Aside from an occasional swat into the goldfish bowl, it’s quite obvious that cats don’t like water, so you can imagine what an ordeal it can be to try and give your cat a bath. Typically, cats keep themselves pretty clean and often don’t even need to be bathed if they are an indoor cat, but sometimes they may get themselves into a mess outside and a bath is necessary.

Bath Preparation
The first thing you’re going to want to do is prepare your bathtub and bathroom area in case a chaotic cat fight ensues. If you have a rubber mat that goes on the bottom of the tub, it might be a good idea to use it. If the cat is frightened from the water alone, then she will only be that much more disturbed if she starts slipping and sliding around in the tub.

Next, you’ll want to protect the floor from the possible flood from you and the kitty splashing around. Folding up a few thick towels and laying them in front of the tub should do the trick.

Also, make sure you have the cat shampoo ready and a separate towel to wrap your cat in when the bath is done. You want to make this process as fast as possible for the both of you. ya.

The Shampoo And Bath
It’s important to use cat shampoo that is going to be gentle on their skin, especially the first time they’re receiving a bath. It’s highly recommended that you buy actual pet shampoo and ask advice from your vet.

If you have a cat that’s typically not too much of a wild one, chances are that she will settle down fairly quickly even if she’s scared. However, some cats are deadly frightened the first few times and try to make a mad dash for anywhere but the tub. Be very gentle with both your touch and your tone when bringing her into the tub. Once you put her in the water, start the bathing right away starting at her tail. This will give her a little extra time to deal with the situation.

Once the bathing is finished, be sure to wrap her in a towel as soon as you take her out of the water. Cats’ body temperature will decrease rapidly so you do not want her wet for too long after the bath. After you dry her off well, make sure you take some time to give her a lot of praise and treats to let her know that you appreciate the cooperation. That way there’s a good chance it will get easier the next few times.

If you are a cat owner, then it is a good idea to be aware of cat pregnancy signs and symptoms. Not only is it typical for a cat to become pregnant when you’re least expected, but sometimes your kitty may be showing one or two of these signs for different reasons without actually being impregnated.  For this reason, it is crucial that you know specific symptoms to look for in order to be certain when you are diagnosing your cat.

Here are signs to look for when you think your cat is pregnant:

• Nipples Change Color To Pink
  The first and most prominent sign is your cat’s nipples will have changed. A pregnant cat will have pink nipples after she has been pregnant for a few weeks. Once the pink nipples are in effect, you should see a veterinarian right away. You only have about five or six weeks before the kittens arrive.
• Ultra-Affectionate
  If your cat is usually scratchy, loud, and even mean sometimes, all that could be thrown out the window once she has become pregnant. A pregnant cat will typically become quieter and lose interest in other cats, especially any males that might be hanging around. She will no longer have heat cycles so she will not want to go outside either. Instead, she’ll want to spend more time with you and will likely be extra cuddly.
• Obvious Weight Gain
  It’s obvious that you’ll see a weight gain when your cat is pregnant, but can you tell in the earl stages? Well, in the very beginning, your cat may not look pregnant, if you are seeing a bit of extra bulge, then it is one of the surefire signs that she is going to be having kittens. It may be a small change at first but the growth will be rapid as time goes by.
• Wild Appetite
  When a woman is pregnant, she is eating for two. When your cat is pregnant she is eating for 5, six, seven, or eight, so you’re definitely going to see a change in appetite. Of course, this doesn’t mean you increase her daily feedings to eight times the amount! Mixing her regular adult food with some kitten formula should suffice.

While these cat pregnancy signs and symptoms are clear indicators that your cat may be carrying a litter, it is important to take your cat to see a vet. You may also want to prepare yourself for a cute litter of kittens that will be very hard to let go of!

Just like human nails, cat’s claws grow constantly. The new ones are protected by an outer layer that the cat usually will remove herself my sharpening them. When you see her stretching out and clawing at her scratching post, now you know what she’s doing.

Typically, for younger cats, grooming their own claws by scratching isn’t a problem, but as they become older that can change. A cat’s nails can become brittle and dry with age and therefore be prone to cracking and splitting which may cause trouble such ass getting stuck in the carpet and pulling out which may cause them pain and more damage.

You can help keep your cat’s claw’s healthy when she’s older by trimming her nails for her. If she is older and you have never trimmed them, it’s a possibility that she may be scared of the nail clipper. If this is the case, ease her into the idea by just holding her and playing with her paws occassionally. Massage them like you would if you were going to be trimming each individual nail, but don’t do any trimming yet. Simply get her used to the idea of you controlling her paws.

Once she is completely comfortable with the paw control, you can attempt a trimming.

You will want to extend the claw out so that it is easy to cut without harming your cat . You can do this by using your thumb and index finger to very hently squeeze the the top of the paw (index finger on bottom of paw pad and thumb on top).

The very tip of the claw that you want to trim doesn’t have any nerves so your cat doesn’t even feel it. However, you want to make sure that you do not cut in too far near the center of the claw. This live center is known as the quick and contains both nerves and blood. This is why it is important to extend the claw and also have good light in the room.

Fortunately, the quick is darker than the rest of the claw and you should be able to see it clearly and avoid it.

If you can only get one paw or even one claw the first time before your cat starts to squirm, then just let her go and try again soon. Always ease her into something she is afraid of and be gentle and talk calmly to her so that she knows you are caring for her.

Cats like to be clean and can be seen grooming themselves on a regular basis with their tongue. As a result of bathing themselves with their mouths, sometimes their fur will end up being ingested. Typically, this is pretty harmless, but occasionally, it a hairball can get stuck in the cat’s intestines and form a blockage that can lead to more complications. This is why it is important, and a natural reaction, for cats to cough up hairballs.

If you are concerned about your cat coughing up hairballs, there are a few ways that you can help prevent it from happening, or at least decrease the chances of it recurring often.

• Regular Grooming
  If you can make it a point to groom your cat daily and brush away the bulk of the loose hair, then less hair will end up in your cat’s stomach and you will drastically decrease the chances of your cat ingesting and coughing up hairballs.
• Hairball Diet
  Since coughing up hairballs is a very common issue for cats, there are cat food brands that offer special formulated cat food designed specifically to prevent hairballs. Be sure that the one you choose has ample nutrients though.
• High Fiber Treat
  You can try giving your cat a high fiber treat such as canned pumpkin to prevent him or her from coughing up hairballs.
• Gel Or Butter
  A couple other common remedies is to give your cat a little butter a couple times a week or sometimes a little petroleum-based gel.

It’s important to consult your vet before making any changes to your cat’s diet. Your vet may also have detailed specifics on how to introduce any changes that you might be making.