A cat that likes to swim?

strykerx0

TCS Member
Thread starter
Kitten
Joined
Jan 29, 2006
Messages
16
Purraise
1
Location
Grasonville, Md
Does anyone here have a Turkish Van, or a cat that likes to swim? We just got an 11 month old cat named SnowCrash that is likely a Turkish Van, due to the black patches only on his head and tail and white coloring everywhere else. From what we've read, they're fascinated with water, and he certainly fits that description. He was a shelter cat, and his sister also had the same markings.

Anytime a toilet flushes or someone takes a shower, he comes running to inspect the sound. We've tried to entice him into the shower with us, but he's skittish about it. Anyone else had any success with a cat like this? We'd find it amusing if he'd learn to shower with us and finally sate his curiousity.

Thanks!
 

auntie crazy

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Feb 4, 2006
Messages
2,435
Purraise
60
My 7 month old, Oscar, is a rescue kitty of no particular breed. He's really big already and (in my inexperienced opinion) fairly strange for a cat.

For one, he LOVES water. We had to buy him a water fountain because he plays in water dishes, swishing his paws rapidly back in forth until there's no water left. If we leave a glass of water out (or, heaven forbid, an entire pitcher of water - only once!), he'll stick his whole leg in and swish it until the glass (or, *sigh* the pitcher) falls over (oh, the lovely sound of water dripping at 2:30 in the morning). He will also jump in the tub with us when we're bathing. No kidding! Here's a pic after he jumped in while we were filling the tub....


He also jumps into both the bathroom and kitchen sinks and cries until we turn the water on.

Like I said, weird!
 

greycat2

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Aug 6, 2003
Messages
3,311
Purraise
138
My youngest one - Lil' Jag - loves being around the sink and the toilet when they are running but not the bath yet. She loves to play in the sink. Our resident boy Luvbug - he loves to be in the same room when the shower is going and is almost to the point of joining us in the shower willingly. Our senior - Kuce (our Turkish Van look-a-like; we are not sure if she is a Turkish Van since she is a rescue from a kill shelter) loves her water dish but not the shower though she tolerates it.
 

yayi

TCS Member
Veteran
Joined
Oct 9, 2003
Messages
12,110
Purraise
91
Location
W/ the best cats
I didn't know that there is a breed that likes water. I thought it would depend on the personality and the experience of the cat. QT has jumped in the pool more than once. The first time it happened at night when she accidentally fell while chasing something. Then she decided it was a fun experience so went in for a second time. I've discouraged her because of the chemicals in the pool water and she has stopped.
 

larke

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Jul 9, 2005
Messages
2,278
Purraise
6
Location
SE Canada
Hi, if yours is a T. Van, get him a kiddy pool - the plastic kind (4-5' across and 7-8" deep) - only costs a few $$ and then you'll see if he's really a swimmer, or just likes to play with water like all cats. Most of mine are fascinated by it when the tap's on, or it's being flushed, but that doesn't mean they want to swim.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #6

strykerx0

TCS Member
Thread starter
Kitten
Joined
Jan 29, 2006
Messages
16
Purraise
1
Location
Grasonville, Md
Wow, I didn't know that cats playing in water was quite so common. All of the other cats my wife and I have had growing up were terrified of it, so that's why we assumed it was a breed thing since he appears to be a T. Van. Anyway, thanks for the info and advice, and we'll have to try a kiddy pool (or maybe taking a bath ourselves sometime instead of a shower) and see what happens.
 

yosemite

TCS Member
Veteran
Joined
Apr 26, 2001
Messages
23,313
Purraise
81
Location
Ingersoll, ON
A number of years ago we got our little barn cat Ebony only to find he was covered in fleas. We began giving him 2-3 flea shampoos per week in the bathtub (before I came on this site and learned a better way). By the time a couple weeks had passed, he had become so used to the water that he jumped in the tub with me when I was having a bath. Apparently he just got used to the water and must have enjoyed it. He was never any trouble to give a bath to after that.
 

renny

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Apr 25, 2005
Messages
1,767
Purraise
1
Location
Ontario
My Rambo has actually just discovered water....he has to check out the faucets and tries to catch the flow of water...and he's taken to playing in his water fountain all the time. I've had to put a towel underneath to catch all the water he spreads around. It's fun to watch...i just have to keep refilling the water dish!
 

goldenkitty45

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Aug 29, 2005
Messages
19,900
Purraise
44
Location
SW Minnesota
A lot of my cornish rex kittens (and adults) liked to play in water - not swim per say, but jump in the tub after a shower or play in the kitchen sink when water was in it.

