Do you bathe your cat?

[CrazyCat]

Do you bathe your cat? If so, how often?

[Litterati]

Meaning that he keeps his silver grey tabby coat immaculate by grooming himself with his tongue. I'm no expert, but my understanding was that baring certain circumstances such as: the cat is too old to care for him/herself; that cat has long matted fur and needs a groomer's attention; the cat gets sprayed by a skunk or into some other mess, they don't need regular baths, as opposed to for example a dog. My cat is indoor only, maybe this makes a difference.

[Freedom]

Back when I only had cats, I did give them baths, every other month. And I'd change my bed that day too (the bed got changed more often, of course!) I was having lots of allergies and thought the cats were part of that.

Got dogs, a breed which needs regular bathing, and the cats sighed with relief, ha hahaaa.

After 4 years I discovered my allergic reaction was due to my laundry detergent! I had used Tide for EVER! One of the dogs was also having major issues and finally I tracked it down to the Tide. I now use a "free" detergent, from Whole Foods. Or use soap nuts, they are wonderful.

So my cats haven't have baths since December 2006.

[Lady's Human]

Given Patch's reaction to baths, nope.

I prefer to keep my skin intact and the blood INSIDE my capillaries, thank you.

[Cowgirlannie82]

Wow, that's awesome you found what you are allergic to. My husband's lip would randomly swell up. I mean he looked like Sabastion off of the Little Mermaid, of course he is the dork I married and sings the songs like Sabastion. Its hilarious. Anyway, his mom thought it was Star causing his lip to swell. (Cat hater) and come to find out, it was my lovely perfume that he loved so much. I quit wearing it and his lip hasn't swelled up again.

To answer about bathing. I bathed Star a lot when she was younger because she had this funny little habit of playing in her litter box, seriously hunch down and attack passer byes. She stunk. She doesn't like baths much but she tolerates them. As for my 3 kittens, each one of them have had baths, and unintentional ones. I can't hardly take a bath on my own, they hear the water running, and come rushing in, before I am in the tub they are sitting on the ledge with curiosity, so naturally they've fallen in. Silly cats, they haven't learned.



Back when I only had cats, I did give them baths, every other month. And I'd change my bed that day too (the bed got changed more often, of course!) I was having lots of allergies and thought the cats were part of that.

Got dogs, a breed which needs regular bathing, and the cats sighed with relief, ha hahaaa.

After 4 years I discovered my allergic reaction was due to my laundry detergent! I had used Tide for EVER! One of the dogs was also having major issues and finally I tracked it down to the Tide. I now use a "free" detergent, from Whole Foods. Or use soap nuts, they are wonderful.

So my cats haven't have baths since December 2006.

[catmandu]

No I am too old , and My Cats are too fast!!!:love::love::love:

[Taz_Zoee]

I bathed my RB kitty Taz way back in the day when we had a horrible flea problem. Otherwise I do not bathe the kitties. Our previous neighbor bathed (and still does I believe) their cats regularly. They are indoor/outdoor cats so I think that's why.
But I do believe for the most part cats are self-cleaning. :p

[Pinot's Mom]

I have never bathed any cat I have had in residence.

I don't believe Princess Pinot would react positively to this idea. ;)

[Edwina's Secretary]

I too, am far too fond of my fingers and arms to consider bathing either Edwina or Eddie.

[katladyd]

I do not bathe my cats.:eek: I only have so many bandaids in the house.

[Shady]

I do, every other month. They are Persians, and a huge part of their maintenance is grooming..brushed every day..sometimes more in shed season. It takes so little time.

I've only had Persians, they are bathed as kittens and become 'used' to bathing and blow drying..not a big deal..I can do one in about an hour, 15 mins for the actual bath,
30-45 minutes for blow drying.

Cant bathe them too often it messes with the natural oils in their coats.

Spa day is not a big deal in my house. ;) I have it down to a science..

[emily_the_spoiled]

I have one guy that gets a bath once a month. Depending on how "brave" (or stupid :D) I feel I might do it. But I have also found a professional groomer that does a wonderful job! And of course Frankie behaves perfectly for the groomer but when I try it we both end up very wet :rolleyes:

[krazyaboutkatz]

No, I don't normally bathe my cats. I have had to give a butt bath or two when one of my cats got poo stuck in their fluffy bottoms. This has happened to Ziggy, Alani, & Blaze. I tell them to sit up high when they poo like their big brother Sky does. He knows how to do it without soiling himself.;)

[happylabs]

I haven't bathed a cat since I had Kit Kat. She was a fatty and couldn't clean her bum.

Hope I never have to bathe any of my 3. Buddy would probably tolerate it. Tinky not so much. Mama...No way! :eek:

[Jessika]

As others have stated, I haven't/don't bathe my kitties unless there is a reason to do so -- fleas, lack of self-grooming, got into something... etc. I cherish my arms and hands ;)

[catnapper]

Pouncer gets a special medical bath on his boy bits -- but not a big dunk in water. He lays on the bed as I clean him. I used to bathe Allen in the shower fairly frequently because he was too fat to clean himself properly. All the others do a great job cleaning themselves.

[snakemama]

Sherpa has a serious hariball issue, and he absolutely will NOT take Petromalt, so I do bathe him. It is actually easier to bathe him than to give him petromalt, the silly boy. Similarly, Sherpa is VERY good for blood draws and nail trims, but I cannot get a spot-on flea medication onto him. He freaks out and has bitten me quite badly over the issue.

[mrspunkysmom]

Not even on a bet or dare. That's what groomers are for. :D Seriously, I value my life, my blood, and my skins. :D