How We Bathe Our Kitten

We have seen multiple crazy cat bath videos before we started to give Meuw a bath. Most cats hate water and will make a run for it once they hear the water running. We were quite terrified when we bathe our kitten for the first time, to be honest. We were all over the place and pespiring like crazy. Not fun.

Meuw started taking baths when he was about 6 weeks old. He wasn't a big fan of the water, meowed abit, tried running away, but after trial and error, we have learnt how to manage the bath situation and to make it a more pleasant experience for all of us.

Most importantly, we ALWAYS prepare everything before bringing the kitten in. We really don't want him to hear and see everything we are doing - it will probably make him more anxious while waiting right there. Here's a list of things we usually reach out for:

1) Cat Shampoo (Definitely not human shampoo)

2) 2 Bath Towels

3) 1 Towel about the size of the bottom of the sink

4) 1 Hand Towel

5) Hair Dryer

6) 2 Pails (Of warm water)

7) Or if you have running warm water (which we don't)

8) Treats! (We used a spoon of wet food)

It is recommended that brushing should always be done before and after bath time to get rid of all the mats. When mats come into contact with water/ lathering, it will become worse and harder to remove later. Especially so for long haired cats.

Words can be too lengthy, so here's a video to better explain everything!

Tips! (That we have tried, tested and worked)

1) Two is better than one. Working in a pair makes the job easier when one can hold the cat down while another does the shampooing.

2) Don't get water in the ears, cats hate it and will want to end bathtime ASAP. Lightly hold the ears shut to prevent water from getting in.

3) Don't use hot water. Warm water is good enough. Cats have really thin skin so you really don't want to scald them.

4) A good way to keep your kitten from escaping is to use your palm to support the front of his body (legs in between your fingers).

5) Before blow drying, always try to towel dry most of the moisture out so that blow drying sessions can be kept short.

6) Use the towel to lightly hold the neck of your kitten while blow drying. This will prevent him from scratching you/ escaping. (Expect some from of struggle during blow drying sessions)

7) It is good to bathe your kitten in a tub (in our case, we did it in the sink) that is deep enough to contain your kitten so that he can't escape easily.

8) It's good to have a towel/ mat placed at the bottom of the tub/ sink so that your kitten can have a better grip and stability. He will feel more secure and have lesser tendency to escape.

We are lucky that we are able to give Meuw baths at a young age and get him used to it than having to struggle with a full grown adult cat later. It's a myth that baths are not required for cats since they can self groom/ clean themselves. Grooming, for the most part, is for pleasure and there are multiple areas that a cat can't reach.

If you have had a bad experience with bathing your cat, don't give up. Persevere, calm yourself down and get someone to help. Try different methods to calm your cat down too - I read that catnip before bath might help. Try not to allow your cat to escape because once he knows he can get away with it for the first time, he will NOT stop and constantly tries to escape (Big headache for you). Try our tips, it worked well for us. Don't forget to reward your cat after bath time! He will associate his favourite food with bath and at least try to tolerate the process in order to get his treats.

Bath times are now so much simplier and enjoyable! Good luck!

#bath #grooming #video