Why house cats hate water while wildcats love water?

I think you're confusing the term "feral" with the term "wild". Wild refers to a wild species. Feral refers to a domestic species animal that has reverted to wild behavior.

It's an interesting question. Off the top of my head, I think many wild cats would dabble in water, maybe wade in a little and possibly fish. The only wild species I can think of that actually gets completely into the water is tigers. Then again, Tigers come from a rather hot climate with plenty of water in the jungle to cool off in. Among domestic cats, The Maine Coon is reputed to "wash" their food. I've heard some Main Coon owners tell how their cat will drop food in their water dish and then fish it out. It's this trait (and others) that caused early New Englanders to think the breed was the result of cats cross breeding with racoons. We now know that's not possible, but the name stuck anyway. Then there's the Turkish Angora, which is also known as the "swimming cat" because they do actually swim. And then there's a few oddball individuals. My mixed breed Chelsie will sometimes lap water from her bowl, and other times dip her paw in the water and lick it off (and then walk on my bed with her wet feet). And then there's a mixed breed calico who likes swiming in the back yard pool so much that her owner made scuba gear for her. She was in a TV comercial and also on a program on Animal Planet (Cats 101?). I CAN tell you from personal experience that most domestic cats do not care for baths! But show cats that have been bathed frequently from an early age do get used to it. All I can guess is that getting COMPLETELY wet, all the way to the skin, causes their coat to lose it's ability to insulate, at least until it dries. So maybe their survival instincts tell them not to get soaked to avoid hypothermia? That's my personal theory, what do you think?