For those of you brave enough to have bathed a cat, what shampoo or soap did you use?

[Flaxbee]

I don't want to buy the pet store brands b/c I have a feeling many of them are pretty harsh ... would Dawn (what is used to help rinse oil from birds, etc.) or my own shampoo be OK?

I need to rinse a few of my cats off after I give them Capstar and before I put Advantage on them ... they're covered in flea dirt because FRONTLINE didn't work for ANY of them last month. It is now safe for me to put another topical on them (at least 30 days have passed since Frontline) and each cat needs to be shampooed. Oh boy.

Whaddya think? Shampoo OK? Dawn dish soap?

[GreenPartyVoter]

1. I would ask the Vet to be safe. Whatever you use, rinse really well since your kittehs will

be self-bathing and likely to lick up whatever got left behind.

[Flaxbee]

6. agreed - I want something very mild because I know they'll

groom themselves silly and I don't want anyone to blow soap bubbles...

[GreenPartyVoter]

15. Would be funny to see the look on their faces when the bubbles come out, tho. LOL And then they

can chase after them and catch them.

On second thought, buy the foamiest soap you can think of and to heck with rinsing. :rofl:

[redwitch]

2. I have the same problem.

Used Frontline on the kitties and the wee Gloria, who is allergic to flea bites, needs a bath big time. I was thinking baby shampoo.

[Flaxbee]

7. I know - I switched from Advantage and the first month,

Frontline was OK, the second month, it seemed to have no effect. So I'm going to buy Capstar, dose the kitties, bathe them, and then apply Advantage, and then wash their bedding with Lysol...

[Heidi]

3. I would not bath a cat unless advised by a veterinarian to do that.

If a bath is in order, a vet can best recommend the appropriate shampoo. (And if I already had the vet on the phone, I'd ask whether he/she had a groomer who would do the job and absorb the bad kitty vibes so that I wouldn't have to.) :hi:

[Flaxbee]

8. lol - I have six of 'em, and five definitely need baths...

can't have a $100+ cat-salon experience at the moment, so I'm going to have to wrap myself in armor to avoid deathly scratches and hopefully repel some bad kitty vibes. :D :hi:

[Heidi]

9. Hope you survive it, sweets.

If I were there and Ginger weren't looking, I'd bullet proof myself and help you out. :hug:

[grace0418]

4. Neither human shampoo nor dawn would be a good idea (birds won't lick their feathers after

being washed with dawn but a cat will lick itself). If you don't want to buy cat shampoo, try castile soap.

[Flaxbee]

11. I just don't like Hartz, or any of the other brands sold in-store

and want to find something very gentle... castile soap?

[grace0418]

16. It's a gentile, all natural soap. You can find it at Whole Foods, natural food stores, and I think

even Trader Joes and camping stores. I've bathed my cats many times (by myself) and it's not that bad. I use the kitchen sink. I fill it up with about 2 or 3 inches of warm water mixed with a little soap. I put a towel on the edge of the sink to keep too much water from ending up on the floor, then another towel next to the sink for kitty. Then I put him in the water and try to keep him calm while I use a wash cloth to gently clean him. It's really not too bad. If he lets me, I use clean running water to rinse him. Otherwise I drain the sink and fill it with plain water and use a new wash cloth to rinse him. Then I wrap him up tight in the big towel, praise him profusely and give him a treat. After a few minutes I take the towel off and rub him fairly dry, he takes care of the rest. If he needs it, I brush him while he's still damp (keeps all that fur from flying around).

[Ahpook]

18. Pretty sure that tea tree oil is bad for cats?

Just wanted to throw it out since i think some of Dr. Bronner's, for instance may contain some.

Read the light blue labeled mixture, and it does not.

[grace0418]

22. Yes, you want to get the plain if possible, no tea tree oil. Although my kitty

loves mint so he actually likes the minty one.

