My Cat Is Electric

[lookitsria]

Hello!

I got my kitty Sasha about a month ago. She is 7 months old. To make it a bit easier to contain cat hair and everything, I have covered my couch with sheets - plain old bed sheets. Lately, I have noticed an increase in static electricity which means we shock each other often when I try to pet her. I tried using dryer sheets when washing and drying the sheets and they worked the first time but not so much the second. Does this happen to anyone else? Any suggestions?

 

[Yanaka]

Hahaha someone else has this issue! My kitties are always static since winter started, mainly with more comfy sheets such as fleece. I feel bad for them. I'd appreciate tips as well!

 

[bodester413]

It happens in my house too when the furnace is always running in the winter. The air gets super dry. Using a humidifier helps. It doesn't completely stop it, but it definitely helps when the air has more moisture in it.

 

[PushPurrCatPaws]

Yeah, it helps to increase the moisture in the air. If you don't want to get a humidifier, what I sometimes do is put a pan on the stove with water in it, and boil it for a while (make sure you don't forget that it is boiling on the stovetop!). That helps increase the moisture a bit. I often put a sprig of rosemary in the water too, as I like the smell of rosemary.

What also might help is that when you are drying your blankets and sheets, take out the blankets/sheets a bit before you think they are "done" --- wouldn't hurt to air dry them a little at the end. It's the pummeling around in the dryer that builds up the static electricty and if they are just tumbling around in there when they are pretty much already dry, you are just making more static.

 

[Ardina]

I've also found that a humidifier helps. The other thing I try to do is make sure to ground myself on anything metal. When I pet my cats, I also try to touch them somewhere on their back first to dissipate the charge before going towards the face so at least they won't get zapped on the nose.

 

[PushPurrCatPaws]

You can also try to pet the cat with hands slightly dampened with water... but most cats won't really like the feel of that.