Your average cat won’t enjoy bath time, but luckily most cats keep themselves clean on their own. (Photo: 135pixels/Shutterstock)
Cats have developed quite the reputation for being rather aquaphobic, but do our feline friends really hate water? If you’ve ever tried to bathe your cat, you may think so, but the truth is that cats have a complicated relationship with H2O.
Many cats seem to be fascinated by water and may enjoy dipping their paws into the bathtub or dunking their heads under the faucet for a drink. Certain breeds of domestic cat are even well known to go for the occasional swim. For example, the Turkish Van has earned itself the nickname “swimming cat” because of its pure love of water.
However, even though cats can paddle just as well as your average dog, your average feline likely won’t have any interest in going for a swim. But why is that really? Scientists and animal behaviorists both agree there a variety of reasons.
The first is called simply – evolution. While wild cats in warm climates may just go for the occasional refreshing dip to cool off, most domestic cats descend from felines that lived in dry regions so swimming simply wasn’t very necessary for survival. “Domestic cats were descended from Arabian wild cats,” Dr. John Bradshaw, a professor at the University of Bristol’s School of Veterinary Sciences, told Mental Floss. “Their ancestors lived in an area with very few large bodies of water. They never had to learn how to swim. There was no advantage to it.”
Also, despite thousands of years of living alongside us humans, cats still retain the same instincts as their wild ancestors and are only “semi-domesticated,” according to a team of researchers from schools including Washington University School of Medicine and Texas A&M; and published in the journal PNAS. This means that felines are always on the lookout for potential threats and danger and want to remain in good shape in case they must fight or flee. However, when a cat’s fur gets wet, the animal is weighed down, which compromises agility and makes him or her more vulnerable to attack.
Another reason cats may not care for water is because of past negative experiences — or lack of experience — with it. If your cat’s only exposure to water was being trapped out in a downpour, forced into a flea bath or squirted as a disciplinary measure, then it’s hardly surprising that they’re not fond of it.
Felines that aren’t accustomed to water may also shy away from it because all cats are creatures of habit and they typically don’t enjoy surprises. Cats that have received regular baths since kittenhood, or those that have warmed up to water on their own terms, may actually love to join you for a dip. However, trying to force a cat into water will likely initiate the animal’s fight-or-flight response, potentially injuring you, your cat and anyone else in his wake — and making your pet wary of both you and H2O.
Finally, being wet is simply an unpleasant state for cats for a variety of reasons. Cats spend nearly half of their days grooming themselves, so it’s understandable that they wouldn’t enjoy having all that hard work ruined. Plus, cats also have numerous scent glands that produce pheromones used for marking and communication, and water — especially scented bathwater and chemical-laden tap water — can severely interfere with this.
And in addition to weighing them down, wet fur is also cold and makes it more difficult for them to move. “Their coat doesn’t dry quickly and it’s simply uncomfortable to be soaking wet,” animal behaviorist Kelley Bollen told LiveScience.
So if cats aren’t all that interested in swimming, why do so many felines splash around in their water bowls and stare so intently at bathwater? It turns out it’s not so much the water itself that interests them as how the water itself looks and moves.
“That flickering pattern, the light coming off the water, is hard-wired into their brain as a potential sign of prey,” Bradshaw said. “It’s not because it’s wet. It’s because it moves and makes interesting noises. Something moving is a potential thing to eat.”
