grooming help needed

[onekidney]

HELP!!!
Any body know how to brush a long haired cat who hates it and is a bag of nerves that fight likes a tiger when held. Slapper is a real pain to groom. My wifes ex-hubby threw her out when she had less than 12 hours to go before dropping a litter nearly 5 years ago. Since then she has become really nervous and only responds to me, took me ages to get her trust, but I still can't groom her.

[angieh]

I am sorry not to be able to offer advise here - I've only ever had short haired cats that are easy to groom. I wouldn't know where to start - and presumably the longer it is left the more difficult it gets. No wonder she's nervous though. Poor sweetie.

[dandysmom]

Poor girl! I too have only had shorthairs who enjoy the daily combing. A friend's Persian was so impossible to groom that she got matted and had to go the vet to have them cut out. But if your girl is nervous and stressy that might not be an option ......

[mattde]

Its a hard one to give an answer.
I have two cats from the same litter, one loves to be groomed the other hates it and runs off when the brush comes out.

People might not like this put I just pin her down round the neck and brush her flat on the ground. Im not too rough , but rough enough to show her who is boss.

[calismum]

If she is a lap cat? try stroking her with the back of the brush until she gets used to the feeling then gradually build up.

If not - is there any other time you are able to stroke her - mealtimes perhaps and again just buils up.

Good luck.

[pookyandjo]

My cat George is a long hair...he has never been happy about being brushed...ive tried numerous different types of brushes.. and the only one he tolerates is a "zoom groom".. whilst it doesn't get rid of all the dead hair... it does get some of it..the way i started George off was to not even try and brush him... mose cats love the sides of their face being scratched... or under their chin... find the place that your cat likes it... it should be easy to tell when you get to that spot... they will lean into your scratch...if you get my drift... then i introduced the zoom groom to that spot... and did that for a few days... then gradually... one brush at a time... introduced it to his back....i have to tell you that he still hates his tummy being done...and even now... he will only tolerate the zoom groom on his back for about 2 or 3 mins... and he will bite it when he's had enough and run off... but if i do that every day.. i figure its a small ball of fluff that's not going into his tummy when he grooms himself ....the other thing that you should check is to make sure that there are no matted areas.. because brushing those will pull and hurt... George gets these occasionally.. and the way i get rid of them is whilst i am patting him... find them with my fingers... isolate them... and then when he's relaxed and enjoying being patted... have a tiny pair of round ended nail scissors and carefully snip them out a bit at a time...its very important not to snip too close to the skin... in most cases you really only need to snip the top of the matted piece and then you can break up the rest of the matt with your fingers... of course....that is why it important that you isolate it with your fingers to you can actually ensure a distance between the skin and the matted part..
If Slapper doesn't like being groomed.. its not very likely that she will ever love it... but she may tolerate it... but it will take time and effort..good luck

[FayRose]

I've been trawling through these posts because I have also problems with my 2 long haired cats and grooming.

The odd thing is, Biggles is actually our own home bred and he's been gently groomed since he was a kitten. HOWEVER, he's always got the strops about it even when he was only big enough to sit in the palm of my hand. :(
No, we were never rough so there was nothing to cause him to be afraid, its just the way he's always reacted and his mum is the same.
I guess some cats will never like being groomed.

Jenny (Biggles' mum) does a pretty good job on her own coat but Biggles is a disaster and we have to haul him off to the vet twice a year for de-matting. Its a shame that this can only be done under GA so he has to undergo this with all the implications of a GA which are a worry.

If only I could find the answer to convincing Biggles that grooming is good I'd be one happy cat owner. :roll: :D

[catwoman999]

Just spotted this thread...
PookeyandJo good advice apart from the using scissors part. I realise you have the skill/practice to do this safely, but I wouldn't reccomend scissor use to just anybody. Clippers are a better option! Clippers help break up a matt, without the risk of a skin injury. The noise may scare the cat a bit, but at least less likely to nick the skin... Though, even clippers should be kept WELL away from the skin, and used with caution(tackle the matt bit by bit slowely).
As a vet nurse, I have seem many HORRIFIC :( injuries in long haired cats, due to owners using scissors on matts.
People don't realise that the cats skin can be pulled into the middle of the matt, and can cause huge tears in the skin when tackled by scissors.

[FayRose]

I would never attempt to use scissors to get rid of tangles for that very reason, I'd be terrified of cutting or otherwise injuring the cat's skin. :(
Hence expensive trips to the vets twice a year. :roll:

[catwoman999]

I would never attempt to use scissors to get rid of tangles for that very reason, I'd be terrified of cutting or otherwise injuring the cat's skin. :(
Hence expensive trips to the vets twice a year. :roll:

Yeah, better to be safe than sorry! ;)