Grooming cats: coat care and features of the procedure

Cats are very clean animals, and they usually take great care of their own hygiene. However, there are times when an animal needs human help. If for some reason a cat cannot take care of itself, or it definitely needs a haircut, the owner can seek the services of a groomer. Let's consider what grooming is, why it is needed, its pros and cons.

What is grooming

For many, the word grooming is strongly associated with cutting an animal. Actually this is not true. Grooming is a set of measures for caring for the skin and fur of an animal; it also includes caring for the cleanliness of the cat’s eyes, ears, teeth and claws. These procedures can be carried out by a specially trained person in a special salon, or the owner himself can do them.

Cats are quite clean, and therefore they do not need much special care. They rarely get haircuts; often they are needed only by certain groups, or according to indications. Most often, owners of animals who participate in exhibitions turn to the services of groomers. In this case, the pet is scheduled to see a specialist in advance. It should look perfect for the exhibition. The owner can deal with the departure of an ordinary pet on his own. The main thing is to accustom your pet to hygiene procedures from childhood.

If the owner himself cannot cope with grooming, but also does not want to worry the pet too much, a groomer can be called to the house. In a familiar environment, it will be much easier for the cat to endure all the procedures. In addition, there will be no unnecessary stress due to visiting unfamiliar places.

How often are you allowed to cut your hair?

For hygiene reasons, it is recommended to do haircuts as needed. But the need varies, so you shouldn’t be partial with it.

Groom your pet twice a year. The new fur grows back to its size in about six months.

Frequent trips to the cat hairdresser will disrupt the structural balance of the fur, and it will deteriorate, which can harm the pet.

If you are preparing your cat for an exhibition, grooming should be done here 3-4 months before the exhibition itself.

This is enough to maintain hygiene and aesthetics.

A set of grooming activities

Animal care procedures can be carried out both at home and in a special salon. The first option is more acceptable, since the animal experiences less stress during the procedures. However, the salon has a lot more special tools and equipment that you can’t always take home with you.

The set of grooming activities includes the following activities:

• ear cleaning;
• rubbing the eyes (in some breeds with very watery eyes, this procedure must be carried out regularly);
• teeth cleaning (carried out using special paste and brush);
• maintaining the optimal length of the claws (a special nail clipper is used to shorten the claws);
• bathing the animal;
• a haircut.

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Required Tools

To groom a cat you will need the following tools:

• long-toothed comb;
• a slicker brush is needed to comb out all the fallen hair;
• nail clipper;
• cotton pads and sticks;
• special toothbrush and toothpaste;
• antiseptics in case the animal gets injured during hygiene procedures;
• scissors;
• trimmer.

It is not recommended to cut tangles with scissors. It is very easy to injure an animal this way. And trying to untangle them is also not a good idea. Due to the special structure of wool, this is impossible. A trimmer is best for removing tangles.

You should not use any human products when caring for your cat. Toothpaste has too strong a smell and can cause irritation, and human shampoo is not suitable for a cat. A human toothbrush has too hard bristles. If there are no other options, you can use a brush for very young children. It is better to purchase all other products at a veterinary store in the cat products section. .

Health and disease of the Scottish Straight cat

Scots live up to 15-20 years of age without much difficulty, but only if they were properly cared for and mandatory veterinary procedures were not neglected. Unlike folds, straights have practically no genetic mutations or hereditary diseases, so representatives of this breed are relatively healthy animals with good immunity. As for diseases of the gastrointestinal tract and genitourinary system, sometimes diagnosed in straight-eared Scottish cats, they are most often caused by poor nutrition.

