De-stink-ification

ebrillblaiddes

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After way too long in the carrier (pre-visit vet trip to get shots needed before leaving, being in the carrier while we packed because the door was going to be open for longer periods of time, and the two day drive), my cats have a little bit of a fragrance going on. Squirrel just wants to be left alone so I'll let her deal with that in her own way, but Panther wants to cuddle, and her fur hasn't let go of the smell in two full days out of carrier.

I don't really want to take her to a groomer, if it can be avoided, because that would involve going back into the carrier, which she's sick of. I'd also rather not give her a conventional drown-the-dirt water bath because I'm pretty sure she'd hate that. I tried rubbing her with a wet washcloth, and that helped some, but it didn't do enough. Is there something I can brush into her fur, or something, to help Panther clean up?
 

yosemite

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I'm not sure what you mean. Being in a carrier should not be cause for your cat having a bad odour unless there was no litter container in there for her to use.

Bijou and Mika get a couple baths a year and although they don't like them, it's not impossible to bathe them. You just need to be prepared and have everything laid out and ready before you begin. Run a couple inches of water in the bathtub, have a towel ready, even put a towel on the bottom of the tub so the cat does not slip and get frightened. You can use a baby shampoo (some folks don't recommend it, but I've used it with no issues as long as you rinse well). Just make sure you rinse well. I you do not have a removable shower head, I would make sure you have a plastic cup handy to use for rinsing.

PS - You might want to clip claws before attempting the bath.
 
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ebrillblaiddes

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Originally Posted by Yosemite

I'm not sure what you mean. Being in a carrier should not be cause for your cat having a bad odour unless there was no litter container in there for her to use.
Unfortunately there wasn't, because I didn't have one small enough to fit in there and leave room for the cats. They did have a towel that they could dig around and bury things in but their water dish (the weather was waaaay hot and they were going to be in there for a while so I figured they had to have one) got knocked over so that stopped working so well.
 

carolina

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Oh boy... Poor kitties.... I think the only way to remove days of pee from their fur is really a good bath... I would probably take them to a nice groomer, that knows what he is doing...
You can also ask your vet for an antihistamine, or a pill to calm him down, and give the bath on your own... The pill should help to avoid the trauma, since they have been through so much already...
good luck!!
 

yosemite

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Originally Posted by ebrillblaiddes

Unfortunately there wasn't, because I didn't have one small enough to fit in there and leave room for the cats. They did have a towel that they could dig around and bury things in but their water dish (the weather was waaaay hot and they were going to be in there for a while so I figured they had to have one) got knocked over so that stopped working so well.
That actually sounds a bit inhumane to me and I would suggest next time, rather than confine them to a carrier with no litter and apparently no water either, confining them to a room, even a small bathroom, would be a much better option.

Now that the deed is indeed done,
I agree with Carolinalima, take them to a groomer or bathe them yourself.
 
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ebrillblaiddes

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Originally Posted by Yosemite

That actually sounds a bit inhumane to me and I would suggest next time, rather than confine them to a carrier with no litter and apparently no water either, confining them to a room, even a small bathroom, would be a much better option.

Now that the deed is indeed done,
I agree with Carolinalima, take them to a groomer or bathe them yourself.
A lot of this was in transit...the carrier was the only option for most of the time, and we meant for the rest of it to go a lot faster than it actually turned out. I actually did consider the bathroom thing, for while we were going to be in and out of the apartment with furniture, but my air conditioning was out so the bathroom would have been hot and not ventilated. I didn't think that would be healthy for them.

I swapped out their towel and got them fresh water as often as I could, and let them out of the carrier and into the (pet friendly) hotel room both nights we stopped on the road, and put the carrier into the car so that an air conditioning vent was blowing right in at them to keep them cool and blow the stinky air out, and slipped them treats at red lights so they'd know they weren't being punished or something, and gave them canned food so they'd have another moisture source besides the water. The only thing I didn't do was set up a litter box in the hotel room, and that was because I couldn't find the kitty litter in the dark. Other than that I did everything I could think of.

It was just way too much of an improvised situation, and next time I move I mean to be able to afford to pay people to do the packing and furniture stuff so the cats can have my full attention.
 

yosemite

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Originally Posted by ebrillblaiddes

A lot of this was in transit...the carrier was the only option for most of the time, and we meant for the rest of it to go a lot faster than it actually turned out. I actually did consider the bathroom thing, for while we were going to be in and out of the apartment with furniture, but my air conditioning was out so the bathroom would have been hot and not ventilated. I didn't think that would be healthy for them.

I swapped out their towel and got them fresh water as often as I could, and let them out of the carrier and into the (pet friendly) hotel room both nights we stopped on the road, and put the carrier into the car so that an air conditioning vent was blowing right in at them to keep them cool and blow the stinky air out, and slipped them treats at red lights so they'd know they weren't being punished or something, and gave them canned food so they'd have another moisture source besides the water. The only thing I didn't do was set up a litter box in the hotel room, and that was because I couldn't find the kitty litter in the dark. Other than that I did everything I could think of.

It was just way too much of an improvised situation, and next time I move I mean to be able to afford to pay people to do the packing and furniture stuff so the cats can have my full attention.
OK - that paints a bit better picture than my imagination had conjured up.
 
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ebrillblaiddes

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I'll admit they were still probably miserable. We were all miserable in the heat, and I was miserable from how much of the smell got all through the air in my car so I assume that was no picnic for them either.

I think I'll try the dry shampoo thing first...it sounds like the option she'd hate the least. If it's in an aerosol can I'll need to get it out of the can with her in another room, but other than that it'll probably seem to her like petting and cuddling.
 

nekomania

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Oh you poor thing...

I am about to move here with my one cat in a couple of weeks and I hope it goes a little more smooth.

I would hate to have beanbean stinking by the end of the trip...
 

iheartstrays

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Another thing to think of in the future is that when you move, you should restrict water and food for 8 hours before you put them in their carriers. This should reduce the amount of waste they have to eliminate- unless they're just really annoyed and want to prove it to you.
I can't help in that scenario!

We used to do a lot of travelling back and forth from Colorado to Oklahoma and back when my husband was in the Army. If we intended to leave at 4 am (we always drove straight through- approximately 10 hour drive), I didn't feed the cats after 7 pm the day before, just to be certain we didn't have any accidents. Everything always went very smoothly, except for the time we had to leave Albert's baby at home because he hid it from me...oh boy, was that a messy, disgusting adventure...
 
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