More Information On Shedding
Tips for shedding cats
- Many pet foods advertise as being the best for your pet, but are actually not suited to their digestive systems or nutritional needs. Explore dietary options and choose a food that best suits your pet.
- Seasonal changes mean more shedding and during this time it may be necessary to increase grooming sessions.
- Stress is a common cause of shedding so be sure to take measures to keep you cat calm and free of anxiety. This wont always be possible, so be sure to brush your cat well after a particularly stressful day or event.
- During times of excessive shedding, it may help to invest in a few throws to protect the furniture. These can be taken off when guests arrive, and thrown in the wash when they become too full of hair.
- A wet rubber or latex glove is a wonderful tool for removing loose fur from a shedding cat
- Address any allergies that your cat may have. A cat with skin allergies is more likely to scratch and as a result lose hair.
- Control fleas and other skin parasites. Skin parasites irritate the skin and can cause hair to fall out, not to mention all the scratching involved!
- Take your cat for regular check-ups at the vet. Many diseases can cause poor skin and coat condition and hair loss. If your cats shedding is excessive, unrelated to seasonal changes and accompanied by any other symptoms, a visit to the vet may be necessary.
Is Your Cat Losing Hair What It Could Mean
Shedding fur is a natural part of feline evolution. However, its important to recognize the difference between your cats typical shedding and what may be abnormal hair loss. Is your cat losing hair to the point of thinning fur or even baldness in some spots? Cat hair loss, also known as alopecia in cats, can have several causesmost of which are easily treatable.
Cat Hair Loss Remedies
An effective flea repellent for cats suffering from hair loss due to parasites is a citrus solution. Cut a lemon in four and place the pieces in a pan with boiling water. Let this steep overnight.
Spray all over the cat, especially behind the ears, the head, the base of the tail and in the arms. Garlic, brewers yeast tablets and apple cider vinegar all act as internal defenses against the flea. They all release odors or acids into the cats skin and make it an unfriendly environment for fleas.
A homemade spray called Pyrethrum can be made from dried African Chrysanthemum flower buds that have been broken into a powder. Pyrethrum is found in spray cans and flea sprays. It is an organic and environmentally friendly insecticide that has been proven to be safe for use in humans and animals.
Crush the flower heads of the African chrysanthemum in a powder and place two hands full of powder in 1L of hot water for an hour. Puree the mix and pour into a spray bottle. Spray over the entire cat, making sure to avoid the eyes, mouth and inside of the ears.
Normal baths can help remove excess hair, but use natural ingredients in the cat shampoo. Catnip is a cleansing herb that has also been shown to repel and kill insects and their larvae. Chamomile added to a cats bath can help reduce dandruff and promote healthy skin, and fur and nettle can be used to encourage healthy skin and hair.
How can I treat my cats hair loss?
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Upgrade Your Cats Diet
One possible cause of excessive shedding is a poor diet. When cats arent getting the kind of nutrition they need, it can lead to a dry, brittle coat with hairs that are more likely to break off and fall out. One of the simplest changes you can make is adding more omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids. As Purina explains on their website, Omega-3s also improve the overall health of the hair follicles, which can decrease the amount of hair that is shed.
Not only does that mean less hair on your favorite sweater, but it also means fewer hairballs for your cat. Im a big fan of Nordic Naturals in order to add more healthy fatty acids to your cats diet and .
But besides supplementation, you should also consider your cats main meals. Dr. Coates, while writing on PetMD, recommends that your cats food is 45% protein and between 25% to 35% fat. Thats surprisingly hard to do as many cat foods, including wet foods, are quite low in fat. To make things easier, I reviewed 10 of the best cat foods for shedding all of which meet those requirements which you can read here.
Recognizing And Treating Medical Conditions That Lead To Hair Loss
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Over Grooming From Stress Or Anxiety
Cats take pride in their appearance and hygiene. They constantly groom their own fur by licking themselves all over. Whilst this is completely normal behaviour, a cat under stress or suffering from anxiety may lick too much causing bald patches to appear. This can result in thinning of fur all over the coat or it may result in a bald patch localised to a certain area. Particular patches commonly affected by this kind of behaviour include around the stomach and the tail.
In these instances, treatment should focus on relieving stress in whatever way possible. Causes of stress can include a change of home, the introduction of a new pet or animal or something present in their environment that they perceive as a threat or danger.
Owners who notice over grooming should focus on preventing the behaviour by distracting their pet with toys or cuddles. They should also consider using a feline pheromone diffuser or spray, like Feliway, which will help put your cat at ease. There is a danger that the cat might develop over grooming as a long term habit if left uncorrected.
On some rare instances over grooming may occur as part of a neurological disorder or pain. If your cat continues to over groom you should return to your vet.
