(Alas, the beloved beings this is about have since gone onto their feline Heaven. This was originally written during their lifetime.)
Who says you can’t give a cat a bath? Two of my felines get bathed twice daily. Of course, I’m fairly certain we’d all rather suck lemons instead but it is doable; tolerable if not enjoyable.
I’ve been helping out at a ‘no-kill’ animal shelter for several years now. Something everyone should be warned about before they start working at an animal rescue is they could end up with a menagerie of critters before they learn to ‘just say no’. Before working there I had one of each – a rabbit, cat, dog and gold fish. Within a couple years the fish, cat and rabbit had passed away yet there was still a lovely collection of three dogs and three cats residing here. The last several adopted blessings have special needs, two of which are incontinent cats (A.K.A. The Poopsie Twins).
There was a cat bathing lesson at the shelter and I talked to the Poopsies’ vets before bringing them home, but there’s been quite an adjustment period (two and a half years and counting). The felines are still teaching me how to best care for their selves – I’m sure they’ll have definite opinions for the next decade or so . . .
When the first cat came home she was named ‘Faith’ because I knew it was going to take a lot of that (and humor) on both our parts to survive the ‘getting to know you (too well) period. At first she was pretty lenient but I think she was just so glad to be diaper less and no longer living in a stainless steel cubicle that she could tolerate my clumsy attempts at cat hygiene. Now she and Glory, her unrelated sister with similar issues, are pretty darn expressive about every misstep on my part, but since there are no permanent scars all is well.
The Twins have now taught me what temperature water to bathe them with (tepid), best type of soap (unscented foaming Castile), and how quickly I can get the dastardly deed done (about a minute and a half per cat) They also each have their own way of being cajoled (Faith with food, Glory with adoration and petting). To their chagrin I’ve learned how to void their bladder, keep the area trimmed, and how to gently cleanse in order to avoid irritation on their part and teeth marks on mine.
Even with learning quite a bit before bringing them home I really had no idea what it took to bathe and supply everything the Poopsie Twins needed, as well as trying to make their lives as full as possible. But it definitely worked out for the best that way. I probably would’ve chickened out without ever getting to know these delightful beings, and even for this dog person, that would have been a real shame.
I’ll be glad meet with you back here on Monday!
