And do you not know that there is a reason cats dislike water?

It goes along with our role in folk culture and faerie as proponents of darkness and evil.
It is perhaps no coincidence that Master Tolkien had a hearty and outspoken dislike of cats and, at the same time, liked to used water in his tales to symbolize goodness. The two go hand in hand, at least from my perspective.
Tevildo, Prince of Cats