No, not usually. But it depends on the cat.

When I was in Jr. High, we had a cat who would curl up in the sink, in the main bathroom, and let the water (the faucet needed a new washer) rise to almost his neck. Then he would get out and let it drain and do it again.

As a young mother, we had a cat that loved water. When I would take a bath, I had to make sure that the door was firmly closed because he would get up on the edge of the tub, watch the water for a bit, dip a paw in and then get into the bath with me. What made it worse was that he was a long haired Persian. Hair everywhere.

This same cat would lay on top of the aquarium and watch the fish. Just watch them. I admit that they were fascinating to watch (black mollys and redtail swords) but I had never seen a cat that didn’t at least try to touch them. But this cat didn’t.

I think that most cats are not introduced to the water as kittens. If you want your cat to be at least comfortable with water, start by gently bathing them as kittens. DON’T use baby shampoo! Get a wash specially for kittens.

And use warm, not hot or cold, water.

House cats can be taught to love taking baths, but it is a process. Some house cats actually like taking baths. We had a cat many years ago who would purposely go under a diesel oil barrel and get the stuff all over herself, knowing that we would bathe her. She would go out of her way to do it, if she hadn’t been given a bath in a few weeks. If she’d been bathed, she would avoid the oil barrel for a couple of weeks.

Many wild cats apparently love water, too. Cougars and tigers will sometimes go for a swim for no other apparent reason than enjoying the swim. Some wild cats will also actively try to catch fish and sometimes they are successful, usually getting quite wet in the process.

All that said, some house cats might be afraid of water, but if they are, it is probably because of traumatic events they’ve gone through. That could be getting trapped in water they had a hard time getting out of or being caught in a heavy downpour without any shelter or something like that. For similar reasons, some humans have a fear of water (aquaphobia).

My Turkish Van adores water… She needs water. When we first got her at age 8 I noticed crazy sounds from the bathroom… She had opened the always closed toilet and was sitting in the water playing. [yeah, yuck! ] When I hauled her into the filled tub to scrub her down she had the time of her life. After that I always make sure she has a large bucket or child's kiddie pool to play in. We change the water at least once a day. It helps that her fur dries in under 30 minutes. My personal theory is that cats of European descent have a genetic memory of being drowned during the periods of witch hunts. The Turkish Cats… Angora and Van, of which I have had both, seem to have no irrational fear water.

They are not “afraid” of water. They are very particular what kind of condition their fur should be in.

Most cats need clean dry fur to maintain an optimal body temperature. When you add water - especially dirty water found in puddles and streams, that will ruin the cat’s protective coat. The oils needed to keep the fur health are also being washed away (which is also why you need a special cat shampoo if a cat comes home muddy).

That being said, there are cats who do not mind (or more accurately, not as annoyed) being wet and certain breeds capable of withstanding getting wet such as the Turkish Van.

Thanks for the A2A.

Since cats drink water, they obviously aren’t afraid of water. They just don’t like being forced into situations like being held to get a bath. They also don’t like being held down when they are at the vets office getting their vaccinations. Imagine how you would feel if someone had a grip on you and started doing things to you that you didn’t understand. You would struggle to get away also.

If a cat received baths on a regular basis they would begin to hate them less. Some people actually start bathing them as kittens so they actually learn that baths are a normal part of their grooming routine. Pets enjoy a massage so that may be part of the reason why some cats and dogs actually enjoy a bath.

I have never bathed my cats on a regular basis so they never got used to baths. I only bathed them if they got into something or had something in their coat that I couldn’t clean with a washcloth. They didn’t like it but since they trusted me, they didn’t go into attack mode trying to get away. They just ran out of the bathroom as soon as they could and proceeded to calmly groom themselves out of my reach.

My current cat hates baths but doesn’t mind being in the backyard when it is raining. Please note, I don’t recommend letting a cat outdoors. I have a unique blend of personalities in my pets. My cat only goes in and out with the dogs. My German Shepherd and Blue Heeler keep my cat in sight. I actually saw my cat teach the German Shepherd to catch mice. They took turns playing with it. My Blue Heeler is the guardian of everyone in the household. On the rare occasions the cat leaves the backyard, the Blue Heeler digs out and follows her. I believe that my cat learned from the dogs that rain doesn’t bother them so she doesn’t let it bother her. However, at the first hint of thunder, they all come quickly inside.

Asked to Answer.

Nah. Well, at least not any cat I’ve ever known. I mean, sure, not all of them are huge fans of water, but most of my cats enjoy playing with, and sometimes in, the water.

