One day, earlier in my veterinary career, I had some younger students shadowing me to get a glimpse of the in’s and out’s of veterinary medicine. I was hoping to wow them will some incredible surgeries, some cute critters and more, but what the students most enjoyed that day was bathing the clinic cat, Zane. They couldn’t get enough of his wet, pathetic face and mournful cries. Zane, on the other hand, had definitely had better days. So what is it about water that has some cats either dripping with trepidation or gushing with panic? Also, does that theory that cats hate water really, well, hold water?
So Why Do Cats Hate Water?
A cat’s dislike of water may go back as far as their existence. Imagine a lion roaming the African savannah. He rarely comes into contact with large bodies of water and therefore never really developed the need to swim. Since many of our cat breeds developed in arid, desert type climates, their apprehension towards water may be due to a lack of familiarity with it. Cats have even evolved to require less drinking water in their diet because of this. Wild cats derive most of their dietary water from the prey that they eat.
The aversion to water may also be rooted in vanity. Cats are notorious groomers and it’s hard to look your best when you’re soaked from splashing in a pool. Even though we might think their dripping faces are adorable, wet cat fur is very difficult to manage. It can also be quite heavy and uncomfortable. The thickness of the undercoat requires a long time to dry as well.
Finally, our kitties may shy away from water because of our habits as owners. You may notice that some of the more adventurous felines like to bat a paw at water dripping from the faucet but still decline a bath in the sink. We tend to make many of our cat’s experiences with water negative ones; such as being caught out in a rainstorm or being blasted in the face during a bath. They don’t get to experience a friendly swim in the river like our dog companions do. Since kitties like to be in charge of their own destiny, these forced interactions with water may have turned them a little sour to it.
Do All Cats Hate Water?
Even though the internet is overloaded with videos and pictures of angry, wet cat faces, there are some that seek out water. Turkish Van cats, or the ‘swimming cats’, are known to play in the bathtub, water bowl, or even the toilet if you’re not careful! In the wild, mountain lions and other big cats will swim across rivers and lakes in order to get clean, cool off, or to follow prey. And I’m sure we all know a kitty that doesn’t mind the water. I had one that would sit on the edge of the bathtub and bat at the spray from the shower.
While it might take a cat psychologist to really get to the bottom of a cat’s water issues, these theories provide a little insight into why most of our feline friends prefer to watch from the sidelines of the pool. It’s also important to remember that some cats don’t necessarily hate water, it’s all in the way that it’s presented. If you’re struggling to convince your purry pal that water can be his friend try to present it on a fun manner. If you still can’t convince your cat to embrace water, remember that it may just be engrained in his roots.
If you’re curious about another classic cat mystery, check out our article on why cats always knock things over.
