Why do cats hate water?

I know not all cats hate water, but most do, Villy goes crazy if even a droplet goes near her, she hates it. Why do they hate it? Just wondered!

Maybe it has got to do with affecting their body insulation or the way water just feels on their fur. My cats don't seem to mind lukewarm/warm water but it's a different story if it is cold water.

And another side of the coin - if my cat can get wet, he will. He can turn the taps on and will sit in the running water. It's tricky keeping him dry

Mosi loves water

Ali is fascinated by the bathroom. I can't remember the last time I had a bath alone. While I'm in the tub she's in the sink with a tap just slightly running so she can play.

In contrast her sister Penny is a total water phobic and if you even run a tap near her she's off.

koukou

I think it fascinates her. When we're doing dishes, she lays down on the counter and stares into the sink watching the water bob up and down...when we shave, she climbs up onto the toilet and stretches putting her two front paws on the bathroom sink and stands watching the shave-water...and when anyone goes into the shower, we have to close the door between the livingroom and the bathroom or she'll be in there WITH me wanting to shower too! Hey---she's calico, what can I say...she's unusual.

Fr. Gregg

Wow, Villy absolutely HATES water! If I turn the shower on she's outta there!

Reeses loves it for the most part, she just didn't like it when I tried the squirt bottle to keep her off things (I gave up on that anyway). She likes going into the shower even if it's still wet. She stand on the back of her food/water dish, take pieces of food, dunk them in the water, fish them out and eat them. I think she stands on the back of the dish because she's right pawed Of course this leaves wet foot prints everywhere. Heck I accidentally dumped most of her water dish on her the other day and she didn't flinch.

Spike LOVES the water, if I can't find him on my bed he'll be in the tub with or without water, if there's water he'll be there walking around sometimes drinking or just laying there with the water (not too much to drown) of course, I think it's cute, but also a pain if he's too wet and right after lays down on my bed. But he's too adorable to be mad at so, you forgive

Miki hates water. I tend to use a mister (like for use on reptile cages) to disipline. The cats barely get wet and there are no harsh words involved. Other than this, Tyran likes water. Whenever I am doing water changes on my fish tanks or running the water for any reason, Tyran is into it all. Sometimes I'll take the syringe I use for measuring non-toxic water additives and fill it with water. Then I'll squirt it near or on her paws and Tyran will attempt to catch it. Its fun for her and we both love it. One time I decided to see how she'd react to getting wet so I ran the water and little by little, I dripped water on her head and back. At first she would shake to get the water droplets off, but never once did she run away or seem afraid. I managed to get her soaking wet before I quit this little game. She seemed to like the water more than the drying off part.

Miki on the other hand hates water. Of course, I found her as a stray at 5 months, so she could have had a bad experience with water or no experience at all, while Tyran has been exposed to water since she was 3 months.

My grey tiger think water is fascinating until shes wet.. my little black devil LOVES water. I havent had a bath alone in almost two years. This fall though i saw the most unusual site. We had two weeks of pouring rain in, oh around October and Proffesorn (the black) was outside. I happened to look out the window and saw her SWIMMING in a really deep puddle. Actually swimming around. It was freezing cold but you could see she wasnt bothered. Never seen anything like it. Of course she fought me when it was time to have a real bath at home to remove all the mud and dirt from her hair!!

Anjya

If you got your cat as a stray adult, he may have had a bad experience with water as a kitten.

Most of my cats loved to play in water - but I had goofy cornish rexes, so I'm not surprised. Charlie (our ocicat) loves to play in water.

My first cat, Mitten, was terrified of water. We got him as a stray about 2 yrs old. I think someone tried to drown him or something as a kitten - he really had a morbid fear of water and bathtubs!