Cats & pool water

[kmerkel]

Looks like we've been chosen by a local stray. Problem is, he doesn't like the clean water we leave out for him, but he will readily drink out of the vegetable planters and the pool. Is there any long-term adverse effect to him doing this? We use chlorine and I'm pretty good about keeping the water balanced. He doesn't appear to be very afraid of the water; he will walk on the pool railing to say hi when I'm adding chemicals into the return stream.

Once we get him checked out and fixed we'll see how he does indoors. If we decided he's a good fit for us, we'll work on training him to drink clean(er) water, but for now I don't want him to get accidentally poisoned. And if anyone has tricks on how to make fresh water more attractive, I'm willing to listen!

 

[magiteck]

I’ve had cats that just love moving water as opposed to still water in a bowl.

You could try something like this:
Pet Fountain Cat Water Dispenser - Healthy and Hygienic Drinking Fountain Super Quiet Flower Automatic Electric Water Bowl with 2 Replacement Filters for Dogs, Cats, Birds and Small Animals Blue : Amazon.com

 

[scout123]

I think it's the movement of the pool water. My cats will not drink out of a bowl. I have a water fountain for cats, and they'll drink from that. However, they'll also drink from the toilets...cats are just weird. LOL

 

[crokett]

My dog won't drink the pool water but for some reason he'll happily lap up the rain and dew on the rail top seats, deck chairs, tarps, etc before he drinks the water in his bowl.

 

[Chasarms]

Our cat (now in kitty heaven) would always jump up on the vanity on the morning when I was brushing my teeth for a drink from the slowly running faucet. It was a ritual.