I have algae growing in my rabbit's water bottle and in my cat's water bowl. I just cleaned out the rabbit's water bottle with a stick and a paper towel. And I am about to clean my cat's water bowl. But is there anything I can buy to kill the algae and prevent it from growing without hurting my cats or rabbit?
2006-08-06 07:29:25 · 11 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pets ➔ Other - Pets
Can I use soap to clean them out?
2006-08-06 08:27:04 · update #1
The algae will grow as long as water and air exist together and especially other living organisms. To solve your problem, try changing the water more often. Either get a new water bottle or boil the current one. Rabbits are fun until you get them... nasty animals that act like cute, angry, RATS. Try these sites for good info on rabbits.
http://www.rabbit.org/faq/index.html
http://www.muridae.com/rabbits/rabbittalk.html
2006-08-06 07:39:10 · answer #1 · answered by carolinakres 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋
I use bleach water about once a month (bleach kills algae and bacteria). I soak the dish or bowl, or water bottle (I have 2 rabbits) in a sink full of 1/2 bleach 1/2 water for an hour. Then give then a good scrub. Then I rinse them thoroughly. People will tell you that this is wrong, but think about it. Do you fill their water dishes with bottled water? NO!!! Then there is bleach in their water already. Drinking water from the tap is chlorinated, see. Also change the water at least every other day. This will reduce the amount of algae growth. No matter how often you change it, if they are outside animals, there will be algae. But, this will help reduce the amounts. (check the water level daily... During warm weather they will drink much more, during cold weather, it may freeze) But replace the entire amount of water at least every other day.
2006-08-06 14:59:37 · answer #2 · answered by kalabear1 2 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Unless you leave them without cleaning them regularly, you shouldn't have a problem with algae in the first place. Both cats water bowls and rabbit bottles should be cleaned at least once a week.
Aside from algae, other bacteria and organisms you can't see also thrive in these damp environments and can make your animals sick. I would go to the pet store and buy a disinfectant safe for animals and a bottle brush. Neither of these should cost much, are easy to use, and should last quite awhile.
Some soaps are fine, but a disinfectant made especially for animal products are recommended for the safety of your pet. Both rabbits and cats should have fresh water every day, and bowls and cages should all be cleaned at least once a week :)
2006-08-06 13:14:39 · answer #3 · answered by Right On 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
BLEACH and COLD WATER:
You only nead a TINY bit of bleach. Technically the water that comes out of your faucet has enough to kill off crud. But if you want to clean it even better, soak the bowls in 20 parts water, one part bleach. An hour should be more than enough.. probably a few minutes would work. There's no reason to use more bleach than that.
If you filled your kitchen sink at home and put 1/2 cup of bleach in it.. that would work just fine. And use COLD WATER. If you use hot water.. the bleach evaporates too quickly and may not have as good of an effect.
Rinse it really well with cold water again, and all should be well.
MAINTENANCE:
You should be cleaning the water daily. Keep it out of direct sunlight. Even if it's cleaned daily, it can still grow algae if left in the sunlight or indirect sunlight.
EXPERIENCE:
We have birds and have used this method forever. Spray the cages down with 20:1 bleach. We use it on our dog bowls just like you were asking about too.
Birds are probably one of the most sensitive animals. Works great and pretty much costs nothing. You have to use lots of elbow grease because it doesn't 'clean' it just 'kills' the bad lil' buggies/diseases.
Just remember that heat and hot water causes the bleach to evaporate. This is good for quick drying of bird cages outside, but bad if you forgot to use cold water as opposed to hot.
2006-08-14 07:00:13 · answer #4 · answered by game buddee 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
you might need to clean out the bowl like you did the bottle, and change the water in both daily to prevent the algae from coming back.
2006-08-06 07:37:20 · answer #5 · answered by May 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
use soap & clean the bowl once everyday & wash with lot of water till the soap vanishes.if u wash them every day there will not be algae formation.do not use dish soap. use a mild one.
2006-08-14 01:00:11 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
i use dish soap to clean my pets bowls and bottles just be sure to rinse well and change the water more often!
2006-08-12 16:01:55 · answer #7 · answered by HEARTCROSS 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
cold water and bleach. Then rinse the container with water and the small amount of bleach won't harm the animal.
2006-08-12 19:42:42 · answer #8 · answered by Leroy 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
no u cant buy anything, but change both water every day and it will not came back. as long as u keep changeing the water every day.
2006-08-14 06:06:40 · answer #9 · answered by redneck_yacht_club 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
just ad a couple drops of chlorine to the water.
2006-08-14 00:07:23 · answer #10 · answered by Linden J 1 · 1⤊ 0⤋