How to Train Adult Cats or Kittens to Take a Bath
Washing cats or bathing kittens can be a bleeding nightmare.
Cats don’t like water and this is a well known fact. Cats are mostly terrified of water and will scratch you to death if you try to introduce them to bathing.
However sometimes we very badly need to clean our kitty or our cat.
If your cat is an outdoor cat, than he or she might come home muddy and dirty.
So to make your cat a bath with reduced risk of ingury, follow these simple instructions:
[1] The Right Water Temperature for Bathing Cats
The water should be luke-warm when washing cats, more on the room-temperature side, because if you put hot water on your cat, it will get burned. Cold water is always a better solution for bathing cats or kittens. Cats don’t mind the cold. Unlike myself :-)
Yet water should not be tooo cold- you know what I mean – not so freezing cold that your cat shakes and its teeth chatter… Just pleasantly luke-warm, like for a baby bath.
[2] Where Should You Bath Your Cats or Kittens in?
Choose a shallow bathing tub that your cat can easily stand in. Deep buckets might cause cats to panic and feel as though they’re stuck in a narrow clastrophobic well.
Best would be a shallow plastic container or a small laundry bucket, that is safe for cats and not slippery. We want to introduce our cats to water in a gradual way and not throw them into a 6 foot/2m pool and have them get a heart attack from fright.
Place a towel around the dish so that your cat can stand on it afterwards and get dry.
You can also use a rubber mat for the bath bottom, so the cat won’t slip, but it isn’t a ” must have “.
If it’s a slippery tray, then the rubber mat is advisable, but if it is a plastic dish, then you don’t need to worry about it. Anyway, it’s shallow so there is no risk.
[3] How Deep Should The Cat Bath Waters Be?
Start bathing your cat with just enough water to be above cats feet.
For the time bathing kittens or washing cats, just place your cat in the tub and let cat play around in there. Cats will get used to the bath and think it is fun.
Tips for Playing with Your Cat in the Tub:
If you play with your cat inside his or her bath with a string, or with some other toy your cat will enjoy bathing and want to get in there again.
Make it the place where you play with your cat with a certain item (like a mouse on a string or some kind of “bath” toy.) you only use in bath. Your cat will be glad to jump in there and want to play with you.
Another cat bathing motivator is giving your cat a few yummy cat treats when he baths.
Next Stages of Cat in the Tub
Don’t worry if your cat makes a mess. The towels you places around the bath tub will mop up most of it.
Gradually you can begin to increase the depth of the water.
Beware: For most cat types, water should never be deeper than cat’s knees.
This should be enough water to give your cat a bath, without creating the fear of drowning panic in your cat’s mind.
Don’t pour the water over your cat or dunk her inside, instead take a cloth and dab your cat with it over his or her fur while paying with it.
Some cats are amazingly expert swimmers, maybe you will have the next “swimming champion”, but don’t push your cat to be one…
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I have a cat that has very dry skin and she licks all the fur off there. Is there something that I can do t keep that area from drying out? She has sores from doing this. She has done this every winter for a couple of years now. She also spends a lot of time washing. She is OCD.