Hot Cats

Hi,

When it's a hot day, in the upper 80s/lower 90s what is the best way to
cool off your cats. My house is not air conditioned but I do have a fan.
Is it okay to wipe them down with a damp wash cloth? Spray them with a
mister? I know they won't be happy about it at first but will it help them
after that?

Thanks,

Stacey

--

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"It's all about the wood."

"Stacey Weinberger" wrote in message
m...
Hi,

When it's a hot day, in the upper 80s/lower 90s what is the best way to
cool off your cats. My house is not air conditioned but I do have a fan.
Is it okay to wipe them down with a damp wash cloth? Spray them with a
mister? I know they won't be happy about it at first but will it help
them after that?

Is that the temperature outside or the temperature inside your house? Are
they laying about in distress and panting? Do they have a cool place to lie
(tile floor, bathtub) and plenty of cold water to drink?
If you are uncomfortably hot, your cats probably feel worse, so get some
A/C. Wetting them is probably not a good idea. A wet cat has a tougher time
cooling down than a dry cat. The wet coat holds the hair against the skin
and prevents air flow.

Hi,

When it's a hot day, in the upper 80s/lower 90s what is the best way to
cool off your cats. My house is not air conditioned but I do have a fan.
Is it okay to wipe them down with a damp wash cloth? Spray them with a
mister? I know they won't be happy about it at first but will it help
them after that?

Is that the temperature outside or the temperature inside your house? Are
they laying about in distress and panting? Do they have a cool place to
lie (tile floor, bathtub) and plenty of cold water to drink?
If you are uncomfortably hot, your cats probably feel worse, so get some
A/C. Wetting them is probably not a good idea. A wet cat has a tougher
time cooling down than a dry cat. The wet coat holds the hair against the
skin and prevents air flow.

That's the temp outside. They aren't lying in distress or panting. They
are on the floor spread out looking hot especially Snowball who is part
Himmy. I looked into AC ($500 plus) and can't afford it or the high bills.
Plus I don't want to leave it on while I'm at work. It gets hot in the
latter part of the day until the sun sets over the trees. There are just
three days at a time when it is really hot then the marine layer kicks in.
It's cooler downstairs during the day but they don't think to go there. Yes
there is a bathtub and sink but no tile floor.

"Stacey Weinberger" wrote in message
m...
Hi,

When it's a hot day, in the upper 80s/lower 90s what is the best way to
cool off your cats. My house is not air conditioned but I do have a
fan. Is it okay to wipe them down with a damp wash cloth? Spray them
with a mister? I know they won't be happy about it at first but will it
help them after that?

Is that the temperature outside or the temperature inside your house? Are
they laying about in distress and panting? Do they have a cool place to
lie (tile floor, bathtub) and plenty of cold water to drink?
If you are uncomfortably hot, your cats probably feel worse, so get some
A/C. Wetting them is probably not a good idea. A wet cat has a tougher
time cooling down than a dry cat. The wet coat holds the hair against the
skin and prevents air flow.

That's the temp outside. They aren't lying in distress or panting. They
are on the floor spread out looking hot especially Snowball who is part
Himmy. I looked into AC ($500 plus) and can't afford it or the high
bills.

Small room AC units cost a lot less than $500.00 bucks. The newer ones have
thermostats that you can set so ...

Plus I don't want to leave it on while I'm at work.

you can leave it on and it only kicks in when the room reaches a certain
temperature.


It gets hot in the latter part of the day until the sun sets over the
trees. There are just three days at a time when it is really hot then the
marine layer kicks in.


Never heard of a marine layer, I just know that I could never live without
AC, and wouldn't force my cats to , even if I had to eat mac-n-cheese all
summer!


It's cooler downstairs during the day but they don't think to go there.

Then they must be fine where they are?


there is a bathtub and sink but no tile floor.

Hi,

When it's a hot day, in the upper 80s/lower 90s what is the best way
to cool off your cats. My house is not air conditioned but I do have a
fan. Is it okay to wipe them down with a damp wash cloth? Spray them
with a mister? I know they won't be happy about it at first but will
it help them after that?

