giving your cats milk

I have noticed that there is some concern about giving cats milk. Yet when I was growing up (many, many years ago) cats were always given milk. We never gave them water, although they were outside cats so it's impossible to tell if they were getting moisture by hunting and from rain water etc. And even today there is the occasional display of pictures where a cat is enjoying getting milk sprayed at it directly from the cow.

Tigger doesn't seem to want her water. She readily lapped up tuna water, but as I don't really want to live on canned tuna :lol: , and there's no way I could bring myself to waste what she wouldn't use, I'm seeking other forms of moisture.

So maybe some cats are or have become lactose intolerant, or intolerant in some other way. What I'd like to know is, are any of you giving your cats milk? Are there any problems? I only use milk powder myself as the other stuff doesn't sit too well. But if Tigger has been used to getting a little milk maybe I should continue. At fifteen she seems quite strong and healthy.

Any thoughts.

 

We used to give my cat milk. At first she threw it up, but if we spilled it on the floor she would always lick it up before we could stop her and after that first time she never threw up. We just made sure not to give her a lot. Just a little and she was happy to have any at all so it worked.

 

Normal cows milk inst good for your cat. your best buying milk for cats.

a little cows milk will not kill your cat but i wouldnt make it a habbit.

you can pickup 5 carts at pets at home for about £3 so if you want to treat your pet then get some of these

 

It's still best not to give milk to your cat even if they have become tolerant of it.

Children would rather drink pop than water too... it wont kill them but you wouldn't solely give them fizzy drinks would you? It's no different with our animals.

Always make sure fresh water is available, even if you think they're not drinking it.

 

I have always heard to give cats milk as well but mine can not tolerate it. They love to lap it up but within half an hour there is a huge mess to clean up. As much as they love it, I hate cleaning it up and making them pay for it. Why not try kitty milk? Mine love this. You can find it at pet stores and it is not upsetting to the tummy.

 

I let my cats have pretty much free reign to go where they like. This includes bathroom and kitchen counter tops. Gemma the senior, can jump up where as Rosco is still growing up that point. When Gemma hears the faucet running, she'll jump up and drink water striaght from a running tap. She likes running water. Another crazy thing too, is last winter, she would jump up on the rim of our tub while we were bathing. Even hot soapy water, if I cup my hands holding water, she'll drink from my hands.

 

As kittens, cats have the proper enzymes to digest milk sugars. As they grow, this is lost. When they drink milk without these enzymes to break down the milk sugars, the milk robs the colon of water when their body attempts to digest it, causing tummy upset. This can induce vomiting or diarrhea. It's just fallacy that cats should drink milk, things of children's story books. My advice: don't do it.

If your cat is turning up his/her nose at the water dish, it could be that cats are notoriously picky about fresh water. If they have a choice, they want it moving. This is why aerated waterers for cats are popular but simply changing the water in your cat's dish a couple times a day should do the trick.

 

I leave the tap in my bathroom sinking running a bit and the cats go in there a have a drink whenever they want. I also have a water dish for them which I.change often but they still prefer the tap.water.