Bathing

Question
Can I bathe our cats more than once a month?  And, if I can how often is safe?

Answer
Hi Cori,

Unless your cat gets something on her fur such as oil, there is no need to ever bathe your cat! Cats do a great job of cleaning with their tongues, and generally bathing is very traumatic and dries out their skin. Bathing with shampoo or overly warm water can dry the skin which causes increased dander, and the cat will lick herself more than ever. If your cat has matted fur, getting the matts wet will actually tighten the tangles and make it worse!

The grooming routine I recommend is to simply brush your cat as often as desired (depends on how much your cat likes it). You can use any kind of brush, experiment to see what your cat likes. Some like soft brushes, others like scratchy metal ones, but my cats prefer my own hairbrush which is the paddle kind with a cushion and little knobs on the ends of the bristles, so I bought an identical one at the drug store. Combs work well for undercoat or longer haired cats. Be gentle and never pull matts out by force.

To freshen up, you can buy pet bath wipes in many pet stores - I like Nature's Miracle or Earthbath brand. They are wet wipes for cats, you can use them to spot clean her coat and wipe her down to remove loose dirt and hair. Most cats don't like these scented wipes, however and a washcloth dampened with warm water works just as well.

If your cat is long haired and has matts in her fur, use a special tool called a matt splitter sold at pet stores, and cut out a small amount of the matt at a time. Or, take her to a groomer or your vet for matt removal or possibly shaving if the matts are too bad. Matts pull on the skin and can cut off circulation and badly matted cats can actually get gangrene as their skin dies.

Finally, if you do find the need to bathe your cat, ONLY ever use a shampoo made for cats - don't use dog or human shampoo because cats are very sensitive to some chemicals and even natural essential oils that are good for humans and dogs. These chemicals or oils can make your cat sick, so be sure to use cat shampoo. Earthbath makes nice ones.

Never try to immerse your cat in water this will panic her. Instead, place your cat in a  sink or tub (you will probably need 2 people) and put a rubber traction matt on the bottom - these are sold in hardware store and department stores to protect the bottom of sinks from scratches. The matt will prevent your cat from slipping and make her feel more secure.

Then, use a container preferably with a handle such as a juice pitcher to slowly pour water over your cat, starting behind the head. Don't get her head wet. Use lukewarm (room temperature) water. Shampoo with a little bit of shampoo - about a quarter sized drop on your hand no more. Then rinse really well with the juice pitcher. This is more like a shower than a bath for your cat! Once you are sure all shampoo is rinsed out, towel dry thoroughly and make sure your cat stays warm. She will run off to lick herself all over for about 2 hours while glaring at you angrily!