Inkie and Tic Tac have never had a bath. It’s something we didn’t think about until we saw an old photo of Scoop vigorously resisting being soaped up.

Seeing it hit me how dramatically life has changed for cats and their people.

Not so long ago, bathing a cat was common in Malaysia, and for very good reasons.

Back in 1996, we moved into a lovely little house in Kuching, Sarawak. Our home overlooked a wildly overgrown field. Slatted windows and door grills invited a steady breeze to keep us cool.

Shortly after we arrived, Scoop moved in. He just pitched up and decided we were his forever family.

As we couldn’t prevent him from sliding into our home, we agreed. Scoop was so grateful that he brought us a live rat, fresh from the field, personally delivered at 5am.

When we screamed, our clever boy got the message. The next rat, also delivered at 5am, was dead.

That’s when it dawned upon us that living with cats in Malaysia would be an adventure.

Scoop learned to leave his gifts downstairs on the doormat but we worried about dirt and bugs.

Scoop cleaned himself well and we could help with the odd extra wipe with a damp cloth, but that would not prevent fleas.

Fleas can carry diseases and parasites. They will bite humans but they much prefer cats.

Because of climate differences, the cats I’d grown up with in Europe didn’t have fleas.

But one look at those dead rats from the wild field and I knew our new home would be different.

Guido after falling into the storm drain. — Photos: ELLEN WHYTE

Checking for fleas

With our vet’s help, we invested in a flea comb and collar. We also checked Scoop daily, which he enjoyed as it involved a lot of petting.

Despite this, we had occasional infestations. Managing those meant breaking out the anti-flea soap. Scoop loathed it. But it worked.

Around 1998, all that changed. On a business trip to Australia, Tom found a medicine for pet flea and tick control. Just one drop in the back of the neck and all the fleas would be gone, it promised.

The products were popularised in Australia in 1993, but as Internet services were still limited, we’d never heard of it. It didn’t just kill adult fleas, it disrupted the whole flea life cycle.

The idea of using a chemical product on a kitty didn’t sit well with us, but our vet said it had passed safety tests and that diseases from fleas were commonplace.

As a bonus, it also treated worms, another common health hazard for cats. A monthly drop meant we could junk the monthly worming tablet, another event that Scoop objected to.

Finally, no soap meant better fur and less trauma.

As for Scoop, he was okay with the treatment, especially when it was followed by treats.

We waited and to our joy, we were flea- and worm-free all year round. It was a miracle!

Au looking horrified but not struggling during a bath after a fall into the storm drain.   

Soap up and rinse

Sadly, the baths were not eliminated and this was entirely the cats’ fault.

Cats are apex predators, swift in body and claw. Well, Scoop, and his subsequent friends Bones, Au, Target, Guido and Swooner all ended up falling into the storm drain at one time or another.

When they did, they would come straight home, complaining bitterly and demanding help.

Storm drain muck is greenish black, amazingly stinky and super sticky.

To get rid of it, you need to soap up, rinse and repeat.

Those baths were traumatic but the cats offered only a token meow of protest. Soap and water were infinitely preferable to a tongue bath.

Seeing our old photos, we realised how much life has changed. It’s not just the science, our cats’ lives are different too.

When Tic Tac arrived, she had fleas but a kitten version treatment took care of that. She was our first cat to be entirely indoors in Malaysia. Inkie, who came alone next was born indoors and was a super well-maintained boy.

Target was our last boy with outside privileges. He hasn’t fallen into the drain in years, so hasn’t had a bath in a decade.

Neither Tic Tac nor Inkie has had the opportunity to fall into a storm drain. They had treatments because they played on the roof, encountering mice, other cats and eventually a monkey.

But now that we’re in Britain, life is different again. British homes are sealed tight so they hold the warmth.

All the cats are indoor pets, except for Tic Tac, who enjoys garden adventures.

We have a quarterly worm treatment, but we don’t worry about fleas. There are farms nearby, but fleas are uncommon. Also, as we pet Tic Tac constantly, we’d know instantly.

Most likely, Inkie and Tic Tac will be bath-free for life. And as bathing a cat is an extreme sport, I’m grateful we can all put down the towel.