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Best Pet Water Fountains for Dogs and Cats

With the help of three adorable dogs and two regal cats, we evaluated five models made of stainless steel, plastic, and ceramic

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Dog drinking from PetSafe water fountain
Our pet evaluators for the fountains were Rocky, a 10-year-old beagle/dachshund mix (shown); Hermione, a 7-year-old tabby cat; Pepper, a 1-year-old cat; Blake, a 7-year-old Labradoodle; and Crash, a 10-year-old Australian cattle dog. 
Photo: Debbie Wolfe

If you’re considering upgrading your pet’s drinking setup, a pet water fountain offers several health benefits over a standard water bowl. According to Dwight Alleyne, DVM, a veterinarian based in Marietta, Ga., “using a water fountain can encourage hydration since water flowing can be more appealing to many pets than standing water. Flowing water often is cleaner, with a low risk of growth of bacteria or other bugs that can risk a pet’s health.”

Like people, dogs and cats need to stay hydrated, so a pet water fountain could be a good solution, especially when you are going to be away from home for a longer period of time.

In this article

We evaluated five popular pet water fountains at home with our three dogs and two cats to find which ones got them to drink more water, were easiest to clean (some are dishwasher-safe), and required the least overall work for us.

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Debbie Wolfe Headshot

Debbie Wolfe

Debbie Wolfe is a freelance writer, editor, and photographer in Powder Springs, Ga., who specializes in home, garden, and food content. Her work has been published by Forbes, HGTV, Bob Vila, Real Simple, The Spruce, Realtor.com, and more. Get to know her at dbwolfe.com.

Lisa Fogarty

Lisa Fogarty is a senior multimedia content creator at Consumer Reports. She studied journalism at Columbia University and has written numerous health, parenting, fitness, and wellness articles for The New York Times, Psychology Today, Vogue, and NPR. Lisa is passionate about mental health and is a co-creator of The Hunger Trap Podcast, which focuses on eating disorders. In her spare time she surfs, plays the guitar, and kickboxes. Follow her on X: @lisacfogarty