Drinkwell 360 review and giveaway!
Congratulations to the winner, Marie Collins! I hope you love it!
It’s Giveaway Tuesday! My favorite day! Today we have something for all the cat owners out there, something that almost all of us have owned or have thought about owning at some point: a drinking fountain.
Despite their well known aversion to baths, cats love water- as long as they don’t have to sit in it. Turn on a stream of water in the sink and it’s like a kitty magnet- zoom! In they come, tongues extended as they oh so delicately lap away at the faucet.
Unfortunately, renal and urinary medical issues are very common to cats. Hydration can play a key role in keeping our kitties healthy. Cats who drink more because they are enjoying aerated, fresh-tasting water are better hydrated, and that is good all around. I recommend these to any owner whose pet has crystals, stones, regular UTIs, or kidney disease as one way to increase a pet’s overall water intake.
I had an old school Drinkwell fountain for many years, until the motor blew out. When Drinkwell asked me if I was interested in reviewing the Drinkwell 360, I realized that fountain technology has evolved in the years I’ve been not paying attention. Who knew? The pet fountains now look less like an aquarium and more like the actual fountain Brody’s always getting in trouble for drinking out of at Grandma’s!
The premise is the same as it has always been: the Drinkwell fountain uses a pump and a filter to continuously circulate, filter, and aerate water. The model I received has several spout rings so you can pick anywhere from one to five streams of water. I chose 5 because I thought it looked prettiest that way.
With a 360 degree ring-like bowl, multiple pets can congregate around the bowl like it’s the work water cooler:
They also make a stainless steel version, if that’s your thing. It’s quite attractive.
Piece of cake, I thought, the dogs will love this. Hooray! A dog AND cat fountain! I plugged it in, listened to the gentle gurgle of the water, and sat down to wait.
I felt like a National Geographic photographer trying to capture the white rhino at the water hole. The dogs knew the water was there, and they were interested in it, but they couldn’t quite bring themselves to go actually drink out of it.
Here’s how 90% of the pictures turned out.
The resident jungle ocelot and water fountain expert did turn up to survey the new device, but the Goldenbeast proved too big a deterrent to cause him to come closer.
In desperation, I finally tossed a couple of pieces of kibble into the fountain so that they would get the idea- yes, it’s water, and yes, you can put your face in it.
My favorite part is how he sticks his head in so enthusiastically you can hear him blowing bubbles. You can see how easily the water splashes out, though, so I would heed the manufacturer’s recommendation and put a placemat or towel underneath it.
Nonetheless, that did the trick. It took only a couple of hours before the pets were all more than happy to drink from the fountain. The Drinkwell continues to be a great concept, and with the new additions to the product line there are more chocies than ever to find a product that works for you.
Today’s giveaway is for the 128 ounce, 1 gallon capacity Drinkwell 360 from Veterinary Ventures. The fountain retails for $64.99.
If you are interested in the Drinkwell 360 giveaway, just leave a comment below with your pets’ current drinking situation and why the Drinkwell would be a great product to have! Winner will be chosen at random using random.org. Contest closes 11:59 PM PST Monday March 28th.
