How to bath a cat? Tips for letting cats enjoy bathing
Most cats are very resistant to bathing, I believe cat owners must have a deep understanding. Every time you bathe your cat, you will be exhausted, bothered, and even scratched. And the cat itself is also not comfortable, and it can be said a "lose-lose situation".
First of all, we have to make it clear that cats do not need to bathe frequently. Cats have the function of self-cleaning, and licking their fur is how it cleans itself.
Of course, not taking frequent baths does not mean not taking baths! Cat bathing is still very important. In addition to ensuring that the cat’s body is clean, it is also for the sake of the owner's health. After all, the cat lives with you, and even sleeps together.
However, bathing cats must be skillful, rather than random washing, which may cause the cat to get sick or cause the cat's psychological burden. Next is the key topic of Lionpapa's blog today: how to give a cat a proper bath.
- Trim the claws
The cat's claws are very sharp, and it is easy to hurt people, not to mention that it will actively use the claws when taking a bath.
Therefore, in order to prevent it from being scratched during the bath, you can trim its claws before bathing.
But if your cat is also resistant to cutting paws, it is best not to do these two things on the same day, so as not to affect the mood of the bath at the beginning, you can trim it a few days in advance.
- Comb the hair.
Grooming is a cat's favorite and enjoyable thing, so you can comb its hair before you prepare it for a bath so that it is in a relaxed state.
In addition, straightening out its hair can also prevent the hair from knotting after it is wet.
When combing, move gently so as not to hurt the cat and comb the whole body fur, including the abdomen. You can use a small brush to comb the hair on the face.
- Prepare the necessary supplies.
Be sure to prepare all the tools and supplies you need before bathing your cat, and put them in a place that is convenient for you to touch, instead of picking them up halfway, which will bring you a lot of unnecessary trouble.
Things that need to be prepared are: bathtub, towel, pet shampoo, scoop container, comb (one each with dense teeth and sparse teeth), brush, skimmed cotton swab, cotton ball, Vaseline, eye ointment (as needed), tweezers (for cotton balls), hairdryer, etc.
- Control indoor temperature.
Cats are more afraid of cold animals, so they must not feel cold when taking a bath. The indoor temperature had better be controlled at about 28 degrees.
If the weather is cold and the temperature of the bath area is too low, you can turn on the hot water in advance to raise the temperature of the bath area.
Be careful not to let the cat catch cold while taking a bath.
- Prepare hot water.
The temperature of hot water should be controlled at 40-50 ℃. It is recommended to choose a tub bath.
If it is a shower, it should also be a relatively slow kind of running water, which should not impact too much, so as not to increase the cat's psychological burden.
The amount of hot water must be controlled well, neither too much nor too little.
Many pet owners will put the cat's whole body into the water, which will make the cat feel drowned, preferably over the belly.
- Appease the cat's mood
When the hot water is ready, you can carry the cat to the bathroom. Remember to close the door when you get to the bathroom.
Before putting the cat into the water, the cat must show panic. At this time, the owner must slowly appease the cat and try to calm it down.
Let the cat sit close to the water and let it smell the water. This is also a good time to plug cotton balls into the ears. Make sure there is no water in the ears.
You can also apply some Vaseline around the cat's ears.
- Gently put the cat into the water
One hand grabs the cat by the neck and the other drags its hind legs (not hanging so that it has sense of security).
First pat it on the back with some water, let it adapt to the water temperature, then slowly put it into the bathtub, and then slowly sprinkle the body with water, soaking from the back, abdomen, limbs and tail in turn.
When doing these steps, be sure to be gentle and slow, not too impatient. In this way, the cat will not be too nervous.
In addition, do not wet the cat's head with water. If you want to clean the area around the mouth and eyes, you can use a wet dishcloth.
- Gentle massage
After the cat's body is wet, you can squeeze an appropriate amount of shampoo on your hands, rub it into foam and rub it all over the cat's body, rubbing nests, claws, belly and other places that are not easy to clean. The movement must be gentle!
- Fully dry the towel
The time to bathe the cat should not be too long, preferably within half an hour.
After washing, take a dry towel and dry it thoroughly. The movements should also be gentle.
You can try to dry the body as much as possible, which reduces the time spent using the hairdryer.
- Further dry with a hair dryer
After taking a bath, the cat must blow-dry its hair completely inside and outside, otherwise it is easy to breed bacteria and cause skin diseases.
However, the hairdryer is also a thing that cats fear, which is mainly related to its noise.
So, before using the hairdryer, you can turn it on to the side and let it adapt to the sound.
Set the hairdryer to the lowest heat setting and speed, slowly approach the cat, and gently cover it with your hands to dry the cat as slowly as possible with the minimum air volume.
When blowing, it is best to shake the hair dryer back and forth to ensure the dispersion of heat and air, not too concentrated, so as not to scald the cat.
After blowing-dry the hair, don't forget to remove the cotton ball that is tucked into the cat's ear.
The whole process seems complicated, but it is actually very simple to implement methodically in order, and it is also to save more trouble.
If you are a diligent cat owner and your cat's usual environment, such as the litter box or the corner of the house, is clean enough, it doesn't take long to bathe the cat.
If you don’t have so much time to take care of your cat, and you feel that the process of cleaning up cat litter every day is troublesome, you can try Lionpapa’s cat litter refills. Together with the cat litter pail, it is convenient and easy to operate. It will save you a lot of time every day and make your life with your cat better.
