Is it ok to bathe a cat and what is the best way to do it?

Answer 1

here, have some cat bathing related humor... :) Yes you can bathe a cat. :) It won't hurt them.

Some people say cats never have to be bathed. They say cats lick
themselves clean. They say cats have a special enzyme of some sort in
their saliva that works like New, Improved Wisk - dislodging the dirt
where it hides and whisks it away.

I've spent most of my life believing this folklore. Like most blind
believers, I've been able to discount all the facts to the contrary -
the kitty odors that lurk in the corners of the garage and dirt
smudges that cling to the throw rug by the fireplace.

The time comes, however, when a man must face reality; when he must
look squarely in the face of massive public sentiment to the contrary
and announce: "This cat smells like a port-a-potty on a hot day in
Juarez."

When that day arrives at your house, as it has in mine, I have some
advice you might consider as you place your feline friend under your
arm and head for the bathtub:

* Know that although the cat has the advantage of quickness and lack
of concern for human life, you have the advantage of strength.
Capitalize on that advantage by selecting the battlefield. Don't try
to bathe him in an open area where he can force you to chase him.
Pick a very small bathroom. If your bathroom is more than four feet
square, I recommend that you get in the tub with the cat and close
the sliding-glass doors as if you were about to take a shower. (A
simple shower curtain will not do. A berserk cat can shred a
three-ply rubber shower curtain quicker than a politician can shift
positions.)

* Know that a cat has claws and will not hesitate to remove all the
skin from your body. Your advantage here is that you are smart and
know how to dress to protect yourself. I recommend canvas overalls
tucked into high-top construction boots, a pair of steel-mesh
gloves, an army helmet, a hockey face mask and a long-sleeve flak
jacket.

* Prepare everything in advance. There is no time to go out for a
towel when you have a cat digging a hole in your flak jacket. Draw
the water. Make sure the bottle of kitty shampoo is inside the glass
enclosure. Make sure the towel can be reached, even if you are lying
on your back in the water.

* Use the element of surprise. Pick up your cat nonchalantly, as if to
simply carry him to his supper dish. (Cats will not usually notice
your strange attire. They have little or no interest in fashion as a
rule. If he does notice your garb, calmly explain that you are
taking part in a product-testing experiment for J.C. Penney.)

* Once you are inside the bathroom, speed is essential to survival. In a
single liquid motion, shut the bathroom door, step into the tub
enclosure, slide the glass door shut, dip the cat in the water and
squirt him with shampoo. You have begun one of the wildest 45
seconds of your life. Cats have no handles. Add the fact that he now
has soapy fur, and the problem is radically compounded. Do not
expect to hold on to him for more that two or three seconds at a
time. When you have him, however, you must remember to give him
another squirt of shampoo and rub like crazy. He'll then spring free
and fall back into the water, thereby rinsing himself off. (The
national record is -- for cats -- three latherings, so don't expect
too much.)

* Next, the cat must be dried. Novice cat bathers always assume this
part will be the most difficult, for humans generally are worn out
at this point and the cat is just getting really determined. In
fact, the drying is simple compared to what you have just been
through. That's because by now the cat is semipermanently affixed to
your right leg. You simply pop the drain plug with your foot, reach
for your towel and wait. (Occasionally, however, the cat will end up
clinging to the top of your army helmet. If this happens, the best
thing you can do is to shake him loose and to encourage him toward
your leg.) After all the water is drained from the tub, it is a
simple matter to just reach down and dry the cat.

In a few days the cat will relax enough to be removed from your leg.
He will usually have nothing to say for about three weeks and will
spend a lot of time sitting with his back to you. He might even become
psychoceramic and develop the fixed stare of a plaster figurine.

You will be tempted to assume he is angry. This isn't usually the
case. As a rule he is simply plotting ways to get through your
defenses and injure you for life the next time you decide to give him
a bath. But, at least now he smells a lot better.

Answer 2

1. Put both lids of the toilet up and add 1/3 cup of
pet shampoo to the
water in the bowl.

2. Pick up the cat and soothe him while you carry
him to the bathroom.

3. In one smooth movement, put the cat into the
toilet and close both
lids. You may need to stand on the lid.

4. The cat will self-agitate and make ample suds.
Pay no attention to
the noises that come from inside the toilet; the cat
is actually
enjoying this.

5. Flush the toilet three or four times. This
provides a "power wash"
and rinse.

6. Have someone open the front door of your home.
Be sure that there
are no people between the bathroom and the front
door.

7. Stand behind the toilet as far as you can, and
quickly lift both
lids.

8. The cat will rocket out of the toilet, streak
through the bathroom
and run outside, where he will dry himself off.

9. Both the commode and the cat will be sparkling
clean.

Answer 3

I have three cats that I bathe and it does them good. Start when they are small. Keep a good firm grasp on their collar. Do it in the tub with just about two inches of water. Too much water makes them freak out. After the bath, wrap them in a towel, talk to them and it should go very well for you.

p.s. It helps to keep their claws clipped, especially if they are an adult cat that is getting his or her first bath that way you aren't torn up. I've never had any problem bathing cats.

Answer 4

Yes, it's ok to do, but they don't like it, especially if they've never been bathed before! Lots of people do bathe their cats, mostly to get rid of the cat saliva that causes allergies, or I guess if the cat gets very dirty and is not caring for itself. But I once tried to bathe a kitten we had recently gotten, a flea bath.. and the results of a very frightened kitten were painful.. to me! I would personally recommend brushing the cat with a small curry comb such at you can buy at a discount pet place, or a "shedding blade" that will take off excess fur- the cats like it a lot more than a bath, and it also helps them keep nice and clean, so they can "bathe" themselves. If you put them on top of a towel in your lap while you brush them, you stay nice and clean, and you can just wash the towel later.

