Actually, not all cats dislike water. An example is the Turkish Van cat, which is native to Lake Van in Eastern Turkey. This species, on the contrary, likes water and the cats swim in the water to their great pleasure.
The fact that many domestic cats are afraid of water is probably related to heat and cold. A cat’s fur is rather dry. It therefore becomes soaked in a short time and thereby loses its insulating ability. However, this does not pose any major problems for cats living in warm climates. But cats in colder parts of the world may not like losing their body heat in this way.
And it can’t be seen better than the closer to the equator, the more comfortable the cats are with water.
Domestic cats are descended from many wild species. Descendants of the European wildcat, which lives in temperate climates, have inherited its fear of water.
This also applies if they later migrated to warmer areas. Most of the cats we see in our homes are descendants of the European wild cat, and they are therefore averse to bathing.
Other types of domestic cats, descended from the Nubian wildcat and thus native to the desert regions of North Africa, do not suffer from any fear of water.
Education also has a lot to say in this regard. Thus, show cats have to accept frequent bathing. If they got used to it right away as kittens, they have nothing against it.