[GoCubsGo]

29. Tea tree is safe for cats if used properly....

However, not what you'd want for bathing a cat. It's an antiseptic. so good for first aid purposes. One of my cats has feline acne. When it flares up, I wash his chin with my tea tree facial wash from The Body Shop--with my vet's approval. It clears it right up.

[grace0418]

25. LOL! Just read that I wrote "gentile" instead of "gentle".

As far as I know castile soap is non-denominational. :)

[Rabrrrrrr]

5. Straight lye and bleech. They calm down pretty quickly.

[Flaxbee]

12. think I"ll skip that recipe, but thanks for the suggestion.

:hi:

[Arkansas Granny]

10. I have only bathed kittens on a few occasions and I used no tears baby shampoo.

[Flaxbee]

13. I was wondering about baby shampoo, too.

NOT looking forward to this experience, however.

[Haole Girl]

14. Here is a good link:

http://www.petproductadvisor.com/buyers-guide/cat-shampoo-how-to-select-the-best-cat-shampoo/54/page1.aspx

My favorite part: For obvious reasons, it's best not to bathe a cat alone.

:rofl:

[foxfeet]

17. Selsun Blue.

One of my old (now deceased) kitties had "stud tail," basically oily dandruff at the base of his tail on his back. The vet recommended the Selsun Blue followed by a careful rinse. It worked quite well and the cat learned to love the warm water, He was a good boy.

I still miss you, DC. See you in the Otherworld.

[In_The_Wind]

19. I used a no_tear_baby shampoo.

The cats were happy and so was I.

Good Luck

[elana i am]

20. ditto

my cats never had any problem with baby shampoo.

[marzipanni]

21. What grace0418 said, plus a small towel in the sink

so kittehs aren't on a slippery surface. They can dig claws into towel for security. My vet recommended this for bathing dogs in the bathtub.

[grace0418]

23. Ah yes, forgot about that one. Good catch. They like having something non-slippery

under their feet.

[theNotoriousP.I.G.]

24. I still have the scars from giving my sister's cat a bath ten years ago

I would never use Dawn dish washing soap to bath a cat.

[TreasonousBastard]

26. I'd check with a vet or groomer, but back when I had dogs to bathe...

Johnson's Baby Shampoo was recommended for cats and dogs. It worked, and the dogs were never the worse for it.

Glycerine or Castile soap might be similarly gentle, but I would never use any dish soap-- too many harsh detergents in there.

[hippywife]

27. Seventh Generation Dish Soap

is what I've used. It doesn't have the nasty chemicals in it.

[Taverner]

28. Flea dip

Not sure which brand

[Kali]

30. dawn is very harsh

it IS an excellent degreaser - that is why they use it on oiled animals, but I wouldn't use it for ordinary bathing

plain water may be all you need, or go very mild with dilute baby shampoo or a plain bar soap, rinse well

cornmeal makes a decent dry "shampoo" - rub in, brush out

[Betty88]

31. just go to a pet store

one bottle of cat shampoo will last far longer than any desire you have to wash your cats

[AsahinaKimi]

32. I have had my kitty for many years..

He's an indoor kitty. Never had to bathe him once. Not sure he would like it. He does a great job all by himself..

[hedgehog]

33. I'd try this - it'll wash them and make their skin feel less itchy

It's just very finely ground oatmeal.

[Curmudgeoness]

34. I used a pet store shampoo for cats. That is what it is made for.

Don't use Dawn, it is good to get oil off of animals, but that is a major problem that you don't have. Or I have used baby shampoo in years past.

[carlyhippy]

35. I use that lavendar baby bath by Johnson's

it's in the purple bottle. It wont hurt their eyes, and they smell good after.



I do have this conditioning shampoo by Hartz for cats/kittens, it smells good too.

One of my cats likes a bath, the other one braces her feet on the edge of the sink and i can't hardly get her in the sink, she is mad all day after she gets a bath ha.

[Lorien]

36. Baby shampoo or plant based pet formulas from health food stores

cats are sensitive to a lot of ingredients found in human shampoos and detergents.