How to Keep your Cat Clean and Healthy

How to Keep your Cat Clean and Healthy

All cat owners will have noticed one prominent characteristic in their feline companions: Cats are meticulously clean animals. Although it's advisable to get your cat accustomed to water from a young age, cats normally keep themselves clean by grooming themselves.

However, depending on whether your cat ventures out, they may get dirtier than normal and may find it difficult to clean themselves. When this happens, many people wonder how to keep your cat clean and healthy without causing too much discomfort to their furry friend. Here at oneHOWTO we'll give you some tips so you can keep your pet clean successfully.

Steps to follow:
1

Cats groom themselves by licking and preening their fur; they are extremely neat animals. However, it's often advisable to help them so that they stay perfectly clean and healthy. Caring for your cat's coat is vital to avoid having to remove cat hair from your clothes all day long, but also to prevent hairballs and trichobezoars that can seriously harm your pet.

2

Brushing your cat's hair is essential to keep them clean and healthy. It will help get rid of dirt from their coat, prevent knots and avoid finding cat hair all over your hair. You will also lower the risk of your cat swallowing too much dead hair and developing dangerous hairballs.

If you have a short-haired cat, grooming them once a week should be enough. Long-haired cats, on the other hand, should be groomed daily. Here you can find how to choose the best brush for your cat.

3

If you live in a house with a garden or your cat has contact with other animals, it is also very important for you look out for parasites such as fleas and ticks as you brush your pet. If you do find that your cat has external parasites, here is an article of home remedies to remove them.

Daily grooming is also a great way to check the condition of your cat's skin, making sure it's free from scratches, wounds and irritation. This way, you'll keep your cat clean and healthy at once, as you'll be preventing infections.

4

To keep your cat clean and healthy it is very important to also clean their ears, a very delicate part of the animal's body. Monthly cleaning of the ears can help prevent different common diseases.

When cleaning your cat's ears, remember to never insert anything into the ear - not even cotton buds or q-tips. Any sudden movement, typical in these restless animals, could cause severe damage. It is best to use a well-wrung gauze with serum and clean the ear on the outside and inside without going too deep.

5

Another aspect to take into account if you want to keep your cat clean and healthy is to clean their eyes and the area around them. Use a soft wet gauze soaked in saline solution if you notice any gunk or dirt.

Firmly hold your cat's head and remove any dirt with the gauze softly. It is very important to be delicate because if your cat feels attacked or uncomfortable it may escape from your hands or even scratch you in a panicked frenzy just to get out of the situation.

6

Although cats don't normally take baths as often as dogs, it's always wise to get your cat used to water because if at some point your cat's fur is covered in mud, grease or any other stain, they will need to be bathed. In such a case, you'll want your cat to feel as relaxed and comfortable as possible.

7

To keep your cat clean and healthy it's important that the entire grooming process is as enjoyable an experience as possible for the animal. You should never be rough or force your cat, because they will become fearful and it will be a lot harder to get them to approach you.

After you finish grooming or bathing your cat, reward them with a snack or special treat so that they feel the whole process was worth the effort.

Do you have any tips on how to keep a cat clean and healthy? Tell us in the comments section!

If you want to read similar articles to How to Keep your Cat Clean and Healthy, we recommend you visit our Pets category.