Should you bathe your cat?
Should you bathe your cat?
My cat is outside and gets muddy a lot, I don't want her to get an infection, should I bathe her every once in a while?
~Kaylee~
Re: Should you bathe your cat?
INDOORS ONLY! please.
Bathing is rarely necessary for cats. If she were indoors, she would be grooming impeccably.
Bathing is rarely necessary for cats. If she were indoors, she would be grooming impeccably.
..........Traci
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Phoebe's human
- Posts: 248
- Joined: Sun Sep 05, 2004 2:09 pm
- Location: Portland, OR
Re: Should you bathe your cat?
Ditto on the indoors advice!
But if you keep your cat indoors but she still isn't grooming herself (a very few cats don't--some because of dental problems that make their mouths painful, for instance), you could TRY bathing your cat--IF you're strong enough and the cat isn't too big and strong for you.
It's best to get a cat used to this as a kitten, but if that's not possible, you have to prepare the scene very carefully because you're probably going to have a major battle on your hands. You wil probably be all wet yourself within minutes and you may be scratched and bitten. Your cat will be in a panic.
My previous cat hardly ever groomed herself (she had chin abscesses due to feline acne, for one thing), and once a year I tackled the project of giving her a bath.
I heated up several towels in the oven and caught the cat during a nap. I put cotton balls in her ears to keep the water out, and I got all of the supplies (soap, etc.) ready beforehand. I had to have a nonskid surface to keep her from slipping around in the kitchen sink. I needed a spray attachment to get her rinsed off faster, but I often found that filling cups with warm (not hot) water and pouring these over her was less of a problem because the sound of the water running added to her panic.
Over the years (12 years) she got more used to this routine and less panicky. In fact, after every bath, when she was wrapped in the warm towels and I was brushing and combing her and towelling her, she soon seemed very, very happy to be clean.
She was always inclined to shiver when the bathing stopped. The warm towels helped to stop the shivering. Getting her dry as fast as possible was a help too.
This cat weighed only about 9-10 lbs. and trusted me in a big way. I wouldn't try it with a bigger or stronger cat. If you have someone who can help you, that would be good.
But if you keep your cat indoors but she still isn't grooming herself (a very few cats don't--some because of dental problems that make their mouths painful, for instance), you could TRY bathing your cat--IF you're strong enough and the cat isn't too big and strong for you.
It's best to get a cat used to this as a kitten, but if that's not possible, you have to prepare the scene very carefully because you're probably going to have a major battle on your hands. You wil probably be all wet yourself within minutes and you may be scratched and bitten. Your cat will be in a panic.
My previous cat hardly ever groomed herself (she had chin abscesses due to feline acne, for one thing), and once a year I tackled the project of giving her a bath.
I heated up several towels in the oven and caught the cat during a nap. I put cotton balls in her ears to keep the water out, and I got all of the supplies (soap, etc.) ready beforehand. I had to have a nonskid surface to keep her from slipping around in the kitchen sink. I needed a spray attachment to get her rinsed off faster, but I often found that filling cups with warm (not hot) water and pouring these over her was less of a problem because the sound of the water running added to her panic.
Over the years (12 years) she got more used to this routine and less panicky. In fact, after every bath, when she was wrapped in the warm towels and I was brushing and combing her and towelling her, she soon seemed very, very happy to be clean.
She was always inclined to shiver when the bathing stopped. The warm towels helped to stop the shivering. Getting her dry as fast as possible was a help too.
This cat weighed only about 9-10 lbs. and trusted me in a big way. I wouldn't try it with a bigger or stronger cat. If you have someone who can help you, that would be good.
Re: Should you bathe your cat?
In addition to the above advice, I recommend you get a cat style harness and put it on her while giving the bath. It gives you a handle to hold her. I used a figure 8 type harness. Wet cats are very slippery! Add in claws and you will really appreciate the handle.
The last thing you want is a soapy cat escaping and hiding under the bed. This way I was confident I could hold my cat without worrying about squeezing the stuffin' out of her.
I would also suggest a scent-free shampoo. My cat was very sensitive to the smell scented shampoo left on her fur. Scents pleasing to humans are not necessarily pleasing to cats. She would groom herself for hours after a bath to get the scent off her fur. When I switched to the scent-free kind she stopped the excessive grooming.
The last thing you want is a soapy cat escaping and hiding under the bed. This way I was confident I could hold my cat without worrying about squeezing the stuffin' out of her.
I would also suggest a scent-free shampoo. My cat was very sensitive to the smell scented shampoo left on her fur. Scents pleasing to humans are not necessarily pleasing to cats. She would groom herself for hours after a bath to get the scent off her fur. When I switched to the scent-free kind she stopped the excessive grooming.
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Phoebe's human
- Posts: 248
- Joined: Sun Sep 05, 2004 2:09 pm
- Location: Portland, OR
Re: Should you bathe your cat?
A harness is a great idea.
I used to put my cat in a mesh bag, the kind with a drawstring. I drew the string around her neck, not too tightly of course.
Yes, a wet cat is very, very slippery! A soapy wet cat is even worse.
I used to put my cat in a mesh bag, the kind with a drawstring. I drew the string around her neck, not too tightly of course.
Yes, a wet cat is very, very slippery! A soapy wet cat is even worse.