Six Cat-Bathing Do's and Don'ts
by Stephanie Sandoval

In general, cats are very good at grooming themselves and will rarely require you to bathe them.
However, if your kitty gets into something like gasoline, oil or pesticides, she’ll need YOU to get the substance off of her so that she doesn’t ingest anything poisonous.

If you happen to have a cat who actually enjoys getting a bath, remember to not bathe her too often.
Frequent bathing will remove your kitty’s natural oils, which could dry out her coat.

Below are 6 do's and don'ts when you are ready to bathe:

Be sure to have your supplies ready BEFORE you start the bathing process:

Rubber bath mat
Shampoo specially formulated for cats
Fluffy, dry towel 
Cotton balls
Soft washcloth

1. Brush your cat a couple of hours prior to bath time and make sure that her nails have been trimmed.

2. Place a rubber mat in the bathtub – the slippery tub surface may scare your cat and a mat will give her something to grip.

3. Place half a cotton ball in each of your kitty’s ears – this will prevent water from getting in them.

4. Bath water should be about your cat’s body temperature – use a gentle stream of water, either with a nozzle or pitcher.

5. Apply shampoo to your cats wet coat (avoiding her face) and rub gently. Rinse thoroughly. Use a damp washcloth to wash your kittys face – never spray water directly on your cats face and never dunk her head under water.

6. Wrap your cat in a warm, fluffy towel and allow her to dry in a draft-free area. Most cats will be scared by a hairdryer, but if your cat isn’t afraid, use a low setting and don’t get too close.
Also, tremendously important is minimizing the stress to the cat.

If the cat has not been given baths beginning as a kitten, he or she may become anxious, scared or angry.

The main things to remember are to be gentle when handling kitty, but firm (a struggling wet cat can be pretty slippery!), keep the water warm, not hot, and keep the session as short as possible.

Keep an upbeat attitude. If you act happy and pleased, at least you will not be transmitting negative feelings to the cat.

Use gentle products that will not burn their skin or eyes, and be positively certain that nothing bad happens while they are in the water.