Answer 5

i have very evil cats.. they don't like being touched let alone being bathed.. and also i tend to be the only one to bath them
what i do first is

fill the tub with warm water up to about what be the cats knees (if cats had knees)

make sure there is a towel and the soap near by.. i also get a margine container to dump water on the cat..

so after the tub is at the desired filledness.. :) i go get the cat and put it into the water.. hold the cat around the shoulders firmly but not hard and with my other hand dump water onto the cat untill its wet enough to absorb the soap .. than i carefully put the soap on the cat making sure not to get any in its eyes and such.. than i rinse the cat using the container.. after the soap is gone and such i pick the cat up out of the tub and dry it off..

i've found this works much better and doesn't seem to upset the cat as much as their isn't a lof of water.. and its not like your spraying him with the shower to upset him even more

Answer 6

Make sure you wash all of the soap out because cats lick their fur, so if there is soap residue they could lick up the soap and get sick! Also, while it is alright to bathe them, I wouldn't do it anymore than twice a month (even that seems like a lot) unless your cat is long haired(which is more difficult to clean by him/herself). Make sure that the water isn't too hot.. I'd do more of a *little more than luke warm* bath. Think of bathing a baby, what do you think would be too hot or too cold for the baby? After the bath, make sure you dry him or her out very well because if you don't he or she can catch a cold or get sick. As far as the actual bathing goes.. it's the same as bathing anything else, just that the cat probably will really hate it and try to get away.. so make sure he or she doesn't get near shower curtains, because when my cat did he jumped on them and climbed to the very top. There will probably be a lot of meowing and howling too. I usually make my water as high as to kitty's belly (you don't want to drown him/her) and then use a cup to with it with water and pour it over her or his back. I would probably skip cleaning the face because you don't want to risk getting soap in the eyes, mouth, and ears, so after the bath I'd just wipe the face with a warm, damp wash cloth (with no soap). The bath water will probably get soap so when I rinse off the cat, I rinse it once with the bath water, and then I rinse it until there is no soap left with new water (after emptying the bath.. kitty still in the bath). Make sure the brush them out after the bath, especially if they are long haired (their fur will mat up) and make sure you don't wear nice clothes while doing this, because you might have some little holes in it from claws when you are through!

Answer 7

It's sort of OK...

And the best way to do it is Very Carefully!

What I mean by "sort of OK" is that cats should never "need" to be bathed, but sometimes you have to. For example, if the cat gets sprayed by a skunk, rolls in oil or something toxic that you wouldn't want it licking off its fur, then a bath is in order and it won't do any harm. (Well, at least not to the cat...)

Aside from unusual circumstances, there's no reason to bathe a cat. Cats bathe themselves quite effectively several times every day. When they groom themselves their abrasive tongues act like brushes or scouring pads, and their saliva actually has a sort of natural detergent in it, so their regular grooming keeps them clean. Frequent baths serve no purpose,as they don't get the cat any cleaner than it gets by itself, and they can remove essential oils from the fur leading to a deterioration in the condition of the coat.

Show cats often get bathed to make them look and smell their best for showing, but their owners know enough not to overdo the frequency, and they also make extra efforts to maintain a plush and healthy coat.

I've had three cats who were with me for their entire lives and none of them ever had a bath or needed one. They always looked and felt and smelled nice and clean.

Answer 8

oh gosh good luck! It really depends what kind of attitude your cat has. Just start running some warm water in the bath tub and have it maybe 3 inches full andhold the cat in there while you rinse wash n rinse :) You might need to wear like a towel around your arms n hands so your cat doesn't claw you to death. Or you can just go to your local pet store with groomers n have them do it that's the easiest way!

Answer 9

I gave our cat a bath two days ago. He is an inside cat so he won't get dirty very quick. It is best to start a cat on baths when they are young. I usually use baby shampoo or cat shampoo from the pet store and give him a bath in the bathroom sink.

Answer 10

Cats are actually not used to bathing. Does he hate it? i visit think of of he does. Cats sparkling themselves robotically all on their very own and baths may be volatile if good soaps are used, some can surely be poisonous. make certain which you do are utilising a cleansing cleansing soap made for cats. Even then you certainly might desire to be careful via fact flea baths that are robotically offered at domestic dog shops have accounted for a lot of circumstances of transforming into the cat septic now and back to the factor of loss of life. Why is he bathing the cat a lot? Does the cat have a lot of dander? Bathing will rapidly deliver some decrease in dander as we talk, yet whilst it quite is drying out the cats pores and epidermis as you reported, this might make the challenge worse. now and back which incorporate fairly vegetable oil or extra advantageous valuable virgin olive oil to the food will upload mandatory oils which will help decrease the dander particularly, if it quite is the challenge. in case you want to bathe your cat, questioning doing it like their mom does and get a wash fabric and gently sparkling his back or the challenge area with water in elementary words and a wash fabric and wipe down his back or everywhere the challenge area exists. If the cat is outdoors now and back and he's cleansing up any grimy factors, you are going to be able to sparkling the cat this thank you besides and he will in all probability purr so loud it is going to be a bonding journey for the two one in each of you particularly of distinctive if the bath terrifies him.

Answer 11

a deep sink is the best , make sure there is nothing near the area if so the cat will soon drag it in, already have the water on ( usually if its on full blast the noise will scare the cat) baby shampoo works on ANY age cat from 1 day old to 20 yrs old
hold the cat by its scruf at all times(the scruf is the skin on the back of the neck this dose not in any way hurt the cat ) have two towels waiting for when its all over