Cats are adorable, and they like to keep themselves clean all the time. They lick themselves in every possible instance to keep their fur clean. Your cat grooms herself well already, but an extra help won’t hurt. Brushing your cat’s hair comes with a lot of benefits – both for you and your cat. Although a cat’s shiny and lustrous coat owes to her nutrient-rich diet, yet regular grooming does its bit to help keep your cat’s coat matt-free and clean.
Then should you brush your cat’s hair every day, or how many times a day? Should long-haired and short-haired cats brushed equally? Irrespective of the hair type of your cat, brushing is an essential part of her overall health. Here in this article, we will cover all your questions related to your cat grooming need. Keep reading!
How Often Should I Brush My Cat?
Just like humans, cats also have different hair types, leading to patterns of shedding. Being a cat parent, you know how difficult it is to get a cat’s hair off from everything in the house.
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Though the fact is, as long as you are a cat parent, your house can never be free of cat hair, but brushing your feline friend’s hair when needed can reduce hair shed to an extent.
Should you brush your cat’s hair every day, or sometimes is just fine? The brushing of a cat’s hair depends on the type of hair your cat sports - based on their hair types, cats can be categorized into several breeds. For example, long-haired cats such as Persian should be brushed several times a week as these cats shed more hair.
On the contrary, short-haired cats like Abyssinian require brushing once a week. Cats like Sphynx only need proper care of their skin as they have no hair.
Benefits Of Brushing Your Cat’s Hair
Consider your cat’s hair just like your own and think what all benefits brushing can reap? If you’re still not convinced, here are just a few benefits of brushing to get you started:
Get rid of mats
Think of a cat’s fur like your hair. When you stop brushing your hair, you develop mats. Likewise, cats that are devoid of brushing will develop mats gradually. Brushing your cat’s fur will detangle her hair and keep them manageable.
Save your cat from dirt ingestion
Cats are great groomers and like to appear presentable each time. They lick themselves frequently to keep clean. Your cat’s coat has several dead hair, dirt, and dust in them. If you do not brush them to clean, the dirt will be ingested every time your cat licks herself. It will cause hairballs in your cat’s digestive tract that is not good for her health and you when you’ll have to clean them off from surfaces.
Less shedding
Brushing your cat regularly will reduce the excess loose hair they carry – meaningless hair falling from your cat and on the sofa or anywhere in the house. Though this cannot end the amount of hair your cat will lose, it will reduce them hanging loose on your cat.
Spotting flea camps
Cats are often bothered by fleas or flea dirt on their coat. Regularly brushing your cat will give you the scope to spot fleas and flea poop on your kitty’s fur. Cats that are not brushed regularly are seen with lots of fleas. Once you start brushing your cat, you come to know about their fur’s health and take all the preventive measures to prevent your cat from fleas and maintain a healthy fur ritual for her.
Spread their natural oils
Like humans, cats also have natural oils on their fur. By brushing your cat regularly, you are spreading their natural oils throughout the fur. It also helps blood circulation, which is important to keep your kitty healthy and sport a shiny and lustrous coat.
It relaxes your feline
Cats love being petted, and there is no exception to brushing their fur. Your cat enjoys being brushed as it relaxes them. It also helps in reducing stress and calming your cat – just like massages do.
Increase the bond between you both
If you love picking your cat and snuggling, consider brushing her hair as well. When your cat is n your lap – there is no better chance to brush her hair. Doing so will not only keep her hair tangle-free but create a bond between you two. Have you seen cats grooming each other? They do this to increase mutual trust. When you brush your cat, you are building trust and also showing how much you love her.
A helping hand
Cats licks to clean themselves. But if you have a cat with a mobility issue, brushing may be so much more helpful. Since licking themselves clean for a cat with a mobility issue may be painful, you can lend a helping hand, and your cat will be much thankful to you.
Start brushing early
Grooming sessions for cats should start when they are kittens, as this will help develop a routine and their easiness on the ritual. Brushing them at an early age will help develop a habit, and growing up will not develop mats. However, during kitten-hood, your feline baby should not be brushed too often. You can brush them twice or three times a week as they have less hair on the body.
How To Remove Mats From My Cat’s Fur?
Mats on your cat’s fur are not healthy and create a shabby look to your gorgeous. Mats hinder the free flow of air to your cat’s skin. It also damages tissues by not letting oxygen and moisture be retained on the fur – leading to dry and irritated skin. Therefore, cats must remain mat-free. If your cat has just started developing mats and they are small in size and not too tight, you can work your fingers to separate the mats from each other, detangling with your fingers. Don’t apply too much pressure, and be gentle. Make sure you continue stroking her to keep her comfortable.
A longer cat’s fur is more likely to form mats. No matter what, never try to cut them off. Mats are closely and firmly attached to the skin, and trying to cut them might hurt your cat and in return may create distrust and fear in her mind for you.
Not all mats are the same, and you may not be able to work them out with your fingers. It is now when you need to seek professional help from one of our team. It is highly recommended that you don’t take matters into your hand and stress out your cat by trying your skills on her.
Why Does My Cat’s Fur Get Matted?
One of the probable reasons for your cat’s matted fur is that you don’t brush her. Besides, there are several other ways why your cat’s hair gets matted. If you have a long-haired cat breed, she will for sure develop knots on her fur. Long hair tends to shed more and remain trapped on your cat’s fur, which later on turns into mats. Provided, all the dust and dirt like flea poop gets settled and contributes to mat-forming.
Why Is My Cat Losing A Lot Of Hair?
There are several reasons as to why your cat is losing fur. Some of the probable reasons include:
- Alopecia
- Hormonal imbalances
- Poor diet
- Stress
- Unhealthy skin
- Ringworms
- Skin allergies
- Weak immune system
If your cat has excessive hair, these mentioned reasons could be the culprit. Please seek professional help from one of our team and see what works out well for your cat.
How Often Should You Bathe Your Cat?
Getting your cat to the bath is like getting ready for war. But you can’t just let your cat remain dirty because it’s hard to convince her to go to the bath. Experts say it is a good practice to bathe your cat every 4-6 weeks. Bathing your cat will not only prevent her from developing mats but will also clean her fur and skin and keep fleas at bay.
If you want to bathe your cat in the bath, see that you don’t fill the water to the top as this could create fear in your cat and stress her out. Always use warm water to bathe your cat and immediately wrap her with a dry towel when you are done bathing her. Use a damp cloth to clean her face. Avoid pouring water near to the ears.
Cats are all furry and cute little balls of joy. Keeping them clean and smelling good is good for their health and fur. Consider brushing your cat today and every day for a mat-free and gorgeous coat.