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I was informed by the place we board our elderly cat (18~) that they no longer bathe cats because of the stress. I asked them "what?" and they replied that cats can get over stressed and have issues. So now my cat is super funky because she's old and frowzy and smells like an old woman, and I'm worried about washing her because of "Stress". She used to get a bath once or twice a year when we would board her, but now that she needs it i'm worried i'll murder my fur baby if i get her close to water. What's the truth??? I mean I guess I could dry bathe her, but that is modern technology that I know nothing about. So..suggestions?
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Nov 4, 2015 17:28
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| # ? Apr 26, 2024 16:54 |
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From my (admittedly limited) experience, cats do a little better with something like a hose or a nozzle sprinkling on them, as opposed to dropping them into a tub. If you feel comfortable and have the right sort of shower you could take her into the shower with you, put the water on lukewarm and focus it mostly at the wall. Any oatmeal-based shampoo will be gentle enough on her old kitty skin that it shouldn't bother her as much. Granted, she will still complain, but I have yet to hear of a cat having a heart attack in the shower? One thing to watch out for is afterwards make sure she has a warm place to dry off, once you towel-dry her. She is older so she might have a little more trouble regulating her temperature. I am *not* a veterinarian, just someone who bathes cats at the clinic I work at. I want to say 4/5 cats mellow out after the first minute of trying to escape, and we use a hose in an elevated tub. Ultimately I am of the opinion that if she needs the bath it is better for her to get it and get rid of any gunk that she may have stuck on her. Please brush/comb her as she is drying so we can prevent any mats, especially in the belly/groin regions. She won't be happy but you might be able to bribe her with treats.
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Nov 4, 2015 18:14
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Chaosfeather posted:you could take her into the shower with you,... She is five pounds of sleepy boney old lady with the muscle tone of an empty glove...but the image of me holding her while I turn on the shower terrifies me. However, yeah maybe a sink and the sprinkler attachment might not be to awful.
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Nov 4, 2015 18:27
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I'm looking at dry shampoos for cats right now and people online seem pretty mixed about whether they are effective/necessary, but maybe do a little research on some waterless shampoos that you can just put on and then brush out. You could also try searching for "fur freshener," which doesn't really claim to wash the cat, but as long as it's not going to harm her and will make her smell better, might be worth a try.
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Nov 5, 2015 00:49
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Seconding sink and hose attachment, that's how I cleaned up a stray that terror-shat himself on the east back from the Humane Society, along with my own cats when they've gotten into God-knows-what. Ease her into the (dry, clean) sink, gently hold the scruff of her neck with one hand, and use the other hand to spray and massage shampoo in. Towel dry her really well, brush her to avoid mats, and give her lots of treats after, she'll be fine.
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Dec 2, 2015 18:05
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People bathe cats on the regular? Like, just because, and not for getting into something or skunked or whatnot? I don't think I've ever given a cat a bath.
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Dec 2, 2015 19:05
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I have a super ancient, super frail, skin and bones cat too. He gets a bath about once a month in the kitchen sink using the spray hose with a gentle flow of water. He doesn't like it, but he is unable to clean himself and if we don't bathe him, the oils and dandruff build up and he gets matted. After he is thoroughly dried with a towel, we set up an electric heating pad for him to lay on while he dries. I've heard that bathing cats can stress them out, but sometimes it's a necessary evil if they need bathing to stay in good physical health.
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Dec 3, 2015 05:58
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Thanks for the replies! I ended up getting some Burt's Bees leave in shampoo that does a pretty good job on the non-crusty bits. I've just brushed out the crusty bits. Her health has taken a turn for the *even more fragile* so I've avoided the sink idea since it's so cold here now. I may be forced to give her a gentle bath if her crustiness increases tho. She has a heating pad she pretty much lives on at this point so I guess staying warm isn't going to be a problem. 
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Dec 3, 2015 14:29
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 They get over it after a night of glaring at you. Smudge stepped in her own poo and got it all over her feet, her tail, her nose, her tummy and my bloody house. So she got a full wash. And Isaac got a wash too cos he smelt.
