Indiegogo staffers are putting crowdfunded products to the test in our new series of honest reviews. In this edition, our very own email marketing and lifecycle strategist Karisa Hunt and her crew of cute cats tried out the PAWAii Caremi, a pet water fountain that our crowdfunding community is talking about. Does it live up to the hype? Read on as we put it to the test!

I’ve had cats all my life, and all my life, I’ve thought that the best way to feed a cat was to put a food and water bowl down and… that was the end of it.

Then I read something that shocked me: cats actually prefer to drink water from a running water source.

It makes sense if you think about it. In the wild, still water is a breeding ground for all sorts of things that can make you sick to drink them, but running water is safer. My cats don’t understand that the tap water coming out of my sink is perfectly safe for them to drink, so if there was a way to make that water move, maybe they’d drink more water (a constant struggle with my cats).

Enter the PAWAii Caremi Mobile Smart Pet Fountain.

Setup

The Caremi comes in a well-packaged orange box. The styrofoam is well-fitted, and the device is packaged with parts inside other parts, making the most of the space while still keeping everything protected.

Once everything was unpacked, I looked at the instruction booklet and found out that I had to soak the water filter and charge two pieces of the fountain: the base and the pump.

I set the filter to soak and plugged the pieces in, and then I waited.

I started this process after supper, so it took until I was ready to go to bed for the pieces to charge all the way. At that point, I decided to wait overnight and do the rest of the setup in the morning.

I was pleasantly surprised the next day, because the setup was incredibly simple. All I had to do was click the filter into place, set the Caremi where I wanted it, fill up the tank, and press start.

Use

I was very curious about how the cats would like the Caremi. It can be tough to change anything about the food setup, since cats can be really picky. I decided to leave the old water bowl down while I tested the Caremi out, because if they didn’t like it, I didn’t want them to go without drinking.

I was surprised to find that I had near-instant success!

Bacon Bits approached the Caremi immediately and started drinking from it like it had been there the whole time. Tater Tot sniffed around it for a few minutes, but he started drinking from it pretty quickly, too. Even Mozzarella, my notoriously pickiest cat, has been using it instead of the old water bowl.

I guess it’s true… they really do prefer running water.

The Caremi also has an app that tracks filter health and how much water is in the tank. It’s a pretty big tank, so I’ve only had to refill it three times a week, even with three cats.The app also tracks how many times a cat has taken a drink, which is nice to see – that way, if I ever need to, I can give an accurate report to the vet about whether or not the cats are drinking a normal amount of water.

Caremi is pretty different from other pet water fountains on the market that I’ve seen. For one, it’s rechargeable, so I don’t have to keep it plugged in or worry about eating through batteries. It’s also smart about the way it uses energy – it only moves the water when it senses movement nearby, so when the cats are all asleep or doing something else, it’s not bubbling away and draining power. I’ve also never seen an app like this one that lets me track drinking habits and lets me know when it’s time to refill the tank.

They also have a great customer service team. They told me that their supplier alerted them to a small production error that led to some units having a faulty piece, but worked with me to resolve the issue. I really appreciated the communication about the issue and their willingness to solve it proactively!

Conclusions

The Caremi is a well-designed rechargeable water fountain that my cats really like, which makes me a huge fan. It’s really affordable (cheaper than some that I’ve seen online that have fewer features) and the replacement filters are also reasonably priced. It’s great for my cats and they like it… will wonders never cease?

To learn more, check out the campaign for PAWAii Caremi, live now on Indiegogo.