Poor Patrick with chronically matted fur. Photo: RSPCA.

There could not be a worse example of neglect by a Persian cat owner in respect a cat’s coat. Although the story is that the cat was abandoned (I don’t think they are sure of this). How can anyone abandon a Persian cat? I say that because normally people who buy a purebred cat do so with some idea of what they want and with commitment. Perhaps I am being stupid. Purebred cat buyers are no better than people who adopt from shelters and probably worse sometimes. That’s probably the truth.

This Persian has been named Patrick. His fur was so matted he couldn’t walk properly – just waddle like a penguin. He was found in Ipswich, Suffolk (east coast of England to international visitors). The RSPCA have taken charge of him and shaved the matts off and treated him for fleas.

Patrick was riddled with parasites unsurprisingly as his heavily matted coat was an ideal habitat for parasites.

The RSPCA are trying to find his owner. They don’t know if he just wandered off or was thrown out. My guess is that he was so neglected that he wandered around the place a lot and was not truly abandoned but semi-abandoned through neglect if that is a fair description.

Persian cats have inordinately long fur and arguably fur that is too long and unnaturally long because they are reliant upon humans to keep their coat in good condition by daily grooming. For me that can’t be right. Their coats are super long because of decades of selective breeding for appearance with little thought given to health.