Was this cruel?
We had a comment that said “putting the kitten in for a swim might have been mean - just to take a picture”. I say that it’s a long held belief that cats don’t like the water.
kitty paddle
I had a ginger tom that often came back very wet and given his nature it was not difficult to believe he may have been chasing a creature that tried to swim away and he went right on chasing. He was a feisty trier. Siamese owners tell me that their cats swim from time to time – who knows? I even heard of a siamese who came in for a jacuzzi in the ample embrace of her new mum. She grew out of it when she was old enough to talk to the other cats.
I see intensity in the eyes of the kitten – not panic. It does not hurt to swim and a lesson or two that it’s safe could only increase the confidence in a kitten.
That’s what I thought anyway. I think it’s alright to let cats in to our lives. I’ve never had a cat in a box in the car – they are always fine cuddling up and trusting the protection of the grown ups.
Cats detest smelling of soap and stuff so they despise baths but I’ve had many a kitten join me in my bath, if it doesn’t smell disgusting to them. Bubble baths were shunned – kittys didn’t even walk the edge or pop up to say hello.
Buffy was apparently fearless and walked over my part submerged tummy. He got got a bit prickly with his pins at first so I told him it was not on with a mild reaction. He learned that claws out meant sinking up to his knees. He soon caught on because I was fully focussed on him supporting him every inch in his tiny life adventure.
My view is that cats eyes are extremely expressive – famous for it. They show fear very well and this one didn’t seem intent on anything but swimming to the edge.
Any more stories of water loving cats?
PS Here’s the picture Kasia sent – she’s too shy to leave a comment.
from the Innocent English Site
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By the way – the ginger tom was called that – Tom. He used to go out in the rain – ears back, narrowed eyes, he slunk out on his quest. His fur was very thick so it was water resistant. He was a grown up cat that kindly tolerated being picked up. He didn’t like going near the butler sink in the kitchen where he had been for a wash once to get rid of a lot of mud.
So yes, Tom was likely a swimming cat.
Just working out where to post the pic Kasia sent me – it’s a pic of a kitten and mummy using the sink (a nice round one) as a nest. No tap would be turned on this one.