How often should I bathe my cat?

I usually do it when her fur starts to get really thick and she starts to not smell very good, but I'm not sure exactly how often to bathe her, anybody know?

OK, first off I'm not going to laugh.
My boy cat HATES to get bathed. We used to have one of those under the sink water filters that had a special tap on the top of the sink. A grommer who lived next door came over to give our boy a prefessional bath and grooming. She said that it would be easy. :rolleyes:

We got him into the sink OK. Got him hooked up with the restraining coller attached to a big suction cup on the wall. Al just fine until she turned tha water on. :eek:

That giant suction cup came off the wall leaving a big mark. He caught the coller under the special water tap and snapped the tap off level with the sink like that thing was an old dry twig.

He somehow slipped out of the coller and made for the pet door.

It was locked. He hit that door full force. His back end was still moving and he accordianed up just like you see on the cartoons.

To make this short it took the three of us a good two hours to get him washed in the tub. The cost of the damage was more than if I had him bathed and groomed at the vet.

If you are bathing your precious one OK, then I would do it only as often as she needs it. Usually cats take care of cleaning themselves and only need us to step in when things get too bad for them.

Best of luck.

lol... she is not that bad, she just sits in the bath tub and meows and once in a while growls... so.... I just want to know how often they should get bathed.

None of my seven have ever had a bath. I value my skin too much.

Most cats keep themselves clean. Occassionally a "butt bath" is needed if they have diarrhea.

Mary

yeah... lol.. "a butt bath"

you have 7 cats? thats alot of cats.

I agree, most cats take care of themselves very nicely, except for the occassional "butt bath" we don't bathe any of ours. We have 4 furry children so they help each other, but I wouldn't attempt to put any of them in water. If you can get your cat in the tub then you are fortunate and I would do it when ever you feel is necessary.

I've never bathed any of my 8 furkids. I'd have a revolt on my hands for sure. I agree, the occasional "butt bath" but that's about it. I was thinking of taking a couple of my long hairs to the groomer because they get clumps and they HATE being groomed. But I'll probably just end up brushing them out, as usual.

Blessings,
Mary

Yes, I have 7. All are strays from the neighborhood. Two won't even let me pet them, so a bath is out of the question. Only a couple will let me brush them. Most have been in the house for two to three years.

I did have to butt-bathe an older cat that I was sitting for. But she was a sweetheart. I trimmed her tailfeathers to make it easier.

Mary

If you do decide to bath your cat. Remember that you have to comb and brush the cat first because of shedding. Make sure all the matts are out and all the shedding fur. Then bath them if not the little matts will turn into bigger ones with the fur that they are shedding. And then as the cat is drying use a wide tooth comb and make sure there are not matts and this helps the fur to seperate and dry quicker. If you are brave use a blow dryer on low heat and keep a a good distance away from the cat, so not to burn the skin. And keep the cat in a warm place you don't want it to get chills and catch a cold. Just a few suggestions if you are going to bath your self. Oh and use a good CAT Shampoo make sure it is for cats nothing else.

If you decide not to do it call and talk to different groomers and get different quotes depending on long or short hair prices can be different. And then you can check with PetSmart or places like that or your Vet may be able to help you.

Stella

I have to bathe MooShoo (my hairless cat) at least 2-3 times a month. The reason being he has no fur for the oils to soak into. The telltale sign is a ring around his neck.

Now, don't laugh, but when I DO bathe him, I get into the tub with him. I face him away from me to give me more control. I put a small hand towel underneath him so he doesn't feel like he's slipping.

He's not crazy about it, but knows it's necessary.

I don't bathe any of my other cats unless they get really dirty and smelly, or they are being shown in a cat show. I do the same thing with them as I do with Moo, i.e., getting in the tub with them.

When we had 4 cats, we would bathe them once a year. We would wait til the weather was very warm, then would round them up in the basement. Used the utility sink to do the dirty deed with a small hose hooked up to the tap.

My husband nailed carpet to a board that we slanted in the sink for them to cling to. He would put on leather gloves to hold them one at a time and I'd rinse, shampoo and rinse again. All the time they would howl like banshees or cry like tortured souls! After the bath we would plop them on the top of the washer and towel them off. After they were towel-dry, it was outside in the sun (supervised, of course) to shake the water off and act insulted. They actually looked embarrassed after they were clean, but boy did they fluff up nicely! We'd give 'em a brushand they'd be ready for showtime! They smelled divine and their fur was so soft.

We don't do our 2 guys, though; they seem to stay cleaner.

LOL - well Big Charles, I must say -- what a great story!
Actually I do give my cat bathes, although not often. (maybe 1 or 2x a year) I've tried several techniques, but the easiest thing is to go into the tub enclosure with him and put several inches of water in the tub, get him wet, lather him up, douse him with the bath water, and run clean water to do a final rinse. I pour water on with a container, but I can manuver most of his body under the running water - he yowls alot, but he knows there's no escape...... I've never been bitten or scratched. (such a good kitty!) I towel dry, then use a hair-dryer, then let him sit in a summy window and steam dry.