Is that the temperature outside or the temperature inside your house?
Are they laying about in distress and panting? Do they have a cool
place to lie (tile floor, bathtub) and plenty of cold water to drink?
If you are uncomfortably hot, your cats probably feel worse, so get some
A/C. Wetting them is probably not a good idea. A wet cat has a tougher
time cooling down than a dry cat. The wet coat holds the hair against
the skin and prevents air flow.

That's the temp outside. They aren't lying in distress or panting. They
are on the floor spread out looking hot especially Snowball who is part
Himmy. I looked into AC ($500 plus) and can't afford it or the high
bills.

Small room AC units cost a lot less than $500.00 bucks. The newer ones
have thermostats that you can set so ...

Plus I don't want to leave it on while I'm at work.

you can leave it on and it only kicks in when the room reaches a certain
temperature.


It gets hot in the latter part of the day until the sun sets over the
trees. There are just three days at a time when it is really hot then the
marine layer kicks in.


Never heard of a marine layer, I just know that I could never live without
AC, and wouldn't force my cats to , even if I had to eat mac-n-cheese all
summer!


It's cooler downstairs during the day but they don't think to go there.

Then they must be fine where they are?

They probably are but I just worry about them sometimes! They just "look"
hot. I didn't know AC did that, but I never grew up with it and never lived
in a house or an apt. with it. I'm about at the mac and cheese stage as it
is! I live in the San Francisco bay area. The marine layer is the coolness
from the ocean and the fog coming back in. Heat waves never really last
more than three days. The boys do eat well though (a little plug for
myself!). They both have health issues. Sebastian has FLUTD under control
and Snowball can't have any grain or vegetable matter. They are both on
Wysong Au Jus with Feline Instincts TC for the supplements and a little
water added (Sebastian's surgeon is the one who recommended doing this to
keep him diluted). This diet (found through either the IBD list or the
FLUTD list, I forget) works for both of them. I adopted a semi feral cat
Moon (after getting dumped by owners twice) who get canned Wellness
supplemented with California Natural dry. Her furs are very soft on this
diet. Her previous owner just fed her IAMS dry.

"Stacey Weinberger" wrote in message
m...
Hi,

When it's a hot day, in the upper 80s/lower 90s what is the best way
to cool off your cats. My house is not air conditioned but I do have
a fan. Is it okay to wipe them down with a damp wash cloth? Spray
them with a mister? I know they won't be happy about it at first but
will it help them after that?

Is that the temperature outside or the temperature inside your house?
Are they laying about in distress and panting? Do they have a cool
place to lie (tile floor, bathtub) and plenty of cold water to drink?
If you are uncomfortably hot, your cats probably feel worse, so get
some A/C. Wetting them is probably not a good idea. A wet cat has a
tougher time cooling down than a dry cat. The wet coat holds the hair
against the skin and prevents air flow.

That's the temp outside. They aren't lying in distress or panting.
They are on the floor spread out looking hot especially Snowball who is
part Himmy. I looked into AC ($500 plus) and can't afford it or the
high bills.

Small room AC units cost a lot less than $500.00 bucks. The newer ones
have thermostats that you can set so ...

Plus I don't want to leave it on while I'm at work.

you can leave it on and it only kicks in when the room reaches a certain
temperature.


It gets hot in the latter part of the day until the sun sets over the
trees. There are just three days at a time when it is really hot then
the marine layer kicks in.


Never heard of a marine layer, I just know that I could never live
without AC, and wouldn't force my cats to , even if I had to eat
mac-n-cheese all summer!


It's cooler downstairs during the day but they don't think to go there.

Then they must be fine where they are?

