Drying your Persian Cat
Tips on How to Dry a Cat after a Bath- Blowing a Cat Dry with a Dryer
Once you have your Persian bathed, it is time to remove them from the kitchen sink and start the drying process. Rather than rubbing, it is better to squeeze the excess water from the coat and to pat the coat somewhat dry with a towel. We start by drying the cat's face with the towel first. I pay special attention to their ears and the crevices under their eyes. Most cats love this part of the bath.
For drying, we have found that unless you have "professional grooming space" it is easiest to dry your Persian in a bathroom so that you can close the door. Bear in mind that this bathroom may end up looking like a war zone before you're done, especially the first few times you attempt to dry your Persian. I take a towel and lay it over my lap while I am sitting on the floor. I put the cat in my lap while the cat is still wrapped in the towel, I turn the blow dryer on and lay it on the floor to develop a warmer temperature and to get the cat accustom to the sound. Please note, the human blow dryer is sufficient, but there a couple of things to consider, firstly the air pressure isn't very strong so drying your Persian cat will take some time. Secondly, the human blow dryer will get very, very hot. The air coming out of the blow dryer will need to be periodically cooled by hitting the cool shot button every few seconds. You can easily burn your cats skin and dry them out (causing your cat's skin to produce more oil and grease).
I start to slowly remove the towel from the cat, but not too far, just up to the front shoulders. I start to dry the cat slowly, still allowing them to become accustom to the pressure and noise. As you dry your Persian, slowly continue to remove more of the towel until the cat is completely exposed. The hardest part of your Persian cat to dry is the underside. Once the coat is dried or nearly dry you can start to comb the coat.
Once your cat is dry, you can now face the fun job of cleaning up the messes in the bathroom and kitchen! With practice and routine, your Persian will eventually become easier and easier to groom.
One last very important item to note, especially for contact lens wearers. This is the best time to wear goggles or eye protection since the baby fine hairs from the undercoat will start to fly from the air pressure and eventually end up in your eyes.