Types of grooming

Depending on the goals pursued by the owner, the following types of grooming can be distinguished:

1. Hygienic. The animal is bathed, its eyes and ears are cleaned, its claws are trimmed, and its teeth are brushed. The wool is cut in the groin area and on the stomach so that it does not get dirty so much. Trim the hairs between the pads and fingers.
2. Home. This type includes all the procedures that the owner carries out with his pet at home: combing the fur, trimming the claws, cleaning the eyes and ears, bathing. In addition, the owner can cut off the tangles formed on the cat’s fur himself.
3. Exhibition. Although it is not recommended to bathe cats frequently, they are thoroughly cleaned before exhibitions. In addition, the cat can be given a neat haircut, which is necessary to emphasize all the advantages of this animal and give the coat a neat appearance.
4. Creative. Cats are given rather unusual hairstyles, cutting out entire patterns and giving their fur an unusual look. It is not advisable to do this for “beauty”, but if the animal needs a haircut in any case, then its fur can be given an unusual shape.

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Where to buy a machine

The most convenient way is to order a cat clipper online or purchase it in a store that specializes in selling household appliances.

When choosing a machine, you need to pay attention to the following data:

• What knives are made of (steel is cheaper, but ceramic is more durable and does not heat up so quickly);
• Noise level (cat grooming requires extreme care; if your pet is frightened by a loud sound, you are unlikely to be able to cut it evenly enough);
• The machine should be convenient (it should be easy for you to turn it on and off, change attachments and control the speed of movement of the knives);
• Check for different sized brush heads to suit different lengths of hair.

Necessity of grooming

There are cats that cannot cope with their own hygiene. There may be several reasons for this:

• elderly age;
• excess weight;
• health problems;
• hormonal surges during the period of sexual hunting.

And completely healthy animals require the care of their owner. It is not advisable to frequently bathe a healthy animal, since it is often a lot of stress for the cat, and frequent exposure to chemicals can lead to skin irritations. The cat is bathed if there is any contamination, before shows and as indicated by the veterinarian. If you need to apply a special product to your skin. In this case, you should make sure that the animal does not freeze or catch a cold after bathing. If the cat experiences very strong stress from contact with water. You should avoid swimming altogether. Dirt can be removed using wet wipes.

Some breeds are prone to having very watery eyes. Therefore, they must be periodically wiped with a clean cotton pad moistened with boiled water. It is necessary to periodically inspect your pet's ears and remove dirt from them with a cotton swab.

Veterinarians strongly do not recommend surgery to completely remove the claws. But you can trim them periodically. Especially if the animal does not actively use the scratching post. When trimming nails, be careful as blood vessels can easily be damaged. Just in case, you should prepare an antiseptic and cotton pads.

Owners rarely bother with brushing their pet’s teeth. As almost all cats age, they develop tartar, which can lead to gum disease. That is why this procedure should not be neglected. You should be accustomed to brushing your teeth from childhood, this is the only way your pet will normally accept this not very pleasant procedure.

Cats, especially those with long hair, need to be brushed regularly. To do this, you can use special combs that will help remove lost hair and slicker brushes. This way the pet will look neater, and it won’t swallow so much fur while licking. In addition, there will be much less hair on the furniture. During the shedding period, it is advisable to comb your pet every day.

Grooming cats is an issue that causes a lot of controversy. Many veterinarians and breeders advise cutting an animal's hair only when absolutely necessary. This is due to the fact that the event itself can cause considerable stress in the animal. Short haircuts can lead to disruption of heat exchange, and the undercoat may never fully recover. In addition, many cats undergo haircuts under anesthesia, which has a very bad effect on the health of the animal.

There are some breeds whose special coat structure leads to the formation of tangles. Theoretically, this problem can be solved by combing the animal every day. However, even this does not always help. Mats easily absorb dirt and can emit an unpleasant odor, irritation can form on the skin underneath them, and the cat can also swallow the mat while licking, which can lead to intestinal blockage.

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Grooming of cats is also recommended for the following reasons:

• The animal is very hot, and this problem cannot be solved by other methods. If it is impossible to reduce the temperature in the room, then haircuts are used for long-haired animals.
• The animal will undergo medical procedures or surgery. In this case, the wool is clipped only in the right places.
• The animal has a skin disease, for the treatment of which it is necessary to cut the hair. In this case, the procedure is carried out in a veterinary clinic.
• The cat swallows too much hair. This often happens in long-haired breeds. Often the hair itself easily comes out of the body, but in some cases this does not happen.
• The animal needs to be combed very often, and in extreme cases, trimmed.

