How Often Do You Bathe Your Cat, & What do you use?

I was just wondering how often does everyone bathe their cats & what do you use?  I usually bathe Angel approx. once/ mo.  Mainly because he USED TO go outside on his own & would love to nap in a warm pile of dried leaves, or roll in a patch of sand like a dog. (scratching his back I guess? ) Anyway, now as a compromise,(he grew up elsewhere as an indoor/outdoor & LOVES outside) now  he only gets to go out on a leach,(after a neighborhood rabies scare a cpl of mo.s ago ) so doesn't get as dirty.  He is very allergy itchy,(already ruled out food stuff etc..) so when the pollen is bad, have given him one twice in the same mo.  I use the Oatmeal & Aloe shampoo & cond. from 1-800 PetMeds.

I bathed Bowser ONCE and he still hasn't forgiven me for it...

I never have. No need to, she never gets dirty and she smells good somehow!

Plus, she wouldn't let me. For real.

Bathing my boys is a two person job. One person holds the cat in the sink (no water in the bottom). The other person lathers their hands and scrubs the cat, then pours water over them from a pitcher to rinse.

DB and I just did that two nights ago, because both of them were emitting a god-awful stench. No idea where it came from.

But unless they stink or get into something, they don't get bathed.

I take them to the groomers 2 or 3 times a year to get bathed.

The only cat I ever bathed was my first, a "brown" tabby, named Falstaff, who I got when I was 9 years old. I also dressed him in a long doll dress and bonnet. And I would push him around in a doll buggy. Once my friend and I subjected him to a baptismal ceremony, complete with a "birth certificate" with his paw print pressed in ink. Poor, long suffering kitty, so adored by a little girl. Still he slept in my arms all night, every night, like a teddy bear. Dear, dear, kitty.

But just yesterday, Masako, my friend the certified master cat groomer, bathed two of my cats. I have a 15 year old foster, Halo. Though a so lovely butter colored long hair, he was pretty grubby. She did it in my bathtub. I have a shower head that detaches from the wall. She also brought a special kitty bathtub, and a special blow drier. It is a square box, with a long hose. Halo is now incredibly lovely, soft, and sweet smelling now.

She also gave my big bruiser, Claude, a bath. He weighs about 16 pounds. He's a black domestic short hair. Though sleek and shiny, he has always had dandruff on his back, and shed there a lot, too. Our vet said this is because he can't reach there to groom well. Claude is not an easy cat to manage, but no problem for Masako. She is very experienced, fearless, and deals with much worse all the time. It was her idea to bathe him. I've had him over 4 years. He was at the shelter 3 years before that, and a stray before that. So I'm sure he never had a bath before. He yelled like she was drowning him, but he loved being the center of attention. Afterwards, he was clearly proud of how beautiful he is. Masako says he needs another bath to be in optimal condition, and she will do it soon.

I don't know what shampoo she used on them, but it smells delicious.

Now I want her to bathe all my cats. The bath water was gray from each of these two. I won't have it done often, and I won't do it myself. Masako says it will take about 1.5 hours to bathe and dry my luxurious long haired cat, Harlow. He already flees from her because of grooming she has done with him. Ariel, too, my other blue DLH. Better they think she is the horrible combing, bathing lady, than me.

Robin

Twice a month.

We use Johnson's Baby Wash- Shea & Cocoa Butter

I'll move this to Care and Grooming

We only bathe them as needed, which is very rare since they are indoor only. I used to use Johnson's Baby Shampoo, but I recently read that the ph level in Human shampoos is not correct for cats,

so last time around, we bought a Cat Shampoo, which actually left them in better condition than the Johnson's anyway. (Less licking and scratching afterward.)

I don't see the need?

As kittens, both Mollipop and later on Tabby fell into the toilet. They got a bath at that time, but really that's been it. When we first brought Amber into the house, she got a bath, too, poor baby....such a scraggly little wet kitten she was. They do a good job of keeping themselves clean, so intervention from us is not needed.

