Do cats nowadays drink cows' milk like they did in the 80s?

[PhaseFour]

Today, we have brought out 2 gorgeous rescue kittens home. I asked at the rescue shelter about what to feed them, what time, how often, and assumed that they would drink water, so didn't ask, but they won't touch it, amd seemed to shirk away from the bowl. They must be thirsty though.

Growing, in the 80s (when I last had a cat) we used to give it saucers of cows milk, but that can't be good for cats can it?

My cats have never been interested in milk and my pure bred Siamese were actively allergic (think pongy wet poo). Just leave them with clean water and they'll be fine.

Situate the water bowl away from food if you can.

Don't stress about the water - especially if they have wet food as part of their diet.
Mine is another cat who prefers puddle water.
Let them settle and get used to the place for a decent period of time (like days or maybe weeks)

My big old cat loves to drink out of bath if I trickle the tap for him. Mustn’t let me see him watching him though🤣

My cat would drink straight from the tap, the pond, puddles in the garden, our glasses of water and her water fountain but she would never touch water in a 'cat dish'.

My cat hasn't read the lactose memo and merrily licks clean all the yoghurt bowls in the evening which is generally 3-4 bowls so probably a whole yoghurt worth. He never seems to drink and tbh I've given up keeping a water bowl for him. He has wet food and goes out so presumably gets fluid from other sources.

Cats are notoriously finicky about water and will never, never drink when you think they should.

Some only like rain water. Or pond water. Or oily puddle water. Or your water. Or water they spill. Or water direct from the tap. Or bath water. Or a trickle of water in the bath or sink. Or plug water. Or shower water. Or birdbath water. Or flowerpot water....

Not many deign to drink regularly from the bowls. But still you must keep fresh water in bowls out for them and let them ignore it.

If feeding them wet food, they'll get most of their water from that. In heatwaves I usually mix a teaspoon of water in it when I give it to them.

Cats love dairy but are lactose intolerant. I've always allowed them the odd lick from my fingers, which is a treat and in 9/10 cases absolutely fine. But you can buy cat milk which some cats may like and others will not deign to look at.

My cat will have a few slurps and turn her nose up at the rest of the carton.

Golden rule with all new cats, whether kittens or rescues, is to never change their diet suddenly. Moving house & families is stressful so you want to keep food the same for at least a few weeks - so no licks of milk or custard from your finger before 2026!

If ever tempted to try a cat water fountain, get one secondhand from fb marketplace where you will find a plethora of unused fountains and other cat accessories from devoted slaves to ungrateful cats.

Cars don’t need to drink water at all unless eating dry food. Wet food typically provides all the water they need. Of course I’d always offer it by leaving a bowl out but I wouldn’t concern myself with how much they actually drink. I wouldn’t give them milk though- a lot of cats are lactose intolerant and they don’t need it.

Yes you can buy cat milk - not made from cats though. Only a fool would try to milk a cat.

We've got a bowl outside for rainwater, a pond and a birdbath. And inside we've got a fountain, a bowl of water from the waterbutt, a bowl I have to top up every day in the shower, and whichever glass some daft kid leaves out.

Ah yes. Mine does Cheese Face if you're in the kitchen and overdue on your Cheese Tax.

Modern cats still drink milk, and they are not fussy about whether it is from a supermarket! I have worked on farms where they drink milk that has come from cows, sheep, goats, powdered milk, and even fresh colostrum if they could get their hands on it (sometimes lactating animals leak milk). We regularly find cats that are not from our farm in the calving pens. If it's not the colostrum that they have come for, it is the afterbirth (providing that the cow hasn't eaten it first)...

You might want to get some feliway plug ins for use in the house over the Christmas and new year period. Even if they seem happy, it's a stressful time for many felines.

@TheeNotoriousPIG , I grew up on a farm and the cats drank milk. Didn't seem to harm them.

Well they deffo will if they get on the worktop to drink the milk from
the kids cups!

What bowl are you using? Mine hardly drank water at all until I changed from a stainless steel to a ceramic bowl. But I did also move it away from the food bowl at the same time so that may be a coincidence (but apparently is a known thing that they don't like the taste and/reflection).

Mine hid for days when they came home, would come out at night after I'd gone to bed to drink, eat & use the tray. Cats can feel very vulnerable doing any of those things so until they feel secure in new surroundings try to do them only when they are on their own as in the wild it's safer.

I read somewhere that cats prefer their water to be well away from their food source due to being carrion eaters, water near their food source might be contaminated. Our cat drinks out of the toilet bowl and no matter what I do that’s his prefered water source. He’s healthy enough at 16 that I have stopped worrying about it.

Sybil's mum clearly never told her that she's not meant to have milk. Her morning isn't complete without finishing the milk in my cereal and finishing Mrs G's porridge. It doesn't seem to do her any harm.

You can buy lactose free milk for people which is similar to cat milk only cheaper. Obviously it's sold in big enough cartons with use bys so it depends on how much you will be using.

Watch with the cat milk - our vet told us it’s very calorific and shouldn’t be given to adult cats although our last cat loved it. She would only drink water out of dirty puddles/the top of the wheelie bin despite having water bowls that were filled with clean, fresh water several times a day. In very hot weather I used to mash some water in with her wet food.

Our boy drinks from a bowl in the living room (his food is in the kitchen, plus a second water bowl as he’s shut in there overnight) and it was honestly a shock to see him lap it up after having our girl for so long. He’s not as keen on wet food so I am glad he drinks plenty. Per pp, he’s mad for cheese, and tbh will steal most human food given half a chance.

You've just reminded me, when DC were little they would sit up at the kitchen counter to have cereal in the morning and the cat would jump up on the third stool and have a bowl of milk with a few rice krispies in it. He just liked to sit at the counter and eat breakfast just like the rest of the family. I miss him so much.

My cat drinks bottled water from a glass in the garden! Also loves rain water so I have various bowls to collect it.
Hates tap water!!!

Our rescue kitten had kitten milk for a time she was underweight and pregnant. She loved it. Then you can slowly water down

Just for your benefit 😻

I love how cats are both so refined in their behaviours and then absolutely depraved. Mine have always been the same - mad for cheese, will cheerily steal milk from the cereal dregs, partial to the prawns from special fried rice much more than fresh prawns. Only drank from the toilet a few times though, prefers to lick the walls of the shower after someone’s used it.

Most cats don't like the chlorine in tap water (they can smell and taste it). We give Toasty Boy Cat bottled a little bit of bottled water- otherwise he'd drink from the toilet bowl.