Grooming An Opinionated Cat

[kuanggol]

I have a 5 y/o boy who just refuses to be groomed. I have all sorts of brushes even the pet gloves a lot of people seem to love, nope. I have gotten to the point of attempting to bribe him with 1 treat per brush stroke. No go. He just looks at me and walks away from the treats he normally trips over himself to eat. Any suggestions?

 

[maggiedemi]

Maggie is the same way. She smacks me if I try to brush her. I laughed at your title of "Opinionated". That's a nice word for it.
I hope you find a solution, I'll check back and see if anybody answers.

 

[GaryT]

If he was not combed right from the beginning, it may be almost impossible to get him to like it. If the fur has any tangles at all, he will see combing as nothing but pain and will hate it. I am assuming it is a long hair cat (persian?) You never use a brush on a long hair. All you do is charge the fur with static and it clumps more. I am sorry this does not help.

With a long hair, you have to start combing the coat right on the first day as a kitten. Theo jumps in my lap excited about being combed when I sit in the "combing spot". I started combing him the first day here and the breeder I got him from combed him every day as well. It is like a body massage because if you comb every day, there are no tangles bad enuff to pull and hurt.

 

[kuanggol]

Sorry I should have added - short haired - from the start. He's a rescue and not much is known about him but it seems that he is unused to people touching him in any way I hope someday he will change his mind about that.

 

[FeebysOwner]

How long have you had him? If for his entire 5 1/2 year life, uh, I don't know...
Does he actually need to be groomed? If you can find something that he dearly loves, that is about the only way I know you might get in a 'stroke' or two at a time. He can be groomed over the course of days/weeks; it doesn't have to be all at one time. Cat nip, human chicken, or turkey?

Does he like to rub up against things? There are corner mounted brushes that you stick to your wall at cat height. The cat will rub against the bristles and brush themselves, just like the they do with the furniture! If he likes cat nip, sprinkle that on this corner mounted to brush just to add an 'invite'.

Have you ever thought about using a natural calming product just to help relax him a bit? There are tons on the market, and not all work on all cats, so you might have to try a few to find one that helps relax him. One is Bach Rescue Remedy which are drops you can rub into a cat's ear. Some people use them before taking their cat for a vet visit.

How is he with getting his nails cut, btw?

 

[LeiLana80]

Hmm. We used to have a medium haired cat who took great pride in his appearance. If you even showed him a brush, he'd stare you down. If you got close, you were asking for hit. One brush.... maybe. That second one? You'd be bit and that was that. And he didn't hold back, lol.

I agree with the other poster- does he absolutely need it? You might have to forgo brushing to keep the peace.

What you could do is slowly start to build up the trust. It might take a while, especially with an unknown past. During a petting session, have the preferred comb in your lap. Let him smell it, have it around, associating it with your love. After a few weeks of this, use the comb ONCE during a petting session. Do that for a while. Then later, TWO brushes amidst the petting. Etc, etc.

Good luck!

 

[kuanggol]

Update on my opinionated boy. First, I'd like to thank everyone who's provided support, insights & suggestions. With regards to the question of does he really need to be groomed... yes undoubtedly. Although he has no matted fur, I could build another cat from the fur he sheds.

Another question was how was he getting his nails trimmed. At this time, I am a big investor in cardboard scratchers (he doesn't like sisal). I am working on improving this situation, since I still have to get him used to being touched. Worst case scenario I may consider those calming sprays because...

A very difficult trip to the vet resulted in the vet asking me follow-up questions because he looked so scrappy. She thought I was neglecting him. I just paid $300 for vet care and I am suspected of being neglectful, sure, why not. Turned out to be nothing and he got a $300 mani-pedi instead.

Anyway, a small breakthrough yesterday when he let me massage him. I just used my fingers and curried him while he was drowsy. Although I only got one side, I consider this an achievement . I managed to get a s**tload of fur off him, a hairball the size of a ping-pong ball. Today we are back to where we started but I think I'll be more successful over time. Fingers crossed. Maybe this is something Maggiedemi can try?

Thanks everyone and all the best!

 

[Furballsmom]

while he was drowsy

This!
It's the ONLY way I am able to my own opinionated cat to allow grooming - when he's asleep, and I still usually only get one side done before he wakes up. Same with clipping claws

 

[1 bruce 1]

Get something very soft like a pin brush with short pins with the little doo-hickey things on the ends, or a bristle brush, and lay it beside him and even sprinkle some catnip on it. Once some cats start rubbing their cheeks against a brush, you can't stop them from begging for a brush out.
What kind of brush are you using, could you use a wide toothed comb?
Keep a bowl full of warm water and dunk the brush or comb every few strokes to dampen it, stops the static.

