Cat testing the water
 

Does anyone else's furbaby do this? He's an old boy but has done it for years much to the dog's disgust. That's why there is the outside basin! He'll just paddle away and have a great time. Wonder why?

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My one dog Bridgette will do that to any bucket of water that may be outside. She doesn't do it in the house but if there's one outside she will have at and really flip the water.

My Tucker cat will do that from time to time. Especially if he sees me put an ice cube in there.

Oh goodness, yes. My largest girl does that. She will sit and watch it forever too. I finally got a water fountain from Walmart for them. mama and her two girls. Rosie is the one who will put her paw in it or start to drink and her right paw keeps moving as if she is digging in the dirt. Her father was Norwegian Forest cat and I've read they love water. Yep, they do!! Rosie is the biggest one in the photo, closest.

Oh, I'll have to try that! ..... He like to lick it!

It's taken me 1 1/2 yrs to get my dog to drink inside!! Only if I held the bowl would she do it and she's 8 yrs old! But, yes, outside - any hose, bucket, puddle. Even now, I have a small bucket on the steps to catch rain water for her. Don't know how her previous owners "watered" her!

My son's cat likes to pat the water as it comes out of the tub faucet. He stands on the edge of the tub and is not amused when he slips.:D

Most of my cats have had the "water patting" habit. I always thought it was so they could see the water, making it easier for them to know how much to lower their heads so they wouldn't get water up their nose. My remaining elderly cat always wants a *fresh* bowl of water. I think this is because the temperature of it is different from room temp, again making it easier for her to drink without getting water up her nose. But I could be wrong......

That is so cute! Cats get up to some very funny hijinks! http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=IoZo43bO_5o

Yes my cat splatters his water.. For # of reasons, testing the temp of water, see their reflections, and because they wash their paws to then clean their face with.. I've watch my kitten for hours before getting TV. The conclusion.. I think maybe it gives them a sexual thrill I know it sounds crazy but their pads are very scent sensitive. Watch them next time. They only do this with water not milk because it has a scent.

They are all practicing "how to fish and catch big ones".

We had a faucet that dripped occasionally and our cat would lay in the bathroom sink and wait for it to drip and swat it with her paw and then lick the water off. After a while she was laying in a puddle in the sink because she had the sink plugged with her body and didn't seem to care.

I have a new fur baby (same coloring) who loves the water. Iggy, my other cat does not want to get his feet wet. But Smokey splashes it, dips his head under the faucet and loves it. Iggy likes to be "watered" by me holding my hand under the running water so that he can sip from my hand. Ah, what we do for our babies.

My cat puts his paw in the water bowl and moves it around, sometimes tips it over. It drove me nuts so I bought a watering fountain from Amazon. Works great but I have to take apart and clean it every few days. Guess it's worth it if it keeps me from slipping in his spilled water and possibly ending up with a broken bone someday.

Mine does the same thing as nativetexan says her's do..(just the female cat)
So funny to watch though....

My cat Ibenez used to drop a piece of food into the water, swish it around and then retrieve and eat it. We think she may have had a raccoon gene in there somewhere. I'm sure she is still washing her food at the Bridge.

This is exactly what my cat does! I've always said he must be thinking, "If there's water, it must be spilled!" I hate the mess, but he has always been this way.

I also have to keep the water dish in a pan. Both of my cats like to play in the water. They are fascinated by water but not to bath in.
Also have a fountain bowl but they play in that too and it is harder to keep clean.

I was told by a vet that cats stir the water so they can see it. Otherwise they don't see the top of the water and won't put their face in it. That is why the fountain works. Our cat likes to drink when the faucet is on.

I had one cat, a female orange tabby, that used to cup her paw and pick up the water to drink. She didn't do it all the time, but it was funny.

My tom cat would put his foot in the water & lick it off his paw. I could always tell when he had taken a drink by the wet paw prints on the porch.

I had a cat that laid beside puddles and watched the bubbles that come up as the frost is coming out. He would do that for hours. Very strange.

Both of my cats like to drink running water from the faucet but will also drink from a bowl. One of them also likes to put her catnip mice in the water bowl. Haven't figured that one out yet.

I got mine a fountain because Rosie would just sit there staring at the water bowl. Had to be boring as all get out, so I got the fountain. Now she stares at the moving water.

hahaha loved the cat compulations ! Oh heck the maine coon I am fostering doesn't play like that- he acts as if its beneath him! LOL

My Keegan does that....only it is with my tea :p that is how he steals tastes! I have a lot of tea cups with lids now :p

I had a female cat who would dip her paw in the water and then lick it clean. It was the way she normally would drink her water. She didn't do it until we got a 2nd cat. I think she didn't want to put her tongue in the same bowl that the the other cat used.

I believe that cats have a problem with depth perception when looking down. Besides the fact that the surface of the water is difficult to see, it's usually below the cat's head. Notice how careful cats are when they jump down. Mine will jump across the furniture rather than jump to the floor.

Puzzler

Not sure if this is true, but I read somewhere that animals prefer running/moving water to drink because in nature that is the freshest and so the safest to drink. Guess they put their paws in the water to make it move.

We had two part Norwegian forest cats and they did that with the water. The boy cat was fond of slurping water out of the tub when someone had a long soak. EEEUUWW! Dunno why they do the pat the water thing. Our new cat, Nibbs, pats the water, too.

All our cats have done and, those who are alive and living with us now, still do this. I researched this behavior a while back. If I remember correctly it was explained that cats (the big ones our domestics are descended from) always "clear" the water, checking that it is suitable for drinking. Remember, in the wild a water source may be covered with algae or other natural debris. If the cat can "clear" the debris away and finds fresh water, it will drink. It may not be needed now that they always have access to fresh water, but they still do ii. Aren't our brains wonderful? Theirs, and ours, are primitive and sophisticated at the same time. I love my cats!

Oh, my word!! My son's F 18 yr old long black hair, Blackie, does this!!! They had to put water in heavier bowl but you can still hear her make the bowl bounce around….. She'll just paw & paw & paw...

I wondered about that. It really ticks off the dog because that's her bowl. The cat eats, uses the litter box, then comes and puts her litter-laden paws in the dogs water!

And yes, I enjoy all animals and learning about them.

we have a 1000sq ft condo. Zoey has 2 water fountains and 2 cups she drinks out of. If the fountains aren't on, she'll
"dig" the water. she likes the movement. she does, however, cover her food when she's done. she has gotten a bit overzealous and knocked her bowl clear across the kitchen.