Post by @Hester@sunny.garden

2026-08-29 06:42 UTC

A visiting friend once called me over, saying: 'Hester, I think your cat is broken!' I sprinted to the kitchen, worried something was very, very wrong. When I came into the room, I started laughing and told my friend that Joris is just an idiot and doesn't know how to drink like a normal cat. (I've tried different sized bowls, dishes, locations and heights. Sometimes he drinks 'normally', he just prefers to do it this way.) #catsofmastodon #caturday

Replies (9)

@Guillotine_Jones@beige.party 2026-08-29 07:21

@Hester@sunny.garden Joris iz slow drinker.

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@thirstybear@agilodon.social 2026-08-29 09:34

@Hester@sunny.garden @Gargron@mastodon.social Yep. Our big, black cat Dexter does exactly this.

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@heladepela@infosec.exchange 2026-08-29 09:46

@Hester@sunny.garden one of our cats preferred running water from the tap or a "cat fountain" (a bucket with a small pump), if that wasn't nearby he would use his paw to drink from the dog's bowl frequently.

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@s3nnet@social.tchncs.de 2026-08-29 09:52

@Hester@sunny.garden What a clever cat: drinking and cleaning all at once :ablobcatrave:

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@helna@mastodontti.fi 2026-08-29 12:00

@Hester@sunny.garden My niece used to have a glass of water on the bedside table at night. Until she one night woke up seeing the cat do exactly the same thing as your cat...

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@nerb@techhub.social 2026-08-29 12:16

@Hester@sunny.garden Our cat does not do that. Instead she sits by the water bowl and howls. Howling finished she laps at the water like a normal cat. She is the third cat we have had that does this. It started with one who had a broken tooth and apparently drinking water was painful. So she would howl a few times then drink. Her fellow kitty quickly picked up the song of her people. We took both in and found the first needed dental care. But they continued to howl before drinking and when the first howler passed on we adopted another old kitty . Who quickly learned to howl at the water. We watched out daughters 3 cats while they were on a trip for 2 weeks. After they came back a day or so later she called and asked why are all three of her cats howling at the water bowl. Told her apparently they learned it and think they are supposed to howl before drinking. But to mention it if you take them to the vet just in case. We are going to let this kitty pass before we adopt another oldster so maybe the cycle will be broken.

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@k8quinn@social.vivaldi.net 2026-08-29 14:22

@Hester@sunny.garden I had a cat that would sneak up on my glass of water then proceed to drink from it like that. Of course, I couldn't drink it after that but I rarely stopped her since it was so cute.

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@Damselfly@blackqueer.life 2026-08-29 16:16

@Hester@sunny.garden my Bengal did this! With both water and food. 🥰

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@linuxandyarn@hachyderm.io 2026-08-29 17:52

@Hester@sunny.garden I've known other cats who like to drink off their paws. It's adorkable.

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