 

[kuanggol]

Keep a bowl full of warm water and dunk the brush or comb every few strokes to dampen it, stops the static.

Didn't think of this but it's a great idea and I will give it a shot. My boy doesn't like brushes so I will just dampen my fingertips and curry him when he allows it.

 

[Furballsmom]

 

[lollie]

Start with his head. If Koshka is showing any reluctance to being brushed, I tell her that I will brush her “heady, and her chin chin.” Lol, she comes running. I brush to top of her head several strokes, and a while on each side. Cats love their head being rubbed, and imagine this feels even better. Once I get her purring, I do the rest of her.

 

[neely]

I've also had many rescues, most long haired, that were never exposed to grooming and it wasn't an easy task for me either so I sympathize with you. The above members have all given you some great advice. As for myself, I swear by this comb which is stainless steel and does a great job on long haired kitties. Not sure how well it would do on short hair but it's worth a try.
Although I cannot locate the exact one I purchased this is very similar:

Good luck!

 

[GaryT]

This is my arsenal of combs that I use on Theo. The black one was given to me by the breeder I got Theo from. I mstly use the stainless. The short one is my fav. The flea comb I use on his face and around his ears to comb out any tiny matts trying to get started.

 

[1 bruce 1]

Another thought is a rubber curry brush made for horses. It's not going to groom anything with hair longer than 1/8 inch but most cats like a rub down with it, leave it on the floor and let them rub on it themselves. It's a training tool, not a grooming tool but if you're desperate it might be worth a shot.

 

[daftcat75]

Start with his head. If Koshka is showing any reluctance to being brushed, I tell her that I will brush her “heady, and her chin chin.” Lol, she comes running. I brush to top of her head several strokes, and a while on each side. Cats love their head being rubbed, and imagine this feels even better. Once I get her purring, I do the rest of her.

Cats love their heads being rubbed but most cats are very hesitant about it too. When greeting a cat to initiate this kind of contact, it helps to greet the cat like other cats greet each other: nose to nose. Since you're not going to get your own nose down there, it helps to employ the "knuckle nose". Present one knuckle to your cat like a nose and let her sniff it. If she's still with you, you can try to rub it along her cheek. Make sure she's good with the cheek contact before continuing to base of the ears or behind the ears and eventually top of the head. My Krista adores this kind of attention. Even she will pull away if you go for top of the head or ears first. Under the chin is usually fair game right after you've established cheeks are okay.

 

[daftcat75]

What about something like this?
Whisker City® Playtime Cat Groomer | cat Furniture & Towers | PetSmart

Krista loves it for her cheeks but I have seen her slink through it a few times. I just got it yesterday so that kind of adoption rate for something new is pretty phenomenal. I'm sure she'll get the hang of it over time.

She will not let me use a brush or a glove on her. However, she does love the full body super-villain's cat treatment. I work from home and when she's not eating, sleeping, or staring out a window, she wants attention. She shows up in the space in front of my laptop keyboard and wants head scritches mostly. But once she's good and warm on the head scratches, I can usually get some full body strokes. I am only aiming to loosen the hairs here, like encouraging her to shed. Because if she sheds here on my desk, that's less she ingests. Even just getting the hair loose, when she jumps down and runs off, she will hopefully leave a small cloud of shedded fur. I consider shedding better than ingesting. I don't have to toss a hairball when I pick up her hair. I can tell when she's nearing her limit on body strokes by her tail motion. Quick flicks or slapping and I'd better slow it down or wrap it up. If I keep going from here, I'm going to get swatted or a soft nip (usually followed by a, "I didn't want to do that" lick because Krista is sweetheart! But she does have her limits.)

 

[kuanggol]

Another thought is a rubber curry brush made for horses. It's not going to groom anything with hair longer than 1/8 inch but most cats like a rub down with it, leave it on the floor and let them rub on it themselves. It's a training tool, not a grooming tool but if you're desperate it might be worth a shot.

This was actually the first brush I brought. No luck with this. I am better off just misting my hands with water and petting him. I have also found a brush for toy dogs that he is willing to tolerate for 4-5 brush strokes before giving me The Look.

 

[Furballsmom]

LOL I know about The Look

 

[kuanggol]

I've also had many rescues, most long haired, that were never exposed to grooming and it wasn't an easy task for me either so I sympathize with you. The above members have all given you some great advice. As for myself, I swear by this comb which is stainless steel and does a great job on long haired kitties. Not sure how well it would do on short hair but it's worth a try.
Although I cannot locate the exact one I purchased this is very similar:

Good luck!

I saw this comb come up a lot in my research but always for long hair and I always wondered if it will work for short hair. I will keep this in mind if I get desperate again.