They do get brushed and combed weekly, if not more often. I usually groom one cat a night, although they all manage to get a bit of brushing in anyway. They just love being brushed.

I dont bathe my kitties, either.  They do a great job at doing it themselves

Shareena gets a bath when she jumps in the wood-burning stove and rolls around in the ashes while I'm trying to clean it out. Miss Patchwillow gets a bath when a visitor leaves the toilet lid up and she falls in.

Other than that, the ones I take to shows get bathed before each show if the shows are at least a month apart. The cats who don't go to shows don't get bathed. I use specialty shampoos from Jerob, but I suspect they're too expensive for most people who just want a clean cat around the house. Unscented baby shampoo works well. The key to getting nice fluffy clean fur with any bath is rinse, rinse, rinse. If you use a conditioner after shampooing dilute it first, pour in onto the cat and gently work it into the fur, then rinse, rinse, rinse. When you think you've gotten it all out, rinse again. You'll be amazed at the difference it makes.

Thanks for your answers everyone!  Angel's white areas are looking a little dingy, so prob. could use a bath. It has been about a month, so It's time, but just finishing up a SECOND round of Neo Polly drops for his eyes, & don't want to stress him out, so will prob wait until next week to do it. Kitty wipes for now!

STRONGLY advise all cat caregivers to keep their cats indoors only, for their own safety and health, and for the peace of mind of the caregivers.  There is no need to bathe cats -- cats are self-cleaning.  In case of any little "accidents", KittyWipes are very helpful, or one can just moisten tissue and use MILD soap and water and then make sure the soap is rinsed out completely, for spot cleaning.

My cats are indoors only cats, and all my cats always have been all my life. But the current ones all came from a shelter, which isn't nearly as clean as a house (my house anyway.) Some were strays before that, or came from unknown circumstances. I hadn't washed a cat, or had one washed, in 52 years, since I was 9.

But after this experience this week with 2 of my cats getting baths, and seeing the difference in their coats, I'm now a believer in doing it, occasionally.

My guess is that my cat groomer uses a shampoo specifically made for cats. Besides the rinsing very well, she towel dried them, 2 towels per cat, and then used the special fur drying machine.

I've never thought those kitty wipes did anything, the couple times I tried them for dandruff, and Halo's previous scruffiness.

I can't hardly believe how lovely a freshly bathed cat is.


Robin

My cat grew up as an indoor/outdoor (mostly out I think)  next door, before he came to live w/me. He LOVES to go out. He loved to chase squirrel's, birds etc.. (in their nature).  SO, now, as a compromise, so that he is still safe & monitored, I do take him out on a leach. It's a safe way for him to still enjoy the outdoors he loves so much. He would go crazy If he couldn't go out. I had to keep him in a couple of yrs ago when he was sick, for 3 wks. & he wined @ the door almost constantly, & was sad. (like his little spirit was broken)     We just walk around the yard/house.  Also, even though he will use his litter bx If he really needs to, he would rather go outside, so I take him out every morning for about 30 min.s & again aftr wk. for the same. On days that I'm home, I will take him out a couple more times, (& for longer if its nice out) ( He even wanted to go out when it was sprinkling the other day.)  Anyway, I understand what you are saying, but this is our compromise that works for us. He is safe, because he is on a leach & w/ me. If he had never been out in the first place, I would never have taken him out. He was used to going out on his own, so this, as I said, is the compromise. He is very well taken care of. Much, much more than where he came from. "He's my baby"
 

Tarasgirl06 said:

STRONGLY advise all cat caregivers to keep their cats indoors only, for their own safety and health, and for the peace of mind of the caregivers.  There is no need to bathe cats -- cats are self-cleaning.  In case of any little "accidents", KittyWipes are very helpful, or one can just moisten tissue and use MILD soap and water and then make sure the soap is rinsed out completely, for spot cleaning.

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I have bathed Hobo 2 or 3 times since I have had him. I for one do not think it will hurt him at all.