If you have a cat, do you...

[Aurora63]

1. Give him or her a bath yourself

2. Take her to the vet/groomer for a bath.

3. Let the cat take care of the problem.

I took my kitty to the vet today for a bath. She was having a major flea problem, so we got her some advantage to. She is nice and clean and fresh-smelling now, but I wonder what the poor "vet techs" have to go through when giving a cat a bath. Do they just put the cat in a big stainless-steel sink, so they can't climb out, spray wth a hose, lather, and rinse? That would probably be the easiest way. We gave her a bath at home once, never again.

 

[catsrule]

simba and cali give themselves a bath, although if simba gets one drop of water on him, he runs and hides, he thinks his belly is gonna melt.

 

[Rajah]

Most of the time I let the kitty take care of the problem, but when/if they need a little help I'll give them a bath with DH's help.

 

[Robinrs]

I've had cats dipped in the past but not bathed. My cats are indoor cats so they basically do the work themselves.

I cannot IMAGINE giving my four a bath. I'd have to wear armor!

 

[jx3smom]

We usually let the cats take of themselves. One tip I got when I had to give one a flea bath was to put a screen at the bottom of the tub/sink and put the cat on that. They have something to sink their claws into instead of you and it works!

 

[momof3disneyholics]

I bathe my cat about once a week, she actually likes water. She climbs up on the side of the tub when I am in it and puts her paws in and licks them. This is one cat that is definately not scared of water!

 

[LadyAurora]

I have never bathed my cat in her 8 years of life. She only likes water on her terms, that is, she approaches it (not vice-versa). Sometimes she will hop up on the edge of the tub and poke at the bathwater with her paw. That's as close to a bath as she gets. She never goes outside, so she's not too dirty.
My mom used to bathe one of her cats, when it was too fat to reach its nether regions. That was a struggle. No one came out of that happy!

 

[katerkat]

I bathed one of my cats - wanna see the scars?

My boys pretty much clean themselves and each other. When Wedge was sick, I wiped him gently with a damp washcloth, and his brother helped me out.

 

[goofygirl]

#3- let the cats bathe themselves, they don't go out.


I did bathe one of mine because she got into something sticky and she gave me hell, but I survived! LOL

Its interesting how cats either love water or hate it.

 

[ChibiJones]

He mostly takes care of himself since he's an indoor cat. About once a year, he'll get a little smelly & then he gets a shower. We found that the easiest was was for the two of us to just take him in the shower with us. When we just tried the bath, he'd get away too easily. Surprisingly, the claws don't come out in the shower.

 

[Diane]

Usually I let them take care of themselves, but sometimes Misty needs a little help with her rear end (long-haired cat, lots of fur). I have someone hold her while I clean the area with pre-moistened clothes I got at a pet store. Just once, when it was really bad, I took her to the vet. I probably wouldn’t do it again. She was there all day and I think she was somewhat traumatized by the experience (and me, too). Also, afterwards I noticed that her fur became quite matted. So, I’ll think twice before doing that again.

 

[Beauty]

My 8 are all indoor cats and they take care of it themselves. Once though Isis did get into some potpourri and had red all over his fur so I bathed him. He was still a kitten so I could control him pretty well.

Now Mindy Lou got into some syrup once a long time ago and let me tell you it was pure and simple Heck giving her a bath.

 

[jel0511]

Buster is a ragdoll, which is a breed of VERY long haired cats. We get him groomed every 3 - 4 months, so he does get a bath then. He doesn't mind, he just sits there for the groomer and lets her do her thing. If he doesn't get groomed, he fur MATS like you wouldn't believe, even with regular brushing!!!

 

[angey77]

I try to bathe my cats at season changes to help control the shedding (they are both indoor cats). One loves it, the other, when we get too close to the tub, she howls and pees on me every freakin time!
Oh, and the back paws come out SWINGING with the claws. She's a nightmare.

 

[GeorgeG]

We bath the cats about every 3 or 4 months, but they're both inside cats and just need a regular brushing most of the time.

Both cats have a thing for water that we refer to them as "aqua-cats!" We have to make sure the toilet seats are left down and the faucets are firmly off or they'll play away. The one always has to play with the drinking water and will put one paw in it while drinking.

 

[scarlett873]

my cat is so fat that she can't reach her "nether regions" (as LadyAurora says) so she has to have a bit of help every now and then. i use those pre-moistened cloths from the pet store and then give her a good brushing.

i had to bathe the poor thing once...i surrendered her to my DH because i just couldn't control her. he came over, held her with one hand and managed to finish the job. i've thought about taking her to be groomed, but i don't think i want to put the groomer through that!

 

[Kitty 34]

I have never washed my cats. They seemed to do it pretty well themselves.

 

[Aurora63]

I laughed out loud when I saw that post about the cat being to fat to reach its nether reigions. That is my kitty. Sweet as she is, she's a roly-poly fatty. She same back so fresh-smelling yesterday, it was really nice. Our vet seems to do a good job with the bathing part. She was howling on the way there, but on the ride back, she was silent. I seriously wondered if they sedated her or something, but once we got home, she was back to her normal, though more affectionate, self.

 

[we3luvdisney]

After we shave our cats (Lion cut) I give them a shower and I always wear my bathing suit when I do. I really dont want the "boys" to get damaged. Actually the cats are pretty good about it --- they don't like the shower, but they are not clawing their way out.

 

[BCVOwner2002]

Our cat cleans herself and has even climbed into the shower with me in the past! She loves water and during the summer will climb into our bathroom sink after the water has been shut off and rolls all around in it. Annmarie