Had to lock up the kittens as they kept jumping on the counter when I was doing dishes and play in the water - didn't care how wet they got
 

beach bum

TCS Member
Adult Cat
Joined
Aug 25, 2005
Messages
170
Purraise
1
Location
On a Texas beach
Originally Posted by strykerx0

Does anyone here have a Turkish Van, or a cat that likes to swim? We just got an 11 month old cat named SnowCrash that is likely a Turkish Van, due to the black patches only on his head and tail and white coloring everywhere else. From what we've read, they're fascinated with water, and he certainly fits that description. He was a shelter cat, and his sister also had the same markings.

Anytime a toilet flushes or someone takes a shower, he comes running to inspect the sound. We've tried to entice him into the shower with us, but he's skittish about it. Anyone else had any success with a cat like this? We'd find it amusing if he'd learn to shower with us and finally sate his curiousity.

Thanks!
Our step-siblings Samwise and Molly are proud members of "The Swimming Cat" family. You can take a look at them by clicking on their names in our siggy below. They both love water, unless it has soap in it.


You are indeed fortunate if SnowCrash is a Turkish Van. This lovely, strong, active and intelligent cat is a joy to have as a member of your household.

The TV got its "The Swimming Cat" handle because it swam in lakes and streams to catch fish as part of its natural diet in the wild in its original Southwest Asia home environment, and to escape the brutal summer heat. Our long experience with the breed causes us to suspect that domesticated TV's which love to swim are now probably in a minority. You can learn more about this marvelous breed here and here.

All the very best, from,
 

KitEKats4Eva!

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Jan 11, 2005
Messages
6,394
Purraise
17
If your cat was a Turkish Van you are a lucky person indeed!! I had a look at your comic site and he's certainly got the patterning and size, if not quite so fluffy. He may be a cross, but he'll still be a groovy cat if he has any T.V. in him.

Although I would have thought he would not hesitate at jumping in the shower with you if he was - or the bath, or the half-filled sink, or anywhere else with water. T.V.s are routinely more wet than they are dry.

Here's a great link: http://www.vantasia.org/turk_char.html

It's very common for cats to be fascinated by the sight and sound running water - Sashka watches me in the shower at every opportunity and they are both on my lap in the loo if I leave the door open!

PS - Beach Bum I am so ridiculously jealous of you. I have always wanted Turkish Van. A lady I used to work with had one and he was the BEST cat - not only would he be sitting in her sink full of water every day when she got home, but he was SO affectionate, loving and playful. Just gorgeous!
Your babies are stunning
 

beach bum

TCS Member
Adult Cat
Joined
Aug 25, 2005
Messages
170
Purraise
1
Location
On a Texas beach
Originally Posted by KitEKats4Eva!

PS - Beach Bum I am so ridiculously jealous of you. I have always wanted Turkish Van. A lady I used to work with had one and he was the BEST cat - not only would he be sitting in her sink full of water every day when she got home, but he was SO affectionate, loving and playful. Just gorgeous!
Your babies are stunning
Thank you, Sarah! We have both admired your charming babies and find them all to be so beautiful. You are so lucky to have so many living with you. Ann and Jim, our people-mom and people-dad, say that they love us to pieces but they don't think they could manage any more Vans in their little beach house.

While we are very modest, as you might guess
, your kind comments inflated our egos to the point that we decided to put on a couple of slide shows for you and your babes this morning, which you can see by clicking on our names in our siggy, which we just modified.

By the way, we share a great deal with your part of the world. Our cat-dad's name is Lord-of-the-Rings, after the exciting book and the movie made down under, not all that far from your home. All of his kittens were named after characters in the adventure.

Samwise, of course, was the little hobbit who protected Frodo during all his adventures. Here is a cute photo of Samwise as he succumbed to the magic of The Ring, which you may recall if you saw the movie. Of course he overcame the temptation and went on to save little Frodo's life more than once. This tired him out so badly that he is now napping in the bathtub, his favorite nap-spot.

Molly's real name is Galadriel, which Ann found to be a mouthful when she had to be scolded, so her "house-name" became Molly, after "The Unsinkable Molly Brown," Ann and Jim's last name being "Brown." As I am sure you know, in the movie the lovely Elf Queen Galadriel was played by Cate Blanchett, an Aussie like yourself. Ann says that Molly is as pretty as Cate, but Jim, for some reason, is not really that sure.


