 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
   |
 |
 |
      |
Community | Ask The Vet
Long Haired Cat
17.01.2007Hello,
I have a long haired kitten, he is coming on now for 10 months old. He has got considerably fluffier as the cold weather has set in. I try and brush him everyday but he doesn\'t like it very much. Now he is going out and about he is getting allsorts stuck in his fur, whilst most of the time he can get them out, there have been a few occasions where I have had to cut things out of his fur as these things have caused his fur to knot. As you can imagine he doesn\'t like this very much and it is very hard trying to cut the knot out without pulling on his skin. Can you make any suggestions that may make this easier, as mentioned before I do try and give him a brush every night but it is difficult to get his underneath and this is where the main problem is. Is there such a place as a cat groomers we could take him to every so often? It may seem like a strange request but I don\'t like to see him distress when the scissors come out.
Thank you
- Kerry
Hello Kerry,
Thank you for your question about your cat. It can be difficult to keep the coat of a long-haired cat completely knot-free, especially if your cat refuses to co-operate with your efforts to help. He is young enough to still learn to become more tolerant of your grooming, so do persist in encouraging him to be comfortable with being brushed and combed. Try giving him a treat as a reward when he has allowed you to groom him for a few minutes and gradually build up the length of time. Combing with a metal moulting comb is more useful than brushing for removing knots or debris from the coat but, as you rightly say, you must not pull the skin and hurt him. Just gently tease the knots out of the fur. Cutting knots out with scissors can be scary! you run a big risk of injuring the skin when the knot is large or close to the skin. We sometimes see pets requiring stitching where owners have cut the skin by mistake. Owners are horrified when they have accidentally hurt their pet in this way, so avoid the scissors. Cat groomers do exist and we can supply the name of a person on our lists which is
Janet Crook of Kings Langley 01923 262232.
Good Luck and Happy Grooming
- The Barton Lodge Veterinary Team
Back
