How many times should you wash a cat?

Question

Thanks,
Karl
http://www.freewebs.com/smithkarl/sitemap.htm

Answer 1

never unless they are noticable dirty. Cats take care of themselves fine on their own

Answer 2

NEVER wash a long haired pet with tangled fur. That's how you make felt. You create a layer of felt next to the animals skin, which is just one big mat. Brush out the tangles first, then wash and use a specially formulated pet shampoo.

If your cat gets oil, or anti freeze, or anything oil based or toxic on her then YES you should wash that off immediately, and get advice from the vet; cats lick themselves clean and these kinds of chemicals can cause burns inside the mouth and poisoning.

Other than that, groom most cats every day, a cheap comb is perfect, try it on your own scalp first to make sure its not scratchy! A grooming mitt or the new wet wipes will give the coat a polish and help keep your furniture hair free.

If your cat is elderly she'll need extra help, but won't enjoy a bath. Get a new rough cloth like one of those old fashioned dishcloths and make it hers. Rinse it out well and groom her with that instead of a bath. You'll have to keep rinsing it out frequently.

Regular grooming is usually better than bathing.

Answer 3

Our show cats get a shampoo and shower about six times a year, before shows. We make sure that the water is warm and is kept away from their faces. The coat must be combed from from tangles first and it is a good idea to trim the claws. Our cats do not struggle though I would not go as far as to say that they like it - they are very patient and have never shown us any aggression at bath-time.

Answer 4

A cat only needs to be helped in keeping clean if there is paint, or some chemical or medication spilt on her fur; in which case you should wrap the cat to stop it washing, and get it to a vet, fastest. Cats have cared for their own fur for millions of years; its products made by humans that can harm them; they dont need a bath otherwise, as it stresses them hugely.

Answer 5

Only in case of something really nasty and man made getting onto them.

To soften the process the water would need to be exactly at their body temperature, like a baby, so there is no shock.

Don't let them out until they are totally dry, so think about whether you need to keep them warm.

Hope you get on well with them as this can upset your relationship a little for a short time!

Answer 6

Emmn maths equasion

Cat Plus human Plus bath =

Trip to hospital for many stitches,
Lots of pain,
A while explaining to the coppers if they turn up that nobody got murdered in the bathroom as all the blood is yours
Tossible perminant scaring,
Tetanus shots required
Damaged furniture and breakages trying to catch the no furball from hell doing an impression of taz


Or you could let it wash itself

Answer 7

Now a feline really don`t need no help at bath time, ole Granny from the old school can tell you a cat can wash and clean up themselves from head to toe. they spend a lot of time using their paws to wash their own head, and behind their ears, something our children won`t do most of the time.

Answer 8

I know a lady that washed her dog sometimes twice a day, and it developed a terrible skin rash. Animals are meant to naturally clean themselves. If it isn't enough for you, try to wash the cat as seldom as possible, IMO. I'm not a vet, BTW.

Answer 9

lol like everyone else is saying...you shouldnt really unless its really dirty and u think it has fleas, in which case theres special shampoos. if your gonna wash the cat you should hold it by the scruff of the neck and you should probably get a person to help coz they can get pretty mean at times.
but if the cat just smells bad then theres sprays you can use...i've used it on both my dog and cat and they smelt really nice afterwards

Answer 10

Unless it's a long-haired cat and particularly tangled, never. We do occasionally have to bath one of our cats as he has persian type fur and it gets really matted, but we try not to do it too often. The best thing would be to brush it every day and that should stop you having to bath it.

Answer 11

Cats wash themselves