They probably are but I just worry about them sometimes! They just "look"
hot. I didn't know AC did that, but I never grew up with it and never
lived in a house or an apt. with it. I'm about at the mac and cheese
stage as it is! I live in the San Francisco bay area. The marine layer
is the coolness from the ocean and the fog coming back in. Heat waves
never really last more than three days. The boys do eat well though (a
little plug for myself!). They both have health issues. Sebastian has
FLUTD under control and Snowball can't have any grain or vegetable matter.
They are both on Wysong Au Jus with Feline Instincts TC for the
supplements and a little water added (Sebastian's surgeon is the one who
recommended doing this to keep him diluted). This diet (found through
either the IBD list or the FLUTD list, I forget) works for both of them.
I adopted a semi feral cat Moon (after getting dumped by owners twice)
who get canned Wellness supplemented with California Natural dry. Her
furs are very soft on this diet. Her previous owner just fed her IAMS
dry.

Getting them to drink enough water is important, but can be difficult. I
have a cat that is prone to FLUTD (had PU surgery in June) , so I constantly
change the water in the dishes and fill the sinks and let the taps drip in
the bathtubs, anything to get them to drink!

"Stacey Weinberger" wrote

When it's a hot day, in the upper 80s/lower 90s what is the best way to
cool off your cats. My house is not air conditioned but I do have a fan.
Is it okay to wipe them down with a damp wash cloth? Spray them with a
mister? I know they won't be happy about it at first but will it help
them after that?

Stacy, get a few fans and set them so they make a gentle breeze bouncing off
a wall and back to where they may lay.

"dejablues" wrote in message
...

"Stacey Weinberger" wrote in message
m...
Hi,

When it's a hot day, in the upper 80s/lower 90s what is the best way to
cool off your cats. My house is not air conditioned but I do have a fan.
Is it okay to wipe them down with a damp wash cloth? Spray them with a
mister? I know they won't be happy about it at first but will it help
them after that?

Is that the temperature outside or the temperature inside your house? Are
they laying about in distress and panting? Do they have a cool place to
lie (tile floor, bathtub) and plenty of cold water to drink?
If you are uncomfortably hot, your cats probably feel worse, so get some
A/C. Wetting them is probably not a good idea. A wet cat has a tougher
time cooling down than a dry cat. The wet coat holds the hair against the
skin and prevents air flow.

It depends how dry the air is. Try taking a swim in the pool in Vegas during
the summer and getting out -- the fact you dry out quickly is because of
evaporation which removes heat and keeps you cool a fact of physics that
works for felines as well. That's why Tigers like to swim!

"Stacey Weinberger" wrote in message
m...
Hi,

When it's a hot day, in the upper 80s/lower 90s what is the best way to
cool off your cats. My house is not air conditioned but I do have a fan.
Is it okay to wipe them down with a damp wash cloth? Spray them with a
mister? I know they won't be happy about it at first but will it help
them after that?

Thanks,

Stacey

Cats evolved in the desert, so they are probably more able to cope with the
heat than you are. If you don't have A/C, they have should have already
shedded their winter coat and are prepared for the hot weather. Their hair
grows in two layers, undercoat and overcoat (even short-haired cats have an
"undercoat"), and it is able to insulate from both heat and cold. I
wouldn't wet them down, that would counteract the insulating properties of
their coats. Unless they are in distress (panting and lethargic), I'd say
they are probably just fine. They won't be as active in the heat, and they
usually eat less because of that.

Needless to say, always have fresh water available for them to drink -
putting an ice cube in their water bowl is often appreciated and will get
them to drink more. Also, since cats evolved in the desert, they are
"oportunistic" drinkers - they drink some water whenever they find a new
"watering hole". Because of that, I've found that, if I move my cats' water
bowls around to different spots, they drink more water than if their bowls
remain in the same spot. Also, I have a Drinkwell Fountain for them since a
few of mine like to drink from running water sources.

Hugs,

CatNipped



--

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"It's all about the wood."

"CatNipped" wrote:


Cats evolved in the desert, so they are probably more able to cope with the
heat than you are. If you don't have A/C, they have should have already
shedded their winter coat and are prepared for the hot weather. Their hair
grows in two layers, undercoat and overcoat (even short-haired cats have an
"undercoat"), and it is able to insulate from both heat and cold.


From a Discovery Channel documentary on cats many years ago, I recall
they they have very high tolerance for heat. There was footage of a
cat snoozing comfortably above a blacksmith's forge at a distance that
seemed like it should have fried him.