Summarize the following:
Kittens learn to eat, clean themselves, and drink water from their mothers as they grow. Kittens need to be left with their mother for at least a month before they start being weaned off of milk and onto solid food. This process usually takes about two weeks. If your cat was taken from its mother too early, or was orphaned, you can usually start weaning around three weeks. You shouldn't need to do anything to "teach" a cat to drink but provide plenty of fresh drinking water in an accessible location for your cat. Each day, pour out any leftover water in the cat's bowl and refill it to provide for the cat. Don't worry if you don't see your cat drinking regularly or your cat doesn't drink just because you put some water in front of it. Water can be room temperature. It doesn't need to be cold for the cat to be attracted to it. Experiment some with different sizes and shapes of cat bowls if your cat seems hesitant to eat or drink from them. Stainless steel, ceramic, and glass bowls are all easy to clean and make for fine cat dishes. If your cat has difficulty reaching into the bowl, get a smaller bowl. Keep the cat's food and water right next to each other, and introduce them to your cat by sitting and petting the cat while you pour food and water into the bowl. The cat shouldn't have to go looking for something. The cat's food and water should be in a separate place from its litter. Just like people, cats don't like to eat and do their business in the same place. Your cat's water bowl can get gummed up with saliva and minerals from tap water, and it needs to be rinsed out thoroughly every couple of days. Rinse the bowl with warm soapy water and a dish sponge, then rinse it thoroughly before refilling it. No, you don't need to scour cat bowls like you might your fine china, but it's a good idea at least to rinse it out every couple of days. It only takes a minute and your cat will appreciate drinking from a clean bowl. Available at most pet stores, water fountains are sometimes sold for cats who are hesitant to drink water. They work like regular water fountains, which cycle water continuously in a little pond that burbles up for the cat to drink. Some cats go crazy for these products. Typically, these range anywhere from $20-30 and are usually operated by plugging into an outlet. Most cats shouldn't need these, but it's a good way to pamper, if you want to give your cat a little extra. Some research shows that cats who are fed exclusively dry food are somewhat dehydrated, and sometimes suffer from urinary health issues. Feeding cats food with a higher water content is usually a good idea. If you can, try to feed your cat canned "wet" food a few times a week. Wet cans of food are typically more expensive, making it difficult to feed a cat exclusively cans of Fancy Feast. Instead, try buying a few big cans and mixing a few spoonfuls into the cat's dry food every day, to make sure your pet's getting the water content it needs. You can also add some water to the cat's dry food. When you add some dry food to the cat's bowl, add some water to the dish, mixing it in to make sure the cat gets the water it needs. Giving them about two tablespoons of water should be enough.
Leave the kitten with its mother until its at least 4-6 weeks old. Provide fresh drinking water daily. Make sure the bowl is easily accessible. Clean the cat's water bowl. Try drinking water fountains. Feed cats canned wet food.