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That cat sure is calm, and handsome too! I've heard of cats that like water, but that video is something else.
Two of our cats have never been bathed, but one kept getting into various scrapes as a kitten and needed 3 baths. Well, 2 1/2 actually since one was just a rinse-off with no shampoo. The first time I had short sleeves on, but I never made that mistake again! And still came out of it looking pretty beat up. I had to feel sorry for him though, looking like a miserable little drowned rat.
I don't have cats ( we have pet birds who are out with us when we're home, that and being allergic to cat hair precludes having cats, LOL), so I'm not all that familiar with the vicissitudes of being owned by cats, but I just wondered if that kitty is as mellow when they try to get him/her into a carrier for a vet trip or other journey? I ask that because I was entertained some time ago by tales from one of my cat-loving friends about how she maneuvered her cats into travel carriers when they needed to go to the vet- not an easy task. And I've read comments about cat owners saying they've had to cancel several vet appointments because they couldn't get the cat into the carrier- my friend laughed and said that had happened with her cats too.
My friend told me about having to move her living room furniture to the middle of the room, as her cat would go behind the furniture, jump up on curtain rods and tops of cabinets and tall bookcases so she'd have to climb up and try and get him, the cat would jump down so off they went. And on and on, she told me she'd have to start about 3 hours before the appointment to have the time to chase the cat all over. Sometimes she could catch him, sometimes not- and there was one time she had an asthma attack and had to let the cat have his own way, and cancel the vet appointment. And apparently vets are well acquainted with owners having to cancel appointments because they can't catch their cats.
But then, she told me there was a secret to getting the cat in the carrier once she had a hold of him- I'm imagining the cat's legs splayed out to make him too wide to fit through the opening, but she said you grab the cats legs and hold them together, or something like that, to keep him from spreading them out. She says you upend the carrier so the door is at the top, and holding the cat like that, drop him gently into the carrier- it's not as easy for him to jump right back out the door in a flash like he can if the door is on the side, and you can quickly shut the door.
Whew, that must be fun!
I use that for a back up Plan B if things don't go well the first 3 or 4 attempts (). Actually I've gotten better at getting mine in the carrier over the years. It's really all a matter of technique. The two important things, for me anyway, is don't telegraph your intentions with body language, and do not let them see the carrier before you have hold of them & ready to stuff them in. It also helps to clear your mind of any images of carriers, vet offices, syringes, etc. All of my cats have excellent mind reading abilities & have been known to vanish into thin air if I even look at the cabinet where the flea treatment is stored.
I gave all 3 cats baths a few times when we had a house in Florida and the rugs had fleas. I had the rugs taken care of w/ Chem Dry and then I bathed them. They didn't care for it, I'll say that. But I always had the weird ability to be able to cut their nails, bathe them, brush them without dire consequences. They looked like 3 skinny kids!
I use that for a back up Plan B if things don't go well the first 3 or 4 attempts (). Actually I've gotten better at getting mine in the carrier over the years. It's really all a matter of technique. The two important things, for me anyway, is don't telegraph your intentions with body language, and do not let them see the carrier before you have hold of them & ready to stuff them in. It also helps to clear your mind of any images of carriers, vet offices, syringes, etc. All of my cats have excellent mind reading abilities & have been known to vanish into thin air if I even look at the cabinet where the flea treatment is stored.
I take my carriers out a few days before the vet appointment. There have been a few times when they would sleep in it.
This is an old pic that I entitled "Kitty Kondo." (Not my best pic). Andy (who crossed the Rainbow Bridge ) is on the ground floor, Electra is on the second floor, & Elvira (who was a baby at the time) is on the roof.
I take my carriers out a few days before the vet appointment. There have been a few times when they would sleep in it.
This is an old pic that I entitled "Kitty Kondo." (Not my best pic). Andy (who crossed the Rainbow Bridge ) is on the ground floor, Electra is on the second floor, & Elvira (who was a baby at the time) is on the roof.
Cat
Yeah, looking back on it, my wife & I should have done something like that when they were all kittens growing up, so they didn't develop a fear of them. Their whole lives the carrier has always meant a trip to the vet so the damage is done. Now the PTU (Prisoner Transport Unit) is to be avoided at all costs. It's one of those things I'd like to go back & do over for sure.
Yeah, looking back on it, my wife & I should have done something like that when they were all kittens growing up, so they didn't develop a fear of them. Their whole lives the carrier has always meant a trip to the vet so the damage is done. Now the PTU (Prisoner Transport Unit) is to be avoided at all costs. It's one of those things I'd like to go back & do over for sure.
Put the carrier out and just leave it for a few days. See what they do.
Put the carrier out and just leave it for a few days. See what they do.
Cat
I actually have 2 carriers in the house all the time, but they're smaller ones that I don't use for vet trips. The cats don't pay any attention to them at all. One is used for a step to get up in the bay window. The carrier I use is kept on the front porch & I may bring it inside so I don't have to clean it every time I need it.
All joking aside, getting them in the carrier is not that big of a deal. I've learned how to do it, and they don't fight me that much. I just hate doing things to them they don't like, so it's as much a mental exercise with me as anything else.
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). Actually I've gotten better at getting mine in the carrier over the years. It's really all a matter of technique. The two important things, for me anyway, is don't telegraph your intentions with body language, and do not let them see the carrier before you have hold of them & ready to stuff them in. It also helps to clear your mind of any images of carriers, vet offices, syringes, etc. All of my cats have excellent mind reading abilities & have been known to vanish into thin air if I even look at the cabinet where the flea treatment is stored.
