Are Cats Really Afraid of the Water?

Ever wonder why your cat watches in disgust from the windowsill while your dog belly-flops into the nearest puddle? 

In this episode, we answer a question from Blake in Tulsa, Oklahoma, who noticed his cats want nothing to do with water while his dog treats every sprinkler like a water park. 

We trace thousands of years of animal history — from the sun-baked deserts where domestic cats first evolved, to the icy waters that shaped swimming dogs like the Newfoundland — to explain why your pets feel so differently about water. Fun, fascinating, and packed with surprises, this one is for every pet lover who's ever been curious about their furry friends.

Transcript: Are Cats Really Afraid of the Water?

Hey there, Curious Minds. I'm your host Marissa here to welcome you to another episode of I Wonder, the show where we explore the questions you've been wondering about. We dug up a new question for you from Blake from Tulsa, Oklahoma. Blake wrote, "It's always so hard for me to get my cats, George and Nala, to take a bath. But when I walk my dog Wally, he runs through the sprinklers and rolls in the wet grass". Blake asks, "Why are my cats afraid of water? And how come my dogs like it?" Blake, you have a question and we fetched you an answer. So let's dive right in.

First, we need to look into the history of our feline and canine friends long before they were sleeping on our couches. Most of our modern domestic cats are descendants of wild cats that lived in Western Asia and the Middle East. We're talking about dry, hot areas like the deserts of Egypt, Turkey, and Iran. In a desert, there aren't exactly many lakes or giant rivers to go swimming in. Because their ancestors didn't grow up around water, cats never really learned how to deal with it. o a cat, water is a strange, unpredictable substance. But don't worry, your cat won't lose all nine lives if it falls into your pool. Cats can actually swim, but they'll only do it for survival or if they absolutely have to. Other than that, they really, really don't want to be near water. You may be wondering, but my cat's not crossing the Mississippi. It's just a bathtub. I'm with them. Why do they still hate it? There's also a very practical reason for their hatred of the bathtub.

Their fur. The cat's coat is like a high-tech multi-layered winter jacket. It's designed to keep them warm and protect their skin. However, when the fur gets soaked, it becomes incredibly heavy. It's like the feeling of wearing soaking wet socks, only over your entire body. Other than being uncomfortable, it also affects their movements. Imagine trying to run a race while wearing a giant soaking wet wool sweater that weighs twice as much as you do. For a cat, which relies on being fast and agile to catch prey or escape danger, being weighed down by water feels like a major safety risk. Plus, a cat's spurt takes a long time to dry. Being wet and cold makes them feel vulnerable and uncomfortable, and if there is one thing cats hate, it's not being in total control of their environment.

Then there is the issue of the smell. Cats are obsessive cleaners and they spend about half their waking hours grooming themselves to make sure they smell just right. They don't just lick themselves for hygene, they also clean themselves to maintain their scent signature or signature scent. When humans wash a cat, it affects things like the level of sebum on their fur. Sebum is a natural oil that helps protect the cat's undercoat, making it a little more water resistant. On top of this, sebum helps the cat communicate with others. When cats rub up on you or other objects, they aren't just being cute. They're marking their territory. When they rub or even scratch, they're leaving little oils that say, this is mine. When humans give them baths, all of that is washed away. They lose that extra layer of waterproofing, they have trouble communicating with other cats, and they just don't feel like themselves. Cats are happy with the way they smell and aren't looking to try a new perfume anytime soon.

Now that we understand our cat's point of view, let's figure out why WALL-E treats the front lawn like a personal water park. First, we need to look at our dog species. While not all dogs like water, some were bred for it. Certain breeds, such as the poodle, the golden retriever, and the Spanish water dog, and many others, were actually bred to help fishermen bring in their caches and their fishing nets. A fun fact about the poodle. The name actually comes from the German word poodle, which means to splash. Other dogs, such as the Newfoundland, were bred by the British in Newfoundland, Canada for water rescue. They actually have little webbed feet embedded in their paws that help them swim. All these dogs look so different though.

How can they all be bred for water? This is because of two factors called adaptation and selective breeding. Adaptation is how an animal changes to fit its environment or its job. For example, the Newfoundland needed to stay warm while performing rescues in those icy waters off the coast of Canada. So it adapted an extra layer of fur called a double coat. This makes the dog water resistant and keeps it warm against the cold. The poodle, however, didn't need to stay as much warm as it needed to be fast and buoyant. This is where hydrodynamics comes in. And that's a fancy word for how objects move through liquids. The poodle has a single coat to make it agile and hydrodynamic, meaning that water doesn't weigh it down as much. Their thick, curly hair also traps tiny pockets of air, acting like a natural life jacket. So when they dive for a net or a fish, they can quickly return to the surface. Seeing that the curlier hair for poodles or the thicker fur for the Newfoundland was successful, humans used selective breeding to make sure these exceptional qualities were passed down to every puppy in the breed. So, now we know about water dogs.

But what about non-water dogs? Some non-water dogs actually love water, while others will try to avoid it. Dogs like the Great Dane, while not bred for water, actually enjoys playing in it. Other dogs, however, such as the pug, might try to enjoy large puddles, but they're actually terrible swimmers. Due to their front heavy build and flat faces, they can sink like a stone. Not a great combination. Other bigger, more athletic dogs, such as the boxer, also often dislike water because their flat faces make it hard for them to breathe comfortably while swimming. For those of you at home who find that your golden retriever runs from water, or your cat got bored and swam to the buoy and back, you might be wondering, well, why is my pet the exception?

That comes down to one simple answer. They're personalities, of course. Just like you and me, our pets have personalities that sometimes go against their nature. The reason why humans feel such a rush when they go on a roller coaster or skydiving is called adrenaline. Usually adrenaline is supposed to tell your body to stop doing something scary. But we do it anyway because it's fun. Dogs are the same way. If you go online, there are plenty of videos of cats getting in the ocean for a nice swim, just like there are videos of dogs who won't dip a paw in the pool. So while most dogs like water, and most cats don't, sometimes there are exceptions. So the next time you see a dog belly flop into a lake while your cat watches safely from the windowsill, you're seeing thousands of years of history in action. One is a desert-dwelling master of staying dry, and the other is a high-tech swimming machine designed for the high seas.

Thanks again to Blake for such a great question. And remember, if you have a question you're curious about, submit it on our website, IWonderPodcast.com, and we might just feature it in the next episode of I Wonder. Until next time, stay curious and keep wondering.