When not to cut your cat's hair:

1. The animal has serious skin problems.
2. The cat experiences a lot of stress during the grooming process.
3. If the house is cold. The animal will begin to freeze and may catch a cold.
4. The cat has serious health problems, for which unnecessary worries are contraindicated.

Even if you really want to give an animal a fashionable and unusual hairstyle purely for aesthetic reasons, this idea should be abandoned. First of all, you need to be guided by the interests of your pet, and not by your own desires.

History of the Scottish Straight cat breed

Scottish Straight cat Scottish Straight are the same Scottish folds, but with a modified position of the ear.
Straight ears do not have a characteristic crease and are set straight, and this, in fact, is the only external sign that distinguishes them from their fold-eared counterparts. Scottish cats are considered one of the youngest cat breeds. The first cat with an unusual, flattened ear shape appeared on a Scottish farm in the early 60s. Surprisingly, the ancestor of modern folds and straights had no pedigree and simply chased mice through the barns of local peasants. The first official Scottish breeder was an ordinary villager, William Ross, who adopted a kitten from the aforementioned Fold. A few years later, professional breeders also joined the process. At the same time, experts witnessed an interesting phenomenon: in the litters brought by even the most purebred Scottish dogs, babies with erect ears appeared. Of course, no one intended to separate such individuals into a separate breed. And kilometer-long queues did not line up for straight-eared kittens, because against the backdrop of touching folds, they were outright losing. But here nature itself intervened.

Very soon, Scottish breeders noticed that attempts to strengthen and strengthen the lop ears of animals had a negative impact on their health. The mutated gene responsible for the flatness of the ear folds began to inhibit the function of the skeletal apparatus of cats. As a result, the Scots began to suffer from thickening of the bones and osteochondrodysplasia. To keep the breed afloat, breeders rushed to look for “new blood” that would help the Scottish survive and reduce the number of their genetic defects. Through trial, error and outcrossing, it was discovered that the healthiest and most beautiful offspring can be obtained from crossing a Fold cat and a straight-eared male of the same breed. It was thanks to this discovery that breeders and felinological associations finally turned their attention to straight-eared Scots. Well, in 2004, the Scottish Straight subspecies received official recognition from the World Cat Federation and the status of an independent breed, which sharply increased the attractiveness of straight-eared cats in the eyes of potential buyers.

Pet behavior

Most hygiene procedures can become a real stress for a cat if it has not been accustomed to them since childhood. Therefore, from the first months the kitten needs to be accustomed to grooming procedures. You need to periodically comb him, trim his nails, clean his eyes and ears.

All this should be done carefully, without using force, otherwise the pet will be afraid of these procedures in the future. If you behave correctly with the animal, over time it will get used to it and will be patient with all manipulations.

If the animal is very nervous during the grooming process, you should not do anything by force. You cannot use force, and even more so you should refuse to use anesthesia. Some salons use it. Of course, in a dream the animal does not see or feel anything, and therefore does not stress during the haircut. However, anesthesia negatively affects the health of the animal. If the cat had hidden pathologies, it may not wake up at all.

Before grooming, it is advisable to trim your cat's claws. If she suddenly gets scared and starts to struggle, this will help avoid injury. It should also be noted that haircutting is a very long procedure that can take up to several hours. Not every animal, even the calmest one, can endure this. Therefore, it is desirable for the owner to be nearby. He will be able to distract and calm the pet if necessary.

Scottish Straight character

It would be a big mistake to label all Scottish Straights as phlegmatic philosophers. Moreover, among these imposing cats, sometimes there are real livelies who love to chase a wind-up mouse and measure their strength with the owner. And yet, for the most part, Scottish straight cats do not have a violent temperament. Proud and serious, they cannot stand total control and are unlikely to allow themselves to be squeezed into a semi-conscious state. This, of course, does not make Scottish ascetics and sad hermits, they just require a little more independence and personal space than representatives of other breeds. Straights prefer to spend their free time in peace and quiet, lounging on the couch and learning Zen in the Buddha pose.

