How often should I wash my cat’s water bowl?

Every day. Wipe the bowl, refresh the water, done. Cats notice a film on the surface and a crust at the rim, and a bowl that hasn’t been touched in three days is a bowl most cats will walk past. Cornell lists fresh water in accessible places as the first lever for getting a cat to drink more, and “fresh” means recently changed, not “topped up over time.” If you have hard water that leaves spots, a quick weekly scrub with mild soap clears them off. Stainless steel and ceramic bowls clean better than plastic, which scratches and holds bacteria more readily.

When to call a vet: if your cat has stopped drinking from a freshly washed bowl too, that’s not a hygiene problem and is worth a vet check.