I want to give my cat a bath. I was wondering if there is something i can give her to sedate her.?

Question

she hates to get a bath. I would like to try something over the counter before I try to get something from my vet. thanks!!!!!

Answer 1

I have had so many kittens and cats in my life, and everyone of them would (At First) sit on the tub while I was taking my bath.
And if you believe it or not, they all eventually got in the tub!!
But, here is a link that you may want to look through.

http://www.pgaa.com/feline/general/catbath.html

Answer 2

You won't find and over the counter sedative. It's risky even to get sedation from a vet. Cats should not be sedated for bathing. If you think you will have trouble bathing your cat, take her to a professional groomer. That's what I do.

My cat is difficult to groom and bathe so she is done at a local groomer's. In all the years I've had her (she's 15 now and a longhair Himalayan), she has had to be sedated 3 times. It was done BY the vet at the clinic right before she was taken to the groomers (which was right next door). The reason she was sedated is because she had gotten so matted that a regular grooming would have been painful for her. It had nothing to do with her behavior. She has been groomed many times and knows the routine.

Sydney gets brushed daily but because she is so furry and fluffy, she requires regular grooming (about once every 4 months). Her fur tends to mat, especially on her belly. She also gets a "sanitary shave", where she is shaved around her genitals. This helps keep that area clean in between groomings.

Most cats hate baths. Unless they are extremely dirty or matted, you should just let them groom themselves. Cats are fastidious creatures and don't like to be dirty. So...call a groomer and let it be done professionally. They know how to handle the animals and cause the least amount of stress to the cat.

EMT

Answer 3

It's not a good idea to give a cat people medicine because they react very differently to it. If you use your kitchen sink and put just an inch of warm (not hot) water with a towel on the bottom of the sink it can really help. Most cats will calm down some when the towel is there so they have something to grip their claws into and not slip all over and it's not cold. Talk quietly to the cat while she's getting her bath, make it as quick as you can and dry her off well with a towel and if she' ll tolerate it a hair dryer on low so the noise doesn't scare her. I've had it work with some cats and not others so it's worth a try.

Answer 4

You don't usually have to give a cat a bath, they do it themselves. Unless your cat got into something that she can't handle it her self, like oil or dog or cat poop or anything out of the ordinary. Other wise leave you cat alone. And don't even think about sedating her yourself, that is dangerous. Don't use any human medicine on her, you don't know how much to give, and to much can kill her.
And don't take her to a pet store, if she hates baths. I recently read where someone took there cat to be groomed and ended up breaking the cats neck from so much force and yes the cat died. The pet stores I know of , do not sedate either. Leave your cat alone and use pet wipes or other alternatives that were mention already by others here.

Answer 5

When you give your cat a bath, you don't really need to sedate her.. You would slowly introduce her to the water. Hold her by the back of the neck (like a mother cat carrying her baby) and use a cup and slowly pour warm water on her and talk to her of course. My cat loves baths and she just sits there while I am bathing her. But then again, if that don't work take her to a pet store, they have a salon for animals. Another thing, cats only gets real baths twice a year anyways. Good luck.

Answer 6

There is NOTHING you ought to give her.
Just learn how to give the bath properly.

Always use lukewarm water, cos cats hate being cold more than being wet.

Place a mat below the cat so it doesn't feel like it will slip and drown (that's why cats want to get out all the time).

Wet it's head first (taking extreme care not to get water into the ears, nose and mouth etc). Once the head is wet, a cat normally sees no sense in trying to escape.

If it helps, get a friend to help hold on to the cat while you bathe it.

In time your cat will be more cooperative especially since you're doing in right.

Answer 7

omg do not sedate your cat, cats need to get used to having a bath and should have been having one from a young kitten to get used to it but if you want to wash an adult cat here is the best idea use a dampened paper towel with some handwash or body wash and wipe over the cat use another wet paper towel to remove any of the soapiness left until the fur is soap free , towel dry the cat and keep it inside until fur dries out don't use a hairdryer you will most likely get ripped apart by the cat and it won't let you near it again. do not immerse the cat in water you will freak it out and will probably end up shredded.

Answer 8

Sedating a cat just to take a bath could be dangerous for your cat. Go to a vet office or Pet supply store ( Petsmart, Petco, etc) and ask about or for a muzzle. They make them small enough for cats, and if the cat can't see the water, she'll calm down enough for you to bathe her. Plus try placing a dish towel on the bottom of the sink, your cat will be able to grip something that is not your arm or chest.

Answer 9

Rather than giving her a full on bath, you may want to consider getting 'dry shampoo'. It cleans without using water.. you simply sprinkle it on and brush the fur. It's less stressful for both parties and cleans just as well.

Using baby or pet wipes will get her clean as well.

Honestly, all cats hate baths. If she's not excessively dirty, I'm not sure it's worth it to sedate her or put her under that amount of stress. Cats are quite good at keeping themselves clean. :)

Answer 10

Cats naturally don't like water and it stresses them out like you wouldn't believe. But saying this I had to bath my cat when he was a kitten because of medical problems and do have to every now and again still.
But since I did start introducing him to water as a kitten he doesn't find water very stressful.
I heard that through stressful situations you don't talk to your cat because they think they are in trouble, just stay quiet. I don't know how true this is though.
But if you need to bath him when s/he isn't used to water, then let your vet do it. They know what they are doing as you have to be careful not to wash the natural oils out of their skin and fur.

Answer 11

I had cats that lived from 15 to 18 years and they never had a bath. I took very good care of them too.

They bathe themself. If one rolled in dirt, I would wet several paper towels and wipe them down until the towel wasn't dirty.

A bath is usually stressful for the cat.

I would not sedate her .