Plastic water dishes

My cat sitter was very concerned that I was using a plastic (bottom of milk carton) for a water dish. My cats love it. She said that she had read somewhere that using plastic is toxic to cats. Has anyone heard of that? Is it true?

Pattie

 

I wonder if it is something along the lines of warnings on human plastic water bottles, with the BPA etc. But really, why would they sell plastic water dishes at pet stores etc. if it was toxic? Possibly it just depends on the type of plastic? I can't find any information online other than things like digesting the plastic off of plastic bags, etc. But maybe someone will be along soon with other ideas or suggestions.

 

look on the bottom and if you see a number 6 inside a triangle do not use them for anyone's eating or drinking, man nor beast.

many cats/dogs seem to have allergies/sensitivity to plastic so it's better to use porcelain or glass. that said, my 2 kitties with plastic sensitivities love drinking out of a big round tupperware container and haven't gotten feline acne from it so far.

 

I haven't heard that plastic is inherently toxic. Seems like a milk carton would be something that would have to be tested as safe. My concern would be ease of cleaning? Can you use really hot water or put them in the dishwasher? I try to use the sanitize cycle and that gets extra hot. Most plastic doesn't survive that.

The main things I've heard about dishes is for the cats with feline acne on their chin - my Cole has this. From what I read, cats with this issue seem to do best on stainless steel dishes, definitely not plastic or ceramic. I got some nice stainless dishes at petsmart and they have seemed to help her.

good luck,
laur

 

I use only metal or glass.
Lately, I have been using my own pyrex or corelle ware bowls.
Plastic absorbs and my logic is that what can be absorbed can also be released into other foods.
I never use plastics, and even put small glass bowls into each section of Shadoe's auto feeder.
I just don't trust any plastics.

 

Why do they sell species inappropriate cat food in pet stores? Because it's profitable. Plastic is cheaper to make than glass or metal.

Gayle, that's a very good idea about the glass bowls in a plastic feeder.

 

See attached picture of feeder with the glass bowls .... the feeder helps to tell you when what was eaten. Some little bits may slop over the edge but it is easier for kitty to get the food from the bowl rather than having to dig into the corners.

 

Sometmes plastic bowls cause feline acne or other skin conditions.

 

My dogs' outside water dishes are two five gallon plastic buckets, scrubbed and refilled daily. Bowls, or any sort, would be a joke for 7 large dogs when outside...All they would do is knock them over and step on them and break them while attempting to play in the water.

Inside, however, is a completely different story. The main water dish is an old Revere Ware stainless steel 8 quart stock pot which is used by the dogs,
when they are loose in the house, as well as the four "house roaming" cats. The "bedroom cats" are using either small stainless steel bowls for food and drink, or as is the case of Stormy Blue, two very small CorningWare casserole dishes, (they are adorable vintage 2.25 cup CorningWare pieces, that I found at the thrift store for $1 each. They look like this, only tiny: http://www.ehow.com/how_5118220_cook-corningware.html )

~M

 

I would change it personally... plastic has a tendency to be breeding grounds for all types of bacteria growth. And it's hard to wash it away because the plastic over time gets these little grooves in it from the sponge or whatever you're using to wash it with so the bacteria has a nice place to hide!

There are many claims that water exposed to plastic (especially from the plastics with the lowest number 1-4) can have plastic molecules leeched into the water over time especially in the heat. I would recommend changing it out for a microban dish or a metal one all together. My cats use this, and although it's plastic it's fantasic.

http://www.amazon.com/Drinkwell-FWB-RE-Original-Pet-Fountain/dp/B00063446M

My cats love it, especially drinking straight from the stream!

