Bathing for Shows...

I have a question for those of you who show your cats (figuring that mostly breeders go through the expense of showing their cats with good reason).

What shampoo/ conditioner do you use on your cats? What would you recommend for someone who does not show her cats (I have two Ragdolls) but who does not want to buy the available pet store brands (such as Hertz)?

Thank you,

Jenk

Jenk , I am not a breeder but have spoken to a lot of breeders . The most I talk to say hat they only use Dawn the blue dishwash liquit soap (sp) .

I've always used Johnson's Baby Shampoo whenever I needed to bathe a cat. Just a tiny bit goes a long way.

If bathing Persians many of us start with GOOP hand cleaner on dry fur. Work it in as well as you can around the neck, belly, and full length of the tail. I use a antifungal shampoo on my cats as Persians are prone to ringworm. I water down the shampoo in a little bowl so it applies evenly. I work it in well and then rinse very carefully. I wash the faces with plain water and a washcloth.
I always make sure to dry them completely to keep down the matting. Cream Rinse will only make the fur oily and look dirty faster. I only use a wide toothed comb for their coat.

If you're not going to show your cats, then I would use regular baby shampoo....

If you use Dawn or goop.. you will end up stripping oils from the hair. If you want to do this, then I would suggest using goop (avaiable at wallmart for next to nothing), and then a shampoo.

GOOP- is not reccomended , used to much it dries the coat and steals the natural goodness from the coat.

I use "Dishwashing liquid" and an antifungal shampoo on my show persians and nearly every time come home with a Grooming Award

I don't reccomend baby oil- Maybe you could go to your local vets and they might sell a pet shampoo- we use 'Dermaleen' a green shampoo for our pet cats

Good Luck

I don't reccomend baby oil- Maybe you could go to your local vets and they might sell a pet shampoo- we use 'Dermaleen' a green shampoo for our pet cats

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Did you mean to say that you don't recommend baby shampoo? I'd never consider using baby oil on a cat.

Johnson's Baby Shampoo had crossed my mind, but I checked myself, figuring that perhaps it still wouldn't be good for cats' fur. But I know it's supposed to be a "no-more-tears" formula. And if it doesn't strip the kitties' fur of natural oils, then I'll go out and buy some today.

Thank you very much, Everyone!

Jenk,

If your kitties use Advantage, the baby shampoo will wash it out. I called the people that make Advantage and they said that some shampoos do not affect the Advantage, but that baby shampoo definitely does.

If I plan on giving my furbaby a bath, I do it before her Advantage is due, then apply it the day after bath.

Happy bathing!

I just reviewed an article in Kittens USA that says you should never use human shampoo (even that formulated for babies) on cats, as they contain "harsh chemicals." Guess I'm back to square one of finding a reputable *kitten/ cat* shampoo. Yeah, I'm cautious like that.

My 12 year old cat has a skin condition that often improves when I give her a bath with a cat shampoo called Septiderm. Another poster on TCS shared this tip with me. It has worked great for my cat and is available at pet stores.

Oh LOL I got the wrong impression when everyone said Johnsons baby shampoo, i thought they were talking about the oil and I was like $h!t..lol..

We don't use much human shampoo on our furbabies.

see yah

How do I post an original message?

Dixie , if you want to start a thread , you go to the new thread botton (cant spell right) and click . I f you have a health or behavior problem as a example , then you go first in that category then hit the new thread . good luck

Originally posted by Maui
My 12 year old cat has a skin condition that often improves when I give her a bath with a cat shampoo called Septiderm. Another poster on TCS shared this tip with me. It has worked great for my cat and is available at pet stores.

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Maui,

I've never found anything other than the typical, run-of-the-mill cat shampoos at my local PetsMart. I will keep my eyes out for Septiderm, though. Thanks!

I think I got mine at Petco or Petsmart. . .I always get the two confused. Anyway, it is a white bottle with a green label and the actual name is Septiderm-V. It says it is for dogs, cats, puppies and kittiens over 6 wks. If it's not in the cat section, maybe they put it in with the dog section or just call ahead of time.

If you've never bathed your cat before it's easiest to get the whole bathing station ready ahead of time. Then read a magazine for 5 minutes or so, so the kitty doesn't associate the water sound with bathing and hide.

I have a double sink so I fill both sides with warm water. Move any breakable, knockable items far away. Move spigot away from sink. Put big towels on a stool nearby. I pour a little shampoo in a plastic (empty) yogurt container and dilute it with warm water (so shampoo is spread evenly). And have a sponge and plastic cup (for pouring clear water on kitty) nearby. I soap up kitty in one side of the sink. Do the first rinse. Then lift kitty into other side for the second rinse.

After typing all that, I realized that you have ragdolls. . . they'll probably let you do anything you want.

...After typing all that, I realized that you have ragdolls. . . they'll probably let you do anything you want.

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LOL I wouldn't say that. I'm sure my boy could give me a struggle, if he wanted to. He is pretty laidback, though. He's struggled with me through pilling him, yet he's never attempted to scratch or bite me through the nightly ordeal. In fact, he's never verbally complained about it, even though he's a known talker. Hmmm...

The new kitten, though, can be a wiggle-worm; I wonder how easily she'll take to bathing/ nail clipping? Again, hmmm...

Originally posted by Jenk
He's struggled with me through pilling him, yet he's never attempted to scratch or bite me through the nightly ordeal.

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Um. . .your version of "struggle" and my version of struggle may be two completely different things. We're talking about the difference between a Ragdoll and a Russian Blue. . .nearly two ends of the spectrum.

When I gave my Russian Blue her first bath, it was not only the loud mournful "I am about to die" cries that tore at my heart, her legs went in four completely separate directions as I was trying to lift her into the water so that they wouldn't get wet It was like some roadrunner cartoon or something — I had no idea cat legs bent in those directions!

I told the breeder it was impossible for me to bathe her, and the breeder said, "Just remember. You're bigger than she is." Not that she meant for me to be mean or cruel to my cat, but once I made the decision that I needed to pill her, or trim toenails, or bathe her, I had to commit to it instead of having the inner battle of "do I do it . .. or not?" When the kitty knows there is some indecision, they instinctively take as much advantage of that as they can. For anything that can be done a little at a time like trimming nails, I just do one nail at a time until kitty thinks it's no big deal. For something thats "all or nothing" like pilling or bath, I have to remind myself to just Do It. Boy, that first bath was stressful on everyone — two grown adults trying to bath a little 6.5 pound cat! Yikes!

Originally posted by Maui
.....her legs went in four completely separate directions as I was trying to lift her into the water so that they wouldn't get wet

It was like some roadrunner cartoon or something — I had no idea cat legs bent in those directions!

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That is soooo funny! I just use the pet wipes to clean Nakita every so often, but Maui, thanks for warning me about what I might expect if I do give her a bath!!!!

Not only do her legs go in four different directions, her toes must develop litter suckers or something because all of a sudden she can latch onto ANYTHING like a little tree frog!!! Thats why I recommended moving everything tippable or moveable away from the bath area.

(BTW she's used to baths now. . .her legs don't fly out nearly as much. Then when I pull her out of the bath and tuck her into the towels she PURRS like anything and lets me squeeze her )