. Then not only are both his paws soaking wet, but the floor is also. LOL. I find it amusing for now, and looking for a heavier dish set for him.


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## Ta3339 (Feb 8, 2004)

Teagan has always done this, and now... Tierney is picking up on it.

Tierney has a bad habbit of going into the fireplace (it is never used) but it is still dirt from the previous owners. so he comes out with dirty paws... well the other day i found black paw prints in the toilet bowl. 

They always have plenty of water, so i am not sure why they would drink from there... but we know make sure we leave the cover down!


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## Melissaandcats (Aug 18, 2004)

Jack moves the bowl while he drinks it.. I've watched him do this alot. he starts drinking, and backing up at the same time, with one paw in the bowl. Sometimes when i come in from work the bowl has moved quite a bit away from the usual spot its in.

Miss Teenie Mum does something funny too. Not with her water bowl but people drinks. If anyone leaves a cup of water around, she dips her paw in it and the proceeds to clean herself with it. i live with my boyfriend and his two 6 year old twins, and they are famous for leaving a cup of water on the bathroom sink. i know shes been in there grooming, because when shes done, shes bats the cups until they fall over. Most mornings i wake up to a wet bathroom floor.


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## soph0127 (Mar 6, 2005)

My blue tabby persian Blue does that all the time .... he even falls asleep with his paws in the water bowl....Always reminds me of the joke at sleep overs.


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## Feral Fan (Feb 9, 2005)

I get the pawing at the water dish thing, always thought it was funny but depth testing/debris clearing, that I understand. But why on earth does my calico insist on filling the water dish with pipe cleaners???? Yes the fuzzy little wire thingys, yes, filled, three to six per day. I am thinking of saving up for a fountain so Scarlet can play in the dish with her pipecleaners as much as she likes but the other two kitties can drink without fear of being attacked by a dish full of pipe cleaner! I change the water (picking out the pipecleaners) and within two minutes she has started again... I have to watch them too so that if they are in the water too often she doesn't have rusty ones in her 'stash'. Sigh, at least I know why her sister paws at the dish... I would too if I found toys in my drink everyday!


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## soph0127 (Mar 6, 2005)

that is pretty interesting.....


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## Feral Fan (Feb 9, 2005)

Oh yes my little calico Scarlet is an interesting one, but an angel really. 

The pipe cleaners are her thing. She LOVES them. There is nothing else, not even catnip, that drives her as nuts as the pipe cleaners. Actually when it comes down to it light blue ones are the colour of choice as well. She stashes them all over the house, they have become my decorating style in fact. No idea why she is so crazy over them. The first time she saw one she went NUTS and it has never worn off... in fact she knows a new one from an old one, giving her a new pipe cleaner is an extra special treat. Who knows! Sometimes her sister thinks she is missing out and comes over and asks for one too... until she realizes that they are still just pipe cleaners... at which point Scarlet will swoop in and take that pipe cleaner too! Well at least she is easy to please, when I buy her a present I just pop by the dollar store and grab a new pack... where else can you get 20 cat toys for a dollar?? Oops, just made the mistake of picking up the package to see how many are in there and she came running, she can hear a pipecleaner being tapped on the carpet at the other end of the house! Can you say obsessed?????

Awwwww, there she goes, rolling on the floor with the new pipecleaner! I have to get a digital camera for moments like this...

Here is one of Scarlet trying to "liberate" one of her pipe cleaners from behind the laptop.... she thinks she is being sneaky, little does she know that mom can close the laptop! Sigh, they were inevitably just being liberated only to drown in the water dish later! :roll:


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## Bengal Cat (Aug 17, 2004)

One of my Bengals drops his toys in the water bowl then proceeds to make a mess triing to paw it out only to do it agian....lol


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## thecatsmeow (Mar 11, 2005)

My cat Tiggs (well, she was mine till I moved out of my mom's) always puts her paw in her water dish when she drinks. My mother always said that she might do that because she can't see the water because she could be near sighted. Now I don't know. But she does this funny thing with tall glasses less than half full. She puts her head all the way down in it until she can't go any further. Then she stretches her toungue out until it touches the water. It's so funny to watch. You'd almost expect her to get stuck!


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