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Dec 4, 2015 22:56
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Ferremit posted:
The best pic. Thank you.
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Dec 5, 2015 03:54
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I've had three now that do absolutely fine in a tub of still water but fight like hell if there's a nozzle or faucet involved. Which is to say, you may have to experiment.
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Dec 5, 2015 06:21
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I've never really given my cat a full bath, she usually does very well at taking care of her fur all by herself, and much to my chagrin will get agitated when trying to brush her. She's never been one of those cats that gets bothered by water, and it has resulted in a very wet tail flinging water about my apartment on many occasions. Anyway, when she was younger, she used to get "Klingons" when it was hairball time, and I'd have to chase her down and clean up the orbit around Uranus. My first attempt involved trying to bathe her, she really just got a sad look and jumped out of the tub, and being one very frustrated man at that time just gave up. After that it was just a washcloth to the area whenever it was time to defend the Federation.
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Dec 14, 2015 14:01
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Yeah, cats clean themselves. But they also use the same thing that they use to clean themselves to eat with, barf with and rim themselves with. Isaac had another bout of mystery squirty bum late last week (gently caress knows what caused it- nothing changed in diet) and now my entire cat smells faintly like rancid cat food and cat poo poo from him going food bowl->arsehole->cleaning... Cats are stinky little buggers.
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Dec 15, 2015 00:52
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My cat occasionally sits in the shower and meows until someone turns the water on warm and gives him a wash. I'll never understand this loving cat but what the hell, at least he likes to smell clean.
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Dec 16, 2015 12:35
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Nuebot posted:My cat occasionally sits in the shower and meows until someone turns the water on warm and gives him a wash. I'll never understand this loving cat but what the hell, at least he likes to smell clean. Film it. I gotta see this.
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Dec 16, 2015 14:04
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One of my cats will walk in the shower when I'm in there. He doesn't seem to mind getting wet. I never have given him a bath--not in 12 years. He doesn't need it. I did once have a white cat who did need occasional baths. However, she was deaf, which meant she didn't mind the hair dryer. In fact she seemed to like it. So she didn't mind baths at all. Other cats I have had over the years minded a lot. One of my cats got stuck in a tree and, while up there, beshat himself, so he needed a bath. I was afraid the neighbors were going to call somebody and tell them we were torturing cats in our kitchen. He managed to go the next 15 years without ever needing another one, which was good for all concerned.
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Dec 20, 2015 10:01
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Rhymes With Clue posted:One of my cats will walk in the shower when I'm in there. He doesn't seem to mind getting wet. I never have given him a bath--not in 12 years. He doesn't need it. She hasn't done it in years, but my cat when she would younger would hop in the shower after I turned it off, and just roll around in the wet tub like the fluffy weirdo she is.
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Dec 28, 2015 14:40
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Many cats react well to being gently stroked with a warm, damp cloth. So if you can't give them a bath, maybe just spot clean? My previous kitty (below) needed baths due to horrible, horrible skin allergies, but he would just sit in the tub and yowl at us to make us feel guilty. I miss that cat. Current kitty would probably do some serious damage and never come out from the bed ever again. 
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Dec 28, 2015 18:34
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  I have absolutely no idea why, but he put himself in there and hes been in there for half an hr so far. Just stares at me when I walk past the bathroom...
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Dec 30, 2015 12:00
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| # ? Apr 26, 2024 16:54 |
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One of my cats has never been bathed because her coat is always perfectly silky soft and clean, although she has dingleberried a few times and gotten a damp towel dab. My cat with anxiety has had a couple baths. The first was because she just let herself go for brain reasons (?) and wound up really oily and covered in dandruff, so we gave her a wash. The second time she forced her way through the kitchen windowscreen and stranded herself on the balcony early one morning while I was still asleep, and couldn't get back in. When I finally realized what was going on and let her back in she had some kind of sticky fluid all over her chest. I guess got so worked up and upset yelling for me to rescue her that she vomited on herself? She was already mega-stressed but she needed and got a bath.
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Jan 3, 2016 02:51
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