The very first time I took Cloud to the vet for her Hi We Are Adopting This Cat checkup, I let the vet know that she was my First Cat and he gave me Useful Tips for First Cat Person, including "Cats are very clean. If she stays healthy you should never have to put her in water. Don't even try. Cats and water are hell on earth."

Dry Cloud-fur definitely has a smell, but it's sort of a very clean, pleasant smell and I pretty much can't detect it unless I put my face up in her fur (since I don't have a particularly acute sense of smell). It reminds me of dry grass for some reason.