The second cat I adopted after getting my first apartment, Spenser, was a big ol’ barn cat who would play with his water bowl, flicking water everywhere. I got annoyed one day and, in a fit of pique, took him into the shower with me and thoroughly hosed him down. He loved it. I had created a monster. For years, he would jump into the shower with me and either try and get wet, or at the very least drink from the faucet:

The above image is from our house in CT, back in 2001. The below image is from our house in ME, in 2003

He also liked to stand in bathtubs, and do the same thing - this is from 2009, also in ME:

So, yeah, he had absolutely zero problem with water. In fact (and this is a little embarrassing, but since he’s no longer with us, I don’t think he will care much), my wife had to give him a bath back in 1999 or so because he had gotten into something messy, and he enjoyed the warm water so much that he, ahem, got aroused. So, yeah.

My other cats weren’t quite as into water as this guy, but our current “twins” Smokey and Max hang out by the shower every day, and when I get out, they either hop into the shower and just hang out, or they lick the water off of my ankles when I come out. Cats are aliens, I tell ya.

We also have a ceramic water fountain, which Sam and Smokey love. Smokey will stick his head in the fountain and sometimes bat at the water. Don’t have any pics of that, unfortunately, nor do I have any pics of them and with the shower (for obvious reasons), but suffice it to say that there is absolutely no fear of water from these guys.

Now, my cats are all freaks (like father, like cat), so don’t take my cats for the norm. And I am guessing that there are some cats who are absolutely terrified of water. However, cats are excellent swimmers, so if they absolutely need to deal with water for some reason, I think they could overcome their fear if necessary.

I have had a few Japanese Bobtail kittens and cats since 1989. These.are the “Lucky Cats” you see statuettes of in Asian restaurants; the ones with raised paw. They LOVE water, and have been called “the swimming cat”. They are also hypoallergenic, and very very intelligent. The important thing here is that some breeds of cat are more prone to liking water than others.

Another note:. I foster kittens. They get messy at feeding time and at poopy time. I give them baths. They don't like it the first time because it is a different sensation, but after about the second one they associate baths with massage and feeding. They actually come to love it. If you bathe your kitten, it will grow into a cat that may like baths. It is like starting a kitten on leash training, crate training, riding in a car, etc. None of my cats are afraid of these things( nor the vacuum cleaner) because they were taught associating these things with good times.

So, despite the myth, cats can like water.

PS: Someone else posted a bunch of pictures of cats liking baths. The last photo shows a white and calico Mi'Ke Japanese Bobtail!

According to what I understand, cats are able to see in color. Although, when you have two objects of the same color they might see it as one object. i.e. a blue ball with a blue wall behind it. So anything transparent like cellophanes and water they cannot see? But, they can sense the water by the sounds it makes and they are also fascinated by it as well as scared.

I had a cat who got a clear cellophane wrapper from a popsicle stuck to his tail. He could not see it but, when he moved his tail? He felt it there so he got scared and ran. The second time it happened he got more scared and ran in under the bed. (by this time he was freaked out like some invisible force kept creeping up behind him and tugging at his tail?) by this time he felt it on his tail under the bed he was so terrified he ran down the hallway screaming in terror. Poor thing he was running into the everything panicking so much I literally had to pin him down remove the cellophane wrapper from his tail and calm him down. I thought he would die of a heart attack, no joke. So it’s a creepy kind of scared they feel of water because they cannot see it.

Cats generally don’t like getting all wet and they are meticulous at cleaning themselves and generally do not require bathing like dogs do.

That’s the best answer I can give as a cat lover and owner. I hope it helps.

Cats are composed animals, rarely given to emotional outbursts. Get a cat wet, however, and you are likely to witness a total abandonment of any semblance of composure, with the feline going from docile to a windmill of claws, teeth, and flying fur. cat species native to hot areas seem to enjoy water, whereas cat species from cold areas aren't so fond of the wet stuff. Tigers, lions, jaguars, ocelots, and jaguarundi are all from hot savannas, and they enjoy taking dips in cool, refreshing streams and ponds whenever they get the chance. Many domestic cats don't seem to enjoy water sports. Of course, they may not experience the extreme heat of the African plains, so they have no great impulse to take a dip. Also, no cats enjoy water used against them in an antagonistic manner or getting water in their eyes or ears. Being sprayed or squirted with water isn't fun, nor is being forced into a bath. Cats much prefer to meet new situations on their own terms. Some house cats enjoy stepping into a shower or playing with a dripping faucet. The tolerance for water varies from cat to cat and may depend on the cat's previous experience. When people regularly enter their cats in cat shows, the cats must be bathed frequently, and those cats do get accustomed to the procedure. Show cats are often raised for the profession and get used to baths as kittens.

This article: Do cats really hate water? suggests that cats dislike water when they are not accustomed to it. It is an unfamiliar element.

1) Cats don't need to wash themselves in water because they groom themselves just fine.

2) A drop of unclean water in their ears can lead to a nasty ear infection.

