|
baths for my kitten?
i have a question. since you knew so much about what to do with my kittens lonliness problem i figured you might know this. if i let the water run and get my kitten used to it will she like baths when she is a cat? thanks
Jesser
[ ]
Want to answer more questions in the Domesticity category?
Maybe give some free advice about: Pets?
Cats and water are not normally a good mix. They are descended from the wild cats that lived in the desert regions in Africa. The exception to this dislike is the Turkish Van cat who voluntarily will dive into water, swim and hunt for fish.
If your cat is a short hair, it should not need a bath and will be able to keep itself clean.
If she is a long hair or is likely to get particularly dirty there are ways to get her used to water.
You need to start while she is still a kitten, the younger the better. You can begin to get her used to water by just having her around it as often as possible without her feeling threatened by it. You have a good idea with the running water to get this started.
It's a pleasure, any time you need help or advice, let me know I'll see what I can do.
A sink or a bath could be more stressful as it is so big. Something smaller like a bucket or a small bowl would be less intimidating. Remember the size of a kitten to the size of a bath, it would be like you being put in an olympic size pool without being able to swim, scary.
To avoid the process being drawn out longer than necessary, try to have three buckets or bowls ready. The first has the cat shampoo in the water, the others have clean water. All the water should be as close as possible to the skin temperature of the cat.
Place the cat in the first bowl, gently rub her fur between your fingers, try using a small sponge for the face, take care not to get the soap in her eyes, unless you have a shampoo that does not sting. Let her keep her front feet on the side of the bowl or bucket as this should help to keep her calmer.
Then place her gently in the next bowl and rinse her off. Then the last bowl to ensure all the shampoo has been removed. Again using a small sponge to make sure her face is clear of shampoo.
When she is soap free, wrap her in a large, fluffy towel and gently massage her dry. If she is a short hair this should be sufficient. If she is a long hair, she may need to be blowdried. Come back to me on that one if she is and you need help. When she is dry, run a comb through her fur and she will be done.
Hope that helps, good luck.
]
More Questions: |