De-stickifying cat

waxlight

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I had a couple of those long stick-strips up to catch flies (ones you usually see in and around barns), and one of my cats succeeded in knocking it down, and wrapping it around his body.

Once I managed to catch him, stop him freaking out, and get it off him, I got him in the shower to get him wet, dried him off with a towel, and brushed him off a bit.

If that wasn't enough trama for the poor cat, he's still sticky. He's washing himself incessiantly, but I know the strips are non-toxic (that's why I got them as opposed to getting a spray). Is there anything else I can do to de-stickify the cat, or should I just let him clean himself up? These things are -sticky-, and I think I'd have better luck cutting his hair than trying to wash it off.

Anyone have any experience with this?
 

EnzoLeya

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I've never had that happen.... but there are a couple things you could try that would not be harmful for your kitty. One thing I use to clean up a lot of things and still fell safe is vinigar. It's not going to kill your kitty and it's a great cleaner because it is acidic. Another thing to try is peanut butter, just like you would use in your hair if gum got caught in it. That way the sticky would be coated in oil and then he could also lick it off. Hopefully your fly stick wasn't toxic! I know they make most things non-toxic because of pets and children so you should be safe. Our cheapo fly sticks are non-toxic at least.
 

mzjazz2u

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Bathe him in Dawn dishwashing liquid. It should get all the sticky stuff off. Then rinse well with 2-3 gal of water with 2-3 tablespoons of white vinegar. That should do the trick. Good luck!
 
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waxlight

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I've got Dawn, and I've got vinegar.. now to find some claw proof gloves
 

epona

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First you should use a little vegetable or sunflower oil on the stickiest bits, don't rub it into the skin (it's not going to do any damage but you don't want to end up with your cat too oily!), but just use a little on your fingertips and rub the shafts of the sticky hairs/sticky clumps gently between your oiled fingertips. Then bath as suggested using the dish soap, and make sure all the soap is well rinsed out afterwards.
 

bnwalker2

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A couple months ago I hung up a couple fly strips in our room because we had a bad fly problem. Roxy (who is longhaired!) managed to get into one of them. She was so sticky I couldn't even cut the sticky stuff out of her fur without clogging up the clippers and scissors.
John has some grease fighting "orange clean", and after the Dawn and regular soap didn't work I decided to give the orange stuff a try. It worked really well, I worked it into her fur and let it sit for a few minutes and then rinsed it out. It got about 99% of the sticky out.
 

mzjazz2u

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Originally Posted by bnwalker2

A couple months ago I hung up a couple fly strips in our room because we had a bad fly problem. Roxy (who is longhaired!) managed to get into one of them. She was so sticky I couldn't even cut the sticky stuff out of her fur without clogging up the clippers and scissors.
John has some grease fighting "orange clean", and after the Dawn and regular soap didn't work I decided to give the orange stuff a try. It worked really well, I worked it into her fur and let it sit for a few minutes and then rinsed it out. It got about 99% of the sticky out.
I wouldn't recommend the orange clean stuff. It has ingredients in it that can be harmful to some cats. I was told this by a vet, several years ago. A safe alternative is the handcleaner "Goop." It works well at degreasing and unsticking and is used by many groomers. They even have a groomers goop now!
But really, dawn should work well for this if you use a good amount on him and rub it in good.
 

emmylou

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I would suggest olive oil or talcum powder applied to the sticky patches... and then wash him again to get everything off.
 

mbjerkness

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when my oldest was 5. she had hair down to her waist, she got pitch from the trees all over her hair, the only thing that worked was olive oil, then I wash her hair as normal it all came out
 

sham

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Any oil will work. Mineral/baby oil would be a bit preferable to vegetable or cooking oils since it won't go rancid if some gets left in the fur. Leave in coat conditioners designed to be used after a bath for extra shine will also help while trying to comb anything out of hair.
 

leesestyle

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my mom used to use "goo gone" in my hair when i was little and got gum in it. then she'd comb through it and wash it out with shampoo and that always worked but i don't know if it's safe for animals.

good luck
 
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