3) Humans have sheltered domestic cats from rain for millenia, which resulted in cats developing an aversion towards rain.

4) Big cats like lions and leopards avoid getting into water because, where they live, they are likely to encounter a crocodile in there or something similar.

5) However, cats, both domestic and wild, that live in the regions where it's hot and they can afford a safe swim, will get into water to cool themselves down; one domestic breed, a Turkish van, is known to enjoy baths for exactly this reason, and photos/videos of swimming tigers are quite common.

Some cats love water. I have had several cats that liked to sit on the edge of the tub while I showered, reaching out to play with the water as it fell. Two of my cats would only drink from the sink, one directly from the tap and the other by licking the bottom of the sink while the water dripped on top of her head. And one of them, Tombob, would actually jump into the tub and swim around when I tried to fill it to take a bath. He only did it once, but he seemed to be having a good time until I pulled him out.

My beautiful Mikki, was an exception to cats hating water. He loved splashing in puddles. He used to come home covered in mud. He enjoyed getting washed up under warm water to get the mud off of him. Mikki was adventurous but in the end, at just over a year old, his adventurousness turned out to be the end of him. He was hit by a car, and it so completely destroyed me, that I wanted to die. You see, every woman I have known in my life has let me down. Apart from my dog Max who died over 20 years ago, I’d never known true reciprocal love until my darling Mikki. Watch this. Move from side to side. I have a big copy with a different background in front of me. Mikki’s eyes will follow you. Mikki, my darling, I will always love you. True love is forever.

You can’t get that from a human.

Cats have three kinds of fur, long straight "guard" hairs, intermediate "awn" hairs, and a fluffy "down" undercoat. The fluffy undercoat keeps the cat cool in hot weather and warm in cold weather.

Getting the the fluffy undercoat wet is like walking around wrapped in a wet wool blanket. It's not pleasant. If it is really hot and dry outside evaporation will keep the cat cool while the undercoat dries. But it still is not fun for a cat to be soaking wet.

Swimming cats like the Turkish Van don't have a down undercoat. And Maine Coons have a light undercoat.

If you feed the cat wet food it might not need to drink water at all. But if you feed it dry food it has to get it's water from somewhere. Cats prefer fresh running water because it is safer to drink than water that has been sitting out. That is why cats like to drink from a fountain or a faucet.

Some cats are inclined to catch flying things, some cats are inclined to catch crawling things, and some cats are inclined to "fish", They like to sit by the water and try to snag things out with their paws.

Try this.

Poke your finger (gently) into the side of the cat, as deep into the coat as you can. Note how much finger disappears. Double this amount. That’s all fur.

Put the same finger in front of the cat and measure how wide it is. Subtract the amount that’s fur. You’ll probably find that you don’t have nearly as much actual cat as you thought.

Basically, cats are very small, because half of their apparent volume is fur. When it gets wet, it’s not just cold, or unpleasant, it’s really heavy. It stops them running, jumping, or dodging. They pick every speck of dirt and mud they come across, and end up, in a natural enviroment, covered in dirt, leaves, insects, and so on.

In the wild, that could very easily kill them. They might catch cold, be unable to run away, and so on. So when a cat gets wet, they often panic. They run, they hide, they’re miserable. Even if they have somewhere to hide, they’ll be wet for hours, and when they dry, they’ll still be dirty, and their fur will be everywhere.

Some cats will voluntarily get wet, if the stakes are high enough, and they’re sure they have somewhere safe to get dry afterwards. Some even like swimming. But in general it’s really unpleasant for them, because they’re effectively a very skinny creature with huge sponges strapped to them.

I know most cats don’t particularly care for getting wet but one of mine loooooooves being in water. We have to lock her out of the bathroom when we shower or she’ll be in there with us (in the shower, not just the bathroom), and we have to keep the toilet lid down or she’ll climb in there and splash around. She’s even a nuisance when we brush our teeth, trying to catch the water on her paws when we turn it on, or if we have an open glass of water someplace that she can get to it. It’s actually kind of interesting because we’ve never deliberately put her in water BUT she was a rescue — found when she was only 2–3 weeks old, sitting and crying in the middle of a deep puddle during a heavy thunderstorm.

I’ve always wondered whether her mother accidentally left/lost her there (this is most likely, I think) and she maybe just got used to the water?? or, given her current love of water, if she wandered into the water herself just because she liked it and then her mother was either unable to find her or unwilling to go into the water to get her. (The lady who found her did stay nearby for quite a while watching for a potential mother but never saw any other cats whatsoever.) Crazy stuff either way, but it’s made for a very interesting and hilarious kitty friend, so I’m not complaining. :-)

PS My mom has told all my life about a cat she had when she was young who would also try to get in the shower with her, so it’s evidently not just mine. I guess some are just exceptions to the rule.