Treating Psychogenic Behaviors That Result In Over
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Emotional And Behavioral Issues
Nervous disorders that manifest in behavioral issues like over-grooming can cause hair loss in cats, but these are tricky to diagnose. Once other medical issues are ruled out, this could be determined as the cause of your cat’s fur loss. Keep your cat mentally stimulated and try to redirect any over-grooming behaviors as soon as you see them. In some cases, behavioral modification medications can be prescribed by your veterinarian.
Brush Your Cat Regularly
Simply brushing your cat regularly can make a huge difference in the amount of cat hair floating around! It can also help minimize hairballs and as the team at Hills points out, Additionally, regular brushing removes dirt, dead hair, and dander, all of which contribute to unhealthy skin, and it prevents your cat from getting matted hair thats unmanageable, at which point youd need the assistance of a professional groomer.
Your cat is already pretty darn committed to grooming but with a busy schedule of flopping on the floor in front you, sleeping in the sun, and finding the latest crinkly thing to lay on sometimes they need a little help keeping up with their grooming! But brushing your cat is more than just practical, its also a great way to give your cat attention. Most cats really enjoy a good brushing but be careful that your cat doesnt get overstimulated.
So how often should you brush your cat? I recommend short brushing sessions every day in order to prevent mats, decrease shedding, and not overwhelm your cat. Petting with a brush can be pretty intense for some cats, especially some sensitive areas.
As far as brushes go, you have a ton of options on the market. From special gloves to archaic mini-rake looking things. But my personal favorite is this self-cleaning brush from Hertzko . At the time of writing, there were over 20,000 five-star reviews so Im clearly not the only one thats happy with this product.
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Certain Breeds Are More Prone To Hair Loss
Some hairless cat breeds actually start out with fur, like the Donskoy, and then lose their hair over time. Other breeds, such as the Lykoi, Minksin, and Peterbald, are often partially hairless.
Furthermore, Oriental purebreds may carry genes that are more likely to cause alopecia in cats for instance, Siamese cats are more prone to hair loss on the outside of the ears.
Ringworm As A Cause Of Feline Hair Loss
Another common cause of cat hair loss is ringworm. This skin disease is easily spread through contact with infected animals, causing the hair in adult cats to become brittle and break off in patches.
Your vet can determine if a ringworm infection is present through a fungal skin culture. Those cats who test positive will be treated with antifungal shampoos, creams, sprays, or medications.
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S To Reduce Your Cats Shedding
Are you dealing with a chronic shedder? All cats, except those who are hairless, shed, but the amounts vary according to the length of hair, time of year, health of the cat, and grooming habits. Shedding is a normal and healthy way for your cat to discard old skin cells and hair follicles and make way for new ones.
Unfortunately, that doesnt make our sweeping and vacuuming duties any more enjoyable. Preventing excessive shedding is possible with a few simple acts:
What Causes Hair Loss In Cats
Feline fur loss may have fungal and parasitic causes, such as ringworm, mites or flea allergies. Food allergies are another possibility, as are metabolic conditions such as hyperthyroidism, the term for over-production of thyroid hormones. In some cats, urinary tract issues reportedly cause continual licking, with hair loss as a result.
Answers to the following questions may help reveal the cause: Does she groom herself a lot? Is she itchy and does she scratch herself often? If you have other cats, what is her relationship with them harmonious or contentious? Have you changed anything in your home lately that could be causing increased stress in your cat?
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The Fur Tumbleweeds Are Flying How To Reduce Your Cats Shedding
If you are a cat owner that has had to replace one too many vacuums, we know the struggle. How to keep your cat from shedding so much is a common complaint we hear a lot at Cat Care of Vinings. Unfortunately, shedding happens.
Did you know we offer grooming for long haired cats? We dont always recommend shaving them down simply for shedding, but a lot of owners with long haired cats choose shave-downs to prevent matting and hairballs!
There are some good solutions to reduce your cats shedding, which is why we are devoting an entire blog on this hairy situation!
Treatment And Hindrance Of Cats From Hair Loss
Treatment choices for cat hair loss square measure restricted, however if the cause could be a skin or secretion imbalance, medications and topical treatments square measure obtainable to resolve the matter, and if the cause is activity, a activity treatment may be followed to cut back the matter.
there’s no warranted thanks to forestall cat hair loss, however whereas you notice a cat biting or propulsion its hair, it’s an honest plan to try to to a comprehensive examination of the hair and skin a minimum of once per week, and this may be done by hair care the cats hair with a toothed comb and specializing in the areas that The cat scratches it, or pulls its hair perpetually.
In all cases, a MD should be wont to dispense safe topical treatments for the cat to rid of him of pain and itching as a result of it should scale back the chance of losing his hair, and increase the likelihood of his recovery.
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