Do you or do you not bath your cat or cats? And why or why not? I work in a pet store, and I recently got into a HUGE argument with one lady who told me I was *neglecting* my cats because I do not bath them on a weekly basis. My cats are all indoor cats, Ive had cats all my live and I have NEVER bathed one. My one cat Itty bitty on the other hand is a different story I have to keep the door to the bathroom shut when I am bathing or he comes splashing in with me. I was so pissed to have this woman tell me I am neglecting my cats because I dont bath them, my cats are soooooooo well taken care of, hell they eat better than I do, they have more toys than I do..... Anyways what are your thoughts on bathing kittys? Personal peference or????

The only time I ever bathed one of my cats was after she came back from the vet´s (he had to give her an enema and she came home absolutely gross!). I don´t think it is normally necessary to bathe a cat—their nature is to clean themselves unless there is some medical or physical reason they can´t.

I have a friend who bathes her cat. She claims that his fur gets "greasy." But I have never done it with any of the four cats I have owned—except for that one nasty vet visit—and they always smell and look fresh and clean

I used to bath my mum´s cat when i lived at home...but that was only because he was getting old and didn´t look after his coat so well anymore. He was very fluffy so it was a bit too much effort for him.
I think that´s the only time you NEED to bath a cat....other than if you´re going to take it to a cat show. Cats keep their own coats clean usually so there´s never really a need and it´s certainly NOT neglecting them. THat lady you spoke to just sounds like a snob! lol.
I have never bathed my four yet...but if they came in covered in some sort of muck that I thought they wouldn´t be able to clean themselves then I would.

Bellamy: "did someone say bath?? I love the bath tub!"

I shower my cat once a month to keep her clean. Anyway it all depends on the owner and the cats.

A cat´s tongue is like a sandpaper. In fact, it is scientifically proven that their tongue can heal injuries because it is very hygienic. Don´t let this lady impress you for not bathing your cat. 99% of cats are scared of water; Gary hates water even if there is a little drop on his face he´ll go crazy!! Cats are always cleaning themselves. If in some case your cat stepped into something its always good to wash him but usually them clean themselves.

I once had this black cat that would get greasy and stinky within 3 days! So I had to bath him often. As for now, I only bath Fizzgig when he gets something stuck on his fur. He does get greasy so I might give him a serious bath one of these days. Other than that, if the cats look clean, smell clean, I say don´t bath them. I read somewhere that by bathing a cat, they lose the natural oil that protects their coat.

I bath my kitties last Christmas...lol... and it took me 4hours to finish all of them! Everyday I clean my kitties using a face towel. Don´t mind that lady... cheers!

Well, there are situations when a bath could be necessary. For example: Main Coons male get "greasy tail" - that spot should be taken care of, but a breeder I know told me dry shampoo could do the trick. I bathed once Oskar, but he´d got under a car dripping oil and I had to. He hated it. The second time was when he got sick and went to the clinic. He was treated and released but not cleaned. Since he was all covered with - sorry - merde - he got a bath. Then I read somewhere that cats shouldn´t be bathed at all, because they have their own skin protection and washing with shampoos will eliminate it: the best protection however is Mother Nature and she has equiped cats with whatever they need. Norvegian forrest cats have oily fur, because it protects them from cold during scandinavian winter months. So they should be kept this way.
The problem arises when spring comes and the winter coat is shed. It creates knots - harmful for the skin. I just took Snorri to the cat parlor and had him shaved (before it was to hot, since fur protects from heat and sun too).
So I don´t bath my cats and my vet thinks that they are very well cared for.
Rangoon loves water: when on vacation he promenades along the lake shore and then goes into water to chase little fish. Some cats like water (Turkish Van or wild cats: Tiger swim very well, jaguars too, there is even a fishing cat in Africa) but they don´t use any soap in their water adventures - seems to me - they don´t need it.

Cats are basically clean animals. Especially if they are indoor cats, I don´t believe there is any need for bathing under normal circumstances, unless they get themselves in something mucky or, well, have some toilet issues. My Oliver is almsot like Itty Bitty, he is not afraid of water at all. We are seriously thinking letting him have a cool dip in the tub when summer arrives, I really think he will like it!

do not let that woman bother u pagan 22, cats are the most cleanest animals that i know, i bathe katie once a month and after that she does a very good job of lookin after herself.