So, enjoy our slide show. We made it just for you, Sarah, and your charming fur-babies.

All our love from Molly and Samwise,
 

KitEKats4Eva!

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Jan 11, 2005
Messages
6,394
Purraise
17
Oooohhh YAY!!!!! I just logged on for five minutes and if I wasn't dashing out the door I'd watch now....but it'll have to be tomorrow, or when I get home if not too late.....but I'll definitely watch!!!
 

bab-ush-niik

TCS Member
Alpha Cat
Joined
Jan 17, 2006
Messages
574
Purraise
2
It could be that he just likes to watch the water, but not go in it. Patches will race down the hall just to watch a toilet flush. It's very weird. She also loves dripping water from a sink; it's her favorite way to drink water. And she likes to watch the aquarium, both the fish and the waterfall from the filter. But she hates being in water; she will yowl throughout bathtime and sulk for the rest of the day. It doesn't stop her from sticking her head into the flushing toilet though.
 

senga

TCS Member
Young Cat
Joined
Jan 19, 2006
Messages
40
Purraise
1
Location
darlington england
Magnum loves the water.He's fallen in the bath twice already and he splashes the drinking water in the bowel with his paw and then lickes his paw.He'll then drink normally form the bowl.If I leave the bathroom door open he'll be in the bath licking the water from the plug hole.He'll sit on the side of the bath if I'm in it.
 

zissou'smom

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Jan 11, 2006
Messages
6,482
Purraise
8
Zissou loves the water too. She sits between the two shower curtains and attacks the water, plays in faucets, "hides" toys in one of her water dishes. But, good luck getting her in a tub! Even if you have to. She does enjoy playing outside in the rain (on a leash of course) and doesn't understand why it may be a bad idea to jump into the deep muddy puddle out in the field. Oh well, quick rinse in the sink.
Although, she does love it when you wet a corner of a warm washcloth and pretend-lick her with it, like we're grooming her as another cat would. She licks us too.


Samwise is darling, Beach Bum, and I hate to be a wet-blanket, but do you know that Samwise means "half-wit"? (wise means what it does today, "sam-" is an old-english prefix for "Half" or "not quite".)
 

beach bum

TCS Member
Adult Cat
Joined
Aug 25, 2005
Messages
170
Purraise
1
Location
On a Texas beach
Originally Posted by Zissou'sMom

Samwise is darling, Beach Bum, and I hate to be a wet-blanket, but do you know that Samwise means "half-wit"? (wise means what it does today, "sam-" is an old-english prefix for "Half" or "not quite".)
"Wet blanket" -- cool, fits the Swimming Cat well.


If truth be told, most of the time, except when he is snoozing, ol' Sam is indeed a half-wit. It's what van fans call a "Van thing." His nick-name is "Goofus," so "half-wit" really works.


Actually, Samwise is named after the Tolkien character in the "Lord of the Rings," the little hobbit who cared for Frodo during all his adventures. His dad was named Lord-of-the-Rings, and all his handsome and beautiful kittens, as the case might be, were named after other characters in the book and movie. Molly, for example, is officially named Galadriel.

We had a great day here on the Third Coast today, and we do hope you did as well.

All the best,
 

zissou'smom

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Jan 11, 2006
Messages
6,482
Purraise
8
I read your other post on the Lord of the Rings character names. I think the name is very apt for the character as well...

I know a cat whose name Schmaltz, which means little fatty among other things, and he is indeed a little fatty. Our grandma used to call us this not knowing what it meant. When he was named, he was a tiny orange tabby. He is very not tiny now and very Schmaltzy. Isn't it funny how cats seem to grow into the names we give them?

Zissou is named for Team Zissou in the Life Aquatic with Bill Murray and Owen Wilson and Kate Blanchett, when they are out at sea looking for a mythical Jaguar Shark. Funny that she would enjoy playing with water so much?

-Just sharing a linguistic tidbit.

Samwise and Molly are all-adorable
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #20

strykerx0

TCS Member
Thread starter
Kitten
Joined
Jan 29, 2006
Messages
16
Purraise
1
Location
Grasonville, Md
Thanks for the link! SnowCrash is quite the friendly kitty, which is surprising since he was abandoned and found by a rescue organization somewhere in the city of Baltimore before we got him. He was very shy and scared for the first 12 hours in our house, but after he warmed up to us he hasn't calmed down since! He bounds around the house following us and gives out an odd bird-chirp-warbling sound when he wants attention.
 
Top