Cats don’t like water.
There’s water, water everywhere here in Southern California these days. And boy do we need it. For years now, we’ve been tearing out lawns and replacing them with gravel, decomposed granite, succulents, etc. We’re taking shorter showers and shallower baths, driving around in dirty cars, letting sidewalk chalk, spilled drinks, etc. remain on cement walkways until the next sprinkle or drizzle and letting plants that need a lot of water die. I’ve even lost a few drought tolerant plants. And we’re doing this so we and our children and their children will have water to drink in the future.
There are some who seem oblivious to the water problems here. They still water expansive lawns, roses, and tropical plants. They let the water run while washing their hands and brushing their teeth. They wash their cars, use hoses without on and off nozzles, irrigate even though it just rained or rain is forecast. There are those who just refuse to conserve water. Lily is one of them. Well, she doesn’t wash a car…she’s a cat. But she does consume a lot of water and even wastes some.
A couple of other things we did to conserve water was to buy a water-saver washing
Lily lapping it up.
machine and we had our water softener removed. So now Lily can drink out of the faucets again. And she begs every morning and evening for us to turn on the bathtub water at a trickle so she can lap it up.
She loves water. Well, she has a kidney disease, so I guess that’s the reason. She has always consumed a lot of water. Because of her love for water, we have four water bowls for the cats and a kitty drinking fountain. And Lily still sneaks a lap from my water glass every chance she gets.
Each time the water bill comes, I show it to Lily and I remind her she must conserve water—not drink so much of it. But, alas, she pays me no never mind. So I’ve discovered some creative ways to justify allowing her to drink to her heart’s content. When I want to change out the cats’ water—freshen it up, I use the old water to water my indoor African violets or the succulent pot on the front porch that doesn’t get rain water.
At least Lily doesn’t play in her water and spill it like our white odd-eye cat Winfield used to do. Winfield drank water using his paw. He’d stick a paw into the water bowl and lick the water off. That’s how he drank. And he played in his water, often spilling it. Then he got a strange rash of bumps on his chin. Come to find out this was caused by the plastic bowl we were feeding him from. So we went to pottery bowls for food and water, such as those you see in rabbit cages. They are difficult to tip, so less water is spilled and wasted.
Conservation doesn’t end with the people in the house. Even our pets should be included in your water-savings plan. What changes have you put in place to assure a better tomorrow for all domesticated animals? And what about our wild animals—the birds and mammals that visit your yard? What changes have you made to help them survive the drought in California or the harsh winters in your state?
