How to give a cat a bath

It is potentially a traumatic event for a cat to take a bath but it should be a bonding experience, an energy exchange. everything works within their own parameters, means kittys tend to avoid water. If you go spraying them in the face with cold water as soon as they get in the tub what do you think is gonna happen?

Turn the water on first, before the poor thing realizes whats about to happen, let it come to temperature. Restricting the cats movement is bad, that will make them freak out too, I mean like grabbing the scruff of their neck with one hand and trying to hose them down with the other is tough work, especially when trying to alternate between showerhead and lather. Instead, take your time, this is a bonding moment. maintain as many points of contact as possible but that doesn’t mean it has to be stressful or even violent. Use wrists, forearms, elbows to let them know you got them surrounded.

They will ultimately try to escape at the beginning, especially when you add water to a hotspot and the fleas start to scatter or dig in. You can feel when a single flea is crawling up your leg, imagine dozens of them, all biting and moving at the same time, youd freak out too.

Once the dishsoap kicks in fleas will start dying within seconds. it will take your kitty time to process what is going on. This can be bewildering in itself so just be mindful. Start with the tail, remember, dont start off with an ice cold squirt to the face. The tail and hiney give your pet time to figure out what’s going on and where this is headed.

Even though the feet are under water you still want to squirt some soap on all parts of the legs exposed. Lather it good, from the inside of the leg to the bottoms of the feet, get around the pads and between the toes

At this point the poor kitty should have calmed down a little but they will still they to escape without constant contact so use all parts of your arm so you can use both hands to wash. The fleas will start running which will freak the cat out, keep that in mind too, when you see them leaning into the sprayer they will still try to bolt when you switch up, this is the Great Migration, the fleas on the run for their lives. Place a drop or two on top of its head and around its cheek bones. This’ll keep fleas away from its face while you’re scrubbing down the rest of their body. I don’t like doing this first bc of the chance to get into its eyes if they’re freaking out. Do this as soon as your fuzzy friend has relaxed enough to hold still for 10 secs.

Don’t try to rinse each limb off before moving on, keep the lather on to prevent flea from traveling to a new territory. The body and belly are a breeze at this point, just a squirt along puss’s spine will take care of the top. The belly is best to use a handful of soap instead of trying to use the bottle to get into hiding spots like armpits.

You will probs have to repeat several steps, you’ll know when kitty is clean when the flea dirt is gone and waste water runs off clear. Dirt is basically dried blood and flea shit and is a good indicator of hotspots. If youre fast you can identify a presence before it reaches an infestation level, saving puss from the whole experience. On some level, since we will be using coconut oil afterward, removing dirt is the primary objective, since the coco oil is a leave-on application. This means all the blood and shit will come off on its bedding or the furniture, even worse, it could be licked clean by the pet itself and who knows what health concerns could be bc of that.

By this point there shouldnt be much fight left in the cat, not only will they be physically exhausted from struggling they will also be like a dif animal from the fact all their torment just washed down the drain. Drip dry whatever you can in the tub, let them shake it off. you might need two towels, one to lay on your lap and one to hand dry.

Coco oil will displace the water, that means you can rub it in still wet. Any remaining fleas that escaped the soap are fucked now. There is some online debate about the best kind of oil to use. The most agree unrefined virgin oil is the best. It is pasty white at room temp but melts clear in your palm. Other sites claim so far as to say refined wont even work but thats bullshit. All the local supermarket had was refined, that shit works amazingly.

just take as big a handful you can manage and rub it in. I dont mean smear it onto fuzzy’s coat, I mean massage into their skin. Trust me, if puss is still struggling at this point this is the part they will settle down. Even if you have to walk away for a second, go smoke a bowl, rub some on first in a small spot first. Remember, its going to take a moment for your cat to process whats going on. If you start a spot and walk away for a min by the time you get back your buddy will be waiting to finish.

Rub as much as their coat will hold, you really cant use too much of this stuff, and you have to get down to their skin. It is an energy exchange and bonding opportunity.