I work at a kitty resort and we have a feline spa bath. Cats generally do not need to be bathed, BUT : it is best I feel to bath all cats from kitten age at least once a month, not to acually clean the cat but to make them not strangers to water and getting wet, because at some point of time in your cats life he will need to be bathed either due to grease, oil, dirt, fleas, etc and also because when cats reach an elderly age they have alot of trouble trying to clean themselves properly, especially overweight and arthritic cats.
My babies have been bathed regularly from a very young age and honestly love it. Out of the couple of hundred cats we´ve bathed at work I can honestly say about 5 at the most really didn´t like it but they were very old (one was 22).

I used to bathe all my cats weekly, that was before I discovered Frontline Spray. This was to eliminate fleas since all my cats and dog walk outside. I started bathing them when they were kittens and I could not use a flea treatment because of their age. under 12 weeks. It started with Nico & China, when we got them at 5 weeks and they were totally infested with fleas. Now they really don´t mind water or getting wet and Jasper actually loves the rain now. Since I discovered the Frontline Spray, which is more economical than the drops and now they are all old enough to use it, I don´t bathe them anymore unless it is an unusual situation like LiandOllie mentions. Cats do not need to be bathed as a rule and anyone who tells you, you are neglecting your cats because you don´t bathe them, well, like everyone else here I believe they are just plain nuts.

I have bathed cats in the past, and have had two cats (Tegan is one of them) who LIKE water and to go for a splash. I think if the cat is very dirty and cannot clean itself then bathe it...if not most cats will do a good jon of cleaning. Brush long haired cats regularly to avoid matting and you will have no problems.

I bathe my cat in warm water in the sink every few months or so. The vet told me it is important not to allow water to enter the ears, eyes, mouth or nose but bathing cats is perfectly acceptable provided your cat allows it. Viz is a very calm cat even the vacuum cleaner doesn´t scare him so no worries when it comes to bathing him!!!!
I also feel it helps to get rid of any moulting hair that the cat may have and deter hairball in long haired breeds. I have bought a specialist pet shampoo and he smells gorgeous when he´s finished with fur blow dried to perfection. I always keep him close to the radiator for a few hours after as I worry he may catch a chill. I know what you are all thinking - what a spoilt cat? And you´d be right, I spoil him 100% and he´s worth it.

Used to bath Sue my black and white cat and she positively hated it, so haven´t even attempted it with Chelsea. She is black anyway, and never gets dirty. She does a good job washing herself. If anyone reads Tegan´s hilarious diaries they will know Tegan loves water!

my cat´s will not tolerate a bath. I have those cat cloths for when they get dirt on them from my backyard, other than that I like my skin too much. the last time I attempted they scratched the heck out of me. they hate water. I brush them alot and do teh best I can without water.

Pagan, tell that person to mind thier own business. mistreating is not that and infact my cats call a bath mistreatment.

The only cats I have ever bathed were strays who were filthy from the streets or on a couple of occasions, an indoor cat who had gotten something on itself. I believe healthy cats will keep themselves perfectly clean (and sweet-smelling)without being bathed.

However, Angie´s fur tends to look oily from time to time and I do wipe her down once in a while with a damp cloth. That´s far from a bath, though, and she seems to enjoy it.

Yes, Pagan, the woman needs to hear "MYOB" !!

eh Julius should of had a bath today as he climbed into the coal bunker when we had a delivery luckily its been raining today so he is all clean again! I think I would lose an arm if I tried to bath him. I had to with Merlin once when he was a kitten because he had got a bit mucky ´around the back end´ but otherwise I leave them be. As marcatmm says if they are healthy they will look after themselves

Tiffany loves to go outside and when she comes back in she´s covered in tree bits and mud and doesnt like to clean it out, can you blame her? I have a cat shampoo I use that doesn´t need any water you just rub it into their fur and wipe it out with a towel. It works great and they don´t mind it.. I think if i tried to bath her in a real bath i´d be in the hospital.. She fell in once when I was having a bath about 4 years ago and I still have the scar..

stephanie, whats the name of the shampoo? the cloths work pretty good but would like to try the shampoo you mentioned. yeah, I was a bloody mess last time I tried to bathe a cat.

We sell a dry shampoo for cats at work, the brand is ´Aristocat Dry Shampoo´ hope this helps Teri13.