Why should you ever need to bathe a cat? Cats are usually self-cleaning, but sometimes a bath with actual water is necessary. On occasion, cats can get their fur dirty and can’t manage to clean it themselves; for instance, motor oil from walking under a drippy car is something you don’t want your car licking off its fur. Rescuing a stray cat can involve a flea-ridden, dirty animal, and you would want to bathe the poor thing before letting it loose in your home. If your 3-year old thinks it fun to squirt chocolate syrup all over your cat, this would be another reason to bathe a cat. Older cats sometimes need help with grooming, as do young kittens, so there are many reasons why your cat might need a bath.
Before bathing your cat, collect the supplies you will need. It is very important to have all your supplies nearby, because when you start the bath, you will definitely not be able to leave the cat to get something; your hands will have to be on the cat at all times. Ideally, bathing a cat is a job for more than one person, but it can be done by a single masochist if necessary. Supplies you will need include at least 3 or 4 towels, cat shampoo and conditioner, baby wipes, cotton balls, and baby oil. If your cat has fleas, choose a shampoo especially for flea removal. In a pinch, you can use your own shampoo; baby shampoo would be best in case you accidentally get in on the cat’s face. Open the shampoo and conditioner bottles and pour the amounts you think you will need into a paper or plastic cup; if you use the original bottle, it’s easy to spill the contents.
You will need to have a sprayer in the area you choose to bathe your cat. This could be a hand-held shower in your bathtub, or a sink sprayer. If you don’t have a sprayer, you can use a plastic glass or cup to pour water over the cat. I find it easier to have the cat at a higher level in the sink, but if you don’t have a sink sprayer, or don’t want a dirty cat in your kitchen, use the tub. Warm water is necessary; cats hate cold water and the warm water will be more soothing, so don’t try to spray the cat with your garden hose. The bath, however, could be accomplished outdoors if you have a large tub of warm water with which to wet and rinse the cat. Clear away anything you have on the tub or sink ledge for a couple of feet; if the cat starts thrashing around, you don’t want to have articles falling or breaking. Put on clothing that you can get wet, and long rubber gloves are a good idea if you don’t want to get any scratches on your arms.
To begin, pick up the cat while talking to it in a soothing tone, and take it to the bath area. Hold and pet the cat while turning on the water; get it to a warm temperature. If another person is helping with the bath, that person can control the water while you control the cat, or vice versa. Do not fill the tub or sink with water; the cat will not like being put into deep water. Next, put the cat into the tub or sink, and grasp it under the neck. I find it convenient to hold the cat’s front paws together, bringing them up under the neck. That prevents the cat from scratching or biting you if it finds the bath to be a frightening experience. Making sure first that the water is warm, not hot or cold, spray the cat below the head area while maintaining a firm hold on its neck and front paws. Make sure you don’t get the cat’s head wet; that would be disastrous and the bath would probably end at that point, because the cat would go berserk.
After the cat is wet, put some of the shampoo on its back and rub it in. Repeat for the paws, the stomach area, and the tail, under the tail, and under the neck. Use the sprayer to rinse with warm water until all of the soap is off. Talk to the cat soothingly, and praise its behavior if it hasn’t done major damage to your body yet. If another person is helping you, this person can rinse the cat while you are holding it. Repeat the process with the conditioner, which will help keep your cat’s fur from drying out.
After rinsing out the conditioner, your cat will be clean but still wet. While still holding the cat, dry it with the towels, rubbing briskly to remove water while still talking calmly and praising the cat. Do not attempt to dry the cat with a blow dryer; it’s difficult to gauge how close to the cat’s skin you should put the dryer to avoid burning, and the cat will definitely be afraid of the noise and the hot air. Hold the cat and pet it until it’s fairly dry. Use the baby wipes to carefully clean the cat’s face, being careful to avoid the eyes and nose.
Put some baby oil on a cotton ball and carefully clean the cat’s ears; this should be done once a month or so even if you aren’t bathing the cat. If there is a buildup of a waxy substance, which will be black, the cat could have ear mites, especially if it scratches itself around the ears, and you will need medication from the vet or a pet shop for that. After cleaning the cat’s ears, put the cat in an area where it can be dried completely, such as a sunny spot or near a heat source. Putting the cat in a carrier on a towel is a good idea; after a bath, cats tend to run and hide to get away from whatever other tortures you might want to inflict on it, and the cat could become dirty again while still wet. After the cat is dried, take it out of the carrier and brush it, pet it, and praise it for not killing you during its bath.
