When it comes to your sink and tub drain problems, the last thing you're likely thinking about is your cat. However, if you have a cat who is freely allowed to access a room with a drain in it, it's possible that they could be impacting your drains more than you think. Here's what you should know about how cats could cause your drains to become slow and clogged.

Cat Fur

One common problem with drains and cats is that cats can leave their fur behind in the drain. Most pet owners experience their cats hopping up on counters from time to time, and cats are often fond of curling up in sinks. When they do this, any fur that sheds off of their bodies can end up washing down the drain the next time the faucet is turned on. This fur won't cause a problem at first, but if enough of it gathers in the drain, it can cause a clog. This clog can cause your drain to be sluggish and drain slowly, or it can prevent it from draining entirely, depending upon how much fur went down the drain and whether or not there's any other debris or particles tangled up in it.

Kitty Litter

Another potential problem is kitty litter. While there are lots of methods out there that help to reduce the amount of kitty litter that's tracked by cats, it's almost inevitable that some particles of it remain caught between your cat's toes. When this happens and they hop into the sink, this kitty litter can easily go down the drain.

Nothing solid like kitty litter is meant to go down a sink drain, and matters can be even worse when the kitty litter is the clumping variety. This type of litter is designed to soak up as much moisture as possible, becoming hard and thicker in the process. With enough kitty litter going down the drain, you can easily end up waiting for the sink to fully drain.

What to Do

There are a few things you can do in this situation to improve your problem and keep it from happening again. For starters, call a plumber. They're the best-equipped to clean your drains and will find out what's causing the problem. Once your drains are cleaned, everything should drain quickly and efficiently. It's important to avoid using a liquid drain cleaner yourself, as exposure to it could potentially harm your pet if they regularly hop up onto the sink. Plumbers can use non-toxic methods of clearing drains so that it's safer for pets.

Once your drain is clear, ask your plumber what the best kind of drain strainer is best for your needs. Using a strainer will prevent anything solid from going down the drain, including cat hair. This will keep these clogs from happening again, and will let you see for yourself exactly how much of a mess your cat is tracking into the sink. For more information, contact a drain cleaning service.