Bath Time

For weeks we have been saying that Coco needs a bath...badly. Yes, his breath stinks and it doesn't help that he licks himself in order to get clean and then smells like his foul breath, but his body odor went beyond that--not strong, just unpleasant when he got up in your face. For weeks, we kept putting it off. Until last night.

Let me backtrack first. The first time we ever gave Coco a bath, he sat down in the sink and quietly tolerated it. But this is the same cat that will jump into your warm bath water provided it's just water and not stinky bubbles and stuff. Coco is very docile. However, the last two times we bathed the kitties, we bathed Timmy first. Timmy does not like baths. Timmy howls and moans and tries to escape, and an unwitting passerby who heard him would think we were abusing him by the way he carries on. As a result, Coco was spooked and also put up a fight. So, we had to rethink this strategy.

Yesterday, after our guests left, both cats were asleep on the couch. And, as is typical in his old age, Timmy drooled all over the cushion. The wet spot was about the size of a quarter. When he realized this (I don't know if he woke up completely) he started licking the couch to clean it. We watched him, amused, because he seemed to be sleep-licking. Then we went back to watching TV, and when we looked back, Timmy was still licking the couch, and by now the wet spot was the size of a softball! Gross! He was just in a licking kind of mood. And eventually, he moved over to Coco and started licking the sleeping cat. It was at this point that we decided the baths were in store because while Coco has bad breath, Timmy's breath is horrid, and poor Coco would smell like Timmy's bad breath on top of his already unpleasant BO.

Coco did pretty well. I'll tell you that there is nothing quite as funny as a cat who is soaking wet. And their little rat tails (so fluffy when they're dry) hold so much water! I'm the designated holder while Eli is the designated washer/rinser. We both got equally wet trying to keep the cat in the sink. At one point he jumped up and clawed desperately at Eli's shirt. We were laughing so hard it was difficult to unhook his claws. There was this look of utter desperation in his eyes.

Then Timmy got his bath. Thankfully, Timmy is not as agile as Coco, and he also doesn't have front claws. He's much easier to keep in the sink, though he did try to make a run for it a couple of times. Mostly, he just howls and meows and extends his limbs as taut as he can, as if he were stiff-legged. We got even wetter.

I wish I had a camera, because they are so funny looking. But mostly, I wish I could keep that image of a freshly-bathed, fluffy kitty for a little longer. Later in the evening, Timmy, mostly dry, jumped up to sit with me on the couch, which is highly unusual since Eli is his favorite (and he doesn't try to hide it). I think he was snubbing Eli because Eli was the one who sprayed him. Haha. (Coco didn't care. He curled up on Eli's lap about 30 minutes after...such a forgiving heart). And I'm happy to report that Timmy is white again (for now), and Coco doesn't stink (as bad).