Grooming
The coat of the Persian cat is a lot longer than other breeds. It can be 8 inches long. This extra length has been bred into the cat. It can be too long and thick for a Persian to clean herself (but many are able to keep themselves quite clean). So, you’ve got to do it. If you are not prepared to do this – please don’t adopt a Persian.
The outer coat is made of guard hairs. The undercoat is made of fine down and awn hairs. This lovely combination of outer and under coat makes Persian cats look “plush”, well upholstered. You’ve got the looks. What about the downside? Here is a little film of a persian cat being groomed professionally (and maybe too vigorously?).
To keep the coat in the best condition these are the requirements:
- bath regularly – as a guideline: every fortnight and if you adopt a kitten try and get her used to this soon. This not only cleans the coat but helps to reduce parasites. Also, if you are allergic to cats, this will minimize a re-action.
- dry her carefully after washing
- brush daily: 10-15 minute session
- grooming weekly: one hour session
- grooming is more important during the months when they shed their coats (molt)
- check eyes to see if they need cleaning. Your Persian cat may be prone to tear duct overflow (tears flowing too much and/or not draining). You may have to do this daily if your persian cat’s eyes tearing is a problem.
The Persian cat in the film was very accepting, I thought. Cats are sometimes more passive at the vet. This may in part be because they are a little overcome by the situation and become passive. This allows the vet or veterinary assistant to do things that the cat would normally object to.
It may be of benefit to trim the coat around the cat’s rear end and hindquarters to minimize maintenance (if you are showing your cat, this shouldn’t be done).
It is sensible to take pro-active steps and indeed important to keep Persians indoors because of the long coat, which picks up stuff etc. Keeping your persian indoors also keeps them from being stolen.
Washing a Persian cat
There are times when you think that it is necessary to bath your Persian cat. For, example if the coat has become flea infested, very oily or badly soiled. Washing a cat should obviously be done with caution and not too frequently as a cat will normally keep itself clean naturally and the coat has natural oils. The oils will be removed temporarily after bathing. Some Persian owners would recommend washing once a month. If showing your cat then bathing is part and parcel of the process.
Before you start groom out the matting. Next decision – what type of shampoo? Can you use human shampoo? Decisions, decisions 🙂
Persian cat hair products
There are specially made cat shampoos on the market. In the USA you can buy a wide range of color coded quality cat shampoos from Jerob and flea and tick shampoos from Sergeant’s Gold or Zodiac.
Suitable human shampoos are Pantene and Garnier Fructis shampoos and conditioners, which you can use after using the flea and tick shampoos.
Never use dog shampoo on a cat as the included medication (
for fleas etc.) will be too strong for your Persian. Also exercise particular care when washing kittens as they are more vulnerable. If the product labeling doesn’t say it is safe for kittens don’t use it.
Other supplies you will need:
Other points to note:
Every color coat is possible and there 7 colour divisions:
- Silver and Golden
- Shaded and Smoke
- Tabby
- Particolor
- Bicolor
- Himalyan
Sources:
- petplace.com
- own knowledge
- Wikipedia