Squeezing the cat

The Scots are happy to make contact and join in the games, but only when they want to. In all other cases, it is better to leave the cat alone. The peak of motor activity of straight-eared Scottish cats occurs in the first year of their life. By the way, Scottish babies in their playfulness and restlessness are practically no different from ordinary outbred kittens. Adults, on the contrary, are famous for their exemplary behavior and patience. If you go on a visit for a couple of hours, leaving the Straight alone, he will easily survive it. However, weeks of loneliness, interrupted by rare raids from the owner, will not improve the character of the animal. As for the pacifying purr of straight-eared Scottish cats, it still needs to be earned: cats purr infrequently, and meow only in exceptional, from their own point of view, cases. Scottish Straights accept strangers and noisy groups of guests in a completely “secular” way, which means without unnecessary suspicion and aggression, but also without wild delight.

Scottish Straight cats are emotionally stable and not subject to sudden mood swings. However, exceptions to the general rule have not been canceled, so amateur videos with catchy headlines like: “The most disgruntled Scottish in the world” periodically appear on the Internet. In addition, straights are characterized by amazing persistence. If a cat wants something, he will definitely achieve it, following on the heels of the owner, and sometimes reinforcing his actions with annoying meows.

Popular haircuts

Most often, animals are given hygienic and exhibition haircuts. The first is important for maintaining the animal's hygiene, and can even be done at home. The second is done by a specialist. It is designed to hide all the shortcomings of the animal’s exterior and emphasize its advantages.

When grooming a cat, the groomer adheres to the following rules:

1. The hair on the head is not touched, since without it it becomes more difficult for the animal to navigate in space.
2. Do not touch the hair in the ears, as it protects them from dirt.
3. You cannot cut an animal bald; you still need to leave at least a small amount of fur. Without it, the animal will begin to freeze, and direct exposure to sunlight on bare skin can lead to burns.

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If, for certain reasons, the animal needs a more serious haircut, it can be done creatively. Just don’t try to do this haircut yourself at home. At best, you can simply ruin the appearance of your pet. In the worst case, you could damage his skin. Short haircuts are best left to the experts.

Dragon A cat's back ridge is cut out in steps or a kind of mohawk is made, while the rest of the body, except for the head and paws, is cut very short. The cat visually begins to resemble a baby dragon. Lion Leaves quite a lot of fur on the head, neck and chest, making it resemble a lion's mane. A fluffy brush is left at the tip of the tail.

Puma Only the back part of the body is cut short. The chest, head, and paws remain intact. This haircut is good if the animal is hot to normalize thermoregulation.

Preparing a cat for immobilization

There is a really workable option to immobilize a cat with a clothespin or a paper clip - essentially the same thing. The item is attached to the withers without causing pain or discomfort for the cat. Behavior is inhibited spontaneously and reactions are slowed down. The cat will better tolerate this procedure, provided that it is performed by a person close to him, or better yet, by the owner. Also, manipulation should be carried out only in case of urgent need, and not for fun. Most cats that were tried to be immobilized in this way experienced the action positively, without pain or fear. But no one is immune from the individual reaction of each individual cat.

First you need to prepare the cat for the procedure:

• If the pet is wearing a collar, it must be removed to provide free access to the cat's neck. If left on, it can create a suffocating feeling and your pet will become agitated.
• After this, you need to find the scruff. It is located on the outside of the cat's neck and looks like a loose fold. If it is difficult to feel the cat’s scruff, then it will not be easy to immobilize it. You should be extremely careful not to squeeze your cat's skin too hard.
• You need to grab the scruff of the neck with your hand and look at the pet’s reaction. If he feels completely relaxed, then he can quickly be immobilized. If the animal meows or tries to escape, then you need to try to immobilize it using another method.

You can determine that a cat is tense when he is not trying to escape by dilated pupils, intermittent breathing, and moving ears. If you grab it by the scruff of the neck closer to the ears, you can control the movement of the animal’s head. To avoid needing help when immobilizing a cat, it is better to watch a training video in advance. It's actually simple.

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