My outdoor kitties enjou metal water dishes and porcelain food bowls


-breayle and jake

 

You should definitely change it. I work in the animal care industry (not domestics) and we never use plastic for anything. Stainless steel only, tigers, otters, parrots - everything is stainless. Plastic is porous and can hold bacteria and no amount of washing will get it out. I used plastic for the first few years I had cats and 2 of them got the worst acne. I think you said these were water dishes? Algae can get in the plastic pores too. The cats will have food on their chins when they go over to the water dish, which is how bacteria can grow. When I had the acne problem, we were using stainless food dishes and a plastic filtered water dish. The acne seemed painful and took a few months of antibiotics, topical and acne washes to get it to go away. Since switch the all stainless we never have any issues. Go buy them some real dishes!They will love them too!

 

My guys eat their food off of real dishes but the water (was) in plastic. I have now changed to china bowls after all the feedback that I received.

Thanks to all.

Pattie

 

I used plastic for a while, but Podo developed a plastic allergy (small bumps on her mouth and chin). Now I use stainless steel for her water and just one of my small plates for her food (I eat off them, so should be safe for her).

 

Most cats hate plastic. I use a clear glass bowl, have three of them so I can wash, rotate etc.

 

Huh. I never thought about this at all. The dog's dishes are plastic, because they lock into a base that stores his food. The cats share his water bowl, tho since we switched to all wet food, and add water to the food, I don't see the cats using the dog's water dish at all. We used to give the cats their dry food in a plastic bowl. We tried using that bowl for water after we switched to wet food, but I never saw the cats using it and we've since put it away. I do know they would use the stainless bowls I have for them because their tags would clink against it (which is actually why we bought the plastic bowl in the first place).

The cats get their food in my regular Fiestaware bowls so they can go in the dishwasher.

I have a giant ceramic bowl that we used to use for water for the dog and the cats...but we stopped using it when we bought the food-storage feeding set for the dog. He's a big dog, so having the food up on a stand is better for him. I might have to look into buying a different set that doesn't store his food and uses ceramic or stainless steel bowls. Over the last several months we've been having issues with the dog randomly having diarrhea, in the house, overnight...and now I'm thinking it might be related to the plastic.

Thanks for bringing this to my attention!

 

My Gabby not only refuses to drink from plastic, she has to drink from the same glasses we do. I ended up giving up trying to get her to drink out of a bowl or dish and just started leaving random glasses of water around the house for her.

Here's a video of her and her snooty drinking:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=byJ7Ts6Lr8c

 

OMG, that is hilarious. I've never seen a cat drink that way. Most cats I've known absolutely hate getting their paws wet.

 

I love these dishes, they are on sale buy one get one free. They are plastic but very hard, not porous. I have had not acne with the 2 prone to it.
http://www.catsrule.com/foodsuppliesandaccessories.aspx

 

OMG, LOVE the kitty drinking out of the glass! My Max does that with yogurt, but doesn't drink that way. He will try to fish ice cubes out of a glass if he can tho...that's been a very hard thing to break him of! He doesn't want the ice per se, he just wants to fish it out of the glass. :lol:

 

I keep my cats' water in either stainless steel or ceramic.

Worst thing I recently saw though, is my almost 15 years old, Schooner, drinking from my mug with my water in it when I take my meds in the morning! UGH.... now each time I set it on the counter and have to answer phone, etc., I have to come back and rinse it out and wash and refill. He doesn't dip his paw or anything, just reaches right into the mug with his tongue and goes to town drinking! Now I wonder how many times I may have finished drinking from the mug after he was enjoying himself and ..... no wonder my stomach hurts..... :lol:

 

on a side note: interesting point, thecsuzoo, but i've heard most professional chefs use plastic all the time, for example, wrapping items in plastic wrap and then boiling/steaming them. it appalled me to hear this but it's not as if i'm able to change industry practice. others who eat out a lot may be interested to know that.

 

yes but the key part is that they are throwing the plastic wrap away - not reusing it. Plus you are not rubbing your face against the plastic, such as tupperware - you don't put it on your skin everyday like cats do when they eat. It's the plastic/bacteria coming in contact with the skin that's the problem.