@floe We've used these large ceramic bowls for water, and our first dog (rough collie) Wizard soon discovered that they make a rather loud "ding!" noise when tapped with a nail, especially so when empty.He would persistently ding-ding-ding the bowl whenever the stooopid hooomans had let it go dry: Waiter, waiter! I would like to inform you that my water bowl is empty! Waiter!! Such disgrace! Waiter!!! This amused us to no end Plus, it was quite effective.