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Best Fountain for Small Dogs
Photograph: Molly Higgins
Whisker City
Free Fall Cat Fountain
This Whisker City Free Fall Cat Fountain has a large 150-fluid-ounce bowl and a waterfall design. Like others on this list, the simple pump pushes the water back into the basin as it flows from a small curved spout. The water is filtered from the basin to the pump with a replaceable filter that’s made of activated carbon and cotton with a second mesh covering in front (filters are eight for $16). Although the basin has a small splash pad to help offset the waterfall noise, this was one of the loudest fountains I tested. The evaporation from the waterfall-like system also caused me to refill it every other day. Because of the structure of the fountain, my cats had to bend their head at an awkward angle. They tended to avoid drinking from the basin because of that, and their heads got slightly wet from the splatter of the waterfall. The basin is also not angled so crumbs and debris sit at the bottom of the bowl. Although this fountain is marketed for cats, I think it may be better for dogs.
Materials Plastic Filtration type Activated carbon and cotton Capacity 4.43 L Connected to an app? No Power source Electricity plug-in
Others We Tested
Petkit Eversweet Solo 2 for $50: I love three key features of this fountain: The bowl sits on top of a wireless charging base, so you don’t have to fiddle with cables, it is super easy to clean, and it’s very quiet at around 25 decibels. A flashing light warns you when the water is running low, and you can check when the filter needs to be changed in the app. There’s an optional smart mode that pumps intermittently and a night mode to turn the light off. Pleasingly, all three of our cats drink from this fountain, though that does mean I have to refill it often, as it only holds 2 liters. Sadly, the filters are very expensive at $20 for five. —Simon Hill
PetSnowy SNOW+ Automatic Pet Water Fountain for $60: The SNOW+ automatic fountain from PetSnowy is very simple—it’s a curved square design where water is pumped through a hole in the top and the residual water is cycled through a circular filter system. This fountain is connected to an app that doesn’t do much but act as a reminder to clean it, and it has a countdown to when the filter needs replacing. Unlike others on this list, this fountain doesn’t really have a top reservoir to store water in case of power failure—when turned off, very little water remains in the top area. Refilling it is a little tricky without taking off the top, and water often spilled.
Petkit EverSweet Solo SE for $30: This very simple, straightforward fountain has a square-shaped body, is translucent to easily see water levels from the outside, and has a nearly silent 25-decibel cordless pump to circulate water from the basin to the top level, where 60 milliliters of water is always available for drinking, even in case of power failure. The basin sits on a base and all parts easily detach, making it easier to clean. This fountain doesn’t have multiple modes or an associated app—you’ll have to manually check water levels. I noticed this fountain wasn’t as cold as some of the others, and because of the design of the top, debris often pooled in the dipped areas, which made me clean it often.
Not Recommended
Cat Mate 3-Level Pet Fountain for $28: This tall automatic Cat Mate fountain sets itself apart with three tiers for cats who like to drink at every level. Cleaning the motor requires disassembly using tools and extended soaking. Because of the long distance the water has to travel, evaporation caused the water to need to be refilled about every other day. Plastic also harbors bacteria, and previous plastic models I’ve owned have had mold issues. The basin is quite large and sits flat. Because of this, some debris would sit in the bottom and front of the large basin rather than moving back to the filter system behind. The plastic material and lack of ergonomic gravity design caused this fountain to be dirtier than others.
