Tap Water - Safe For Pets?

[chiangmaibruce]

Hi. I would imagine this topic has been addressed somewhere in this forum but I couldn't find it with a search.

I brought my cat to Thailand a few months ago and he has done just fine. This week however he got loose stools with blood in it. Although he spends about 95% of his time indoors I thought it might be worms (maybe from eating little geckos) and gave him a dose of Revolution. Anyway the problem persisted for another 2 days so I took him to the vet (he was happy and eating well). The vet said he had a protozoan infection in his gut (ie. something like giardia) and gave me tablets and special food.

Also last week we ran out of bottled water and just had enough for the family so for the first time I gave the cat tap water (did this for 2 days). I had been feeling a bit silly about giving him bottled water all this time, but maybe this is not so silly after all. What are others experience with this issue? Note we live in Chiang Mai and I have seen some local folks drink the tap water.

- CB

[lazeeboy]

been giving my dogs tap water for years no problem ,i think it is fine for them .....

[magnolia_fan]

Also last week we ran out of bottled water and just had enough for the family so for the first time I gave the cat tap water (did this for 2 days). I had been feeling a bit silly about giving him bottled water all this time, but maybe this is not so silly after all. What are others experience with this issue? Note we live in Chiang Mai and I have seen some local folks drink the tap water.

It's a cat. They drink out of toilets and lick their own butts. You really think they need bottled watter?

[Samuian]

No way! Animals wouldn't go near the water food provided if there is something wrong with it!

Even they are domesticated they still got a healthy instinct.... best is leave em...or

[Nienke]

At the kennel all animals get tap water, dogs and cats alike. In case owners provide their pet with drinking water and do not tell me, then these pets go on tap water cold turkey with no problems. I had two dogs in boarding that got drinking water at home and at the kennel as well. However, as there are always buckets with fresh tap water available they also drank tap water, with no problems.

In case of your cat, if he was used only to drinking water and then received tap water for the first time, there is a slight possibility that he got sick of this. On the other hand, you say that your cat stays indoors for 95%, then it is also possible he picked something up from the 5% he is outside.

Furthermore, if a dog or cat has diarrhea it is not advisable to give it a wormcure. It's better to first solve the diarrhea, once the feces are back to normal then you can give a dewormer.

From what i've been told by the vet, geckos can give worms. Tapeworm if i recall well.

Nienke

[Sheryl]

Also last week we ran out of bottled water and just had enough for the family so for the first time I gave the cat tap water (did this for 2 days). I had been feeling a bit silly about giving him bottled water all this time, but maybe this is not so silly after all. What are others experience with this issue? Note we live in Chiang Mai and I have seen some local folks drink the tap water.

It's a cat. They drink out of toilets and lick their own butts. You really think they need bottled watter?

I belive you have them confused with (horror of horror!) dogs.

A cat would have to be dying of dehydration to drink from a toilet (and pretty agile, at that).

Cats are meticulously clean animals. They also are quite discriminating in what they will eat or drink and you can generally rely on their instincts to avoid any food or water that isn't right.

I'm right up there in the major league of cat spoilers (glad to meet a fellow member, Bruce!) but even I give my cat tap water and she's fine with it. Although I do have to regulalry freshen it and keep the bowl nice and clean.

[londonthai]

my cat drinks regularly from the toilet - it's the freshest water in the house she can find. Funny to watch her doing it, but it's doable.

surely protozoan somehow ended up in your kittie's guts most likely from some spoiled outdoor food. The tap water is clean

[Daffy D]

It would be difficult to give an answer to your question as there are obviously different types of tap water depending what part of the country you live.

We have a gang of stray cats living round here. They obviously forage for food as I have seen them eat lizards and drink from whatever muddy puddle is available.

We get municipal tap water that comes straight from the mountains. (Well the hills really) There is no artificial taste or smell to the water so I’m guessing they don’t process it in any way.

Just for interest our healthy 3 year old (human) sometimes drinks straight from the tap though we explain to her the difference between tap and bottle water I guess to her it’s all the same and some times the tap is handier than the fridge.

D.D.

[Sheryl]

my cat drinks regularly from the toilet - it's the freshest water in the house she can find.

you don't provide her with a bowl of fresh water?

Scully (my cat) likes her water bowl cleaned out and refilled often...at least daily, preferrably twice daily (actually, she'd probably prefer it to eb fresh each and every time she goes to drink from it, but enough is enough).

I wouldn't want water that sat in a bowl on the floor (collecting dust etc) all day either, and it only takes a sec to freshen a water bowl.............

[londonthai]

no, she has a water bowl filled up when she finishes it - so once every few days. Because it is next to her dry food she drinks from it after each meal.

water in the toilet is fresh each time somebody flushes it - so changes many times per day. She drinks from here more often than from the water bowl.

I have read about cats who were pooing in the toilet or peeing in the bathroom sink or bath tube if they were unable to go out to the garden - the toilets designed for cats are much more messy and need constant attention.