Why won’t my cat drink from the new fountain?

Try the gentlest flow setting, move it away from the food bowl and the litter box, and keep the old water bowl available — a cat with no alternative simply drinks less.

Fountains are refused for three reasons, all fixable.

The flow

A visible jet attracts some cats and repels others. Start on the gentlest setting; a fountain with three modes gives you three attempts rather than one.

The placement

Away from the food, away from the litter box, in a quiet spot the cat already passes. Cats avoid drinking beside where they eat, which is why the bowl next to the food is so often ignored.

The noise

A new pump is noisiest in its first hour while air works out of it. Run it before the cat meets it.

Keep the old bowl

For at least two weeks, in another room. Removing every alternative when the goal is more drinking is exactly the wrong move.