Keep your kitty hydrated!

From whiskers and night vision to paws with retractable claws house, cats and lions have a lot in common, including the tendency to become dehydrated.

Their sandpaper tongues are great for grooming but are not meant to lap up water. A feline body is meant to extract its hydration from its food.

Just as house cats are fed commercial foods and need another source of water, captive lions also need extra water. "We basically check their water all the time, because they hydration is super important.

We make sure they always have water, clean water, fresh water so we monitor it constantly because that is a big thing with them. They definitely need to have their water," said Jeff Taylor, owner and operator of The Wild Animal Park in Chittenango, N.Y.

Through computer simulation and watching slow motion video of cats drinking, researchers at MIT discovered that big cats and house cats just use the tip of their tongue to drink by bending the tip under to draw water in while lapping up the liquid. House cats lap four times per second, while lions lap just twice per second.

To help your cats get more water, try mixing soft food with hard food. Give them a cat fountain and try placing bowls at different heights.

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