ok so I am after some pointers about how to keep my cats cool in this weather.
They are indoor cats and my front room gets full on sun exposure in the afternoon through floor to ceiling windows and the flat gets very hot.

yesterday i was putting ice cubes in their water, though they didnt get the hint and drink it while cold.

I put a sprinkle of cold water over their dry food last night which they didnt seem to mind

I also tried to wipe them with a cold damp flannel which didnt go over too well. in fact I got some very dirty looks

anyone got any hints or tips I could use??

Thanks!

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Do you have a room that is on the other side of your home from where the sun comes in? If so, try and entice them to go in there where is might be cooler when the day is at it's warmest. If you can put in a fan to create a small breeze that might help too. My cats tend to move around the house. The front of the house is cooler in the morning & early afternoon, the back cools down later in the day.

I try to keep curtains closed, where possible, to minimise the heat build-up in my house and to give the cats shaded areas to retreat to.

If you have a hot water bottle, you could half-fill it with cold water and cover with a thin blanket or pillow case and try to get them to lie beside it.

I hope these help for now.

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instead of plain water - freeze the meat juices from a cooked chicken or fish so they get an ice-pop

My two are black - one adores the heat (found her in conservatory on my return yesterday in absolute bliss in 42c heat!!), the other can't stand it.

As said, try to encourage them to be in a cooler place. I'm trying to help avoid hydration by offering lots of small wet meals today with water added and I've opened some cat milk, as well as a couple of water bowls around. My girl who adores the heat gets cystitis so this is essential for her, but not a bad idea for others.

I was told not to bathe my daughter in tepid water when she had a high temperature a couple of years ago by a doctor as it seals up pores and prevents heat escaping, a child had recently died for this reason. I guess the same would apply for cats, so you may want to review putting water on them

Thankfully our house is rather cool in the living area but I do keep blinds drawn elsewhere in the house-necessary evil with a south facing garden.

One year when it was exceptionally hot I found mine huddled in front of one of the fans!!

I think you mean de-hydration, hun!

Loads of great advice already but it seems to me that the one human cat-slave behaviour hasn't yet been mentioned; ie. standing near them and lovingly fanning them

Boiling here today, and luckily I'm off work for a week ..... have all the windows open and a fan going ...... Molly is sitting on the sofa now where she is getting the most benefit from the fan

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My kittens are spending 10 minutes at a time in different locations on our laminate flooring which is cool. Oscar is also sitting on the kitchen windowsill which is tiled and there is a breeze coming through the window.

Spent a few hours in the garden yesterday. Kittens were tethered by a tent pole in their harnesses and they varied their afternoon between jumping through a pile of cut branches (husband was going mad chopping back bushes), resting in the shade and sipping water I had left out for them. They also concentrated on various ants going about their business.

My old cat used to sit in our metal sink in the summer to keep cool.

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Hmmmmm, we're nearly on that route - aiming the air con units onto the floor so they can lie in a cool draft

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I had been told that the training procedure with cats was difficult. It's not. Mine had me trained in two days. ~Bill Dana

I used to place tiles on the floor of my shed for the rabbits (something like a slate tile) was quite cool to the touch, perhaps your kitties will lie on this if they feel warm?