Excessive Shedding And Lack Of Grooming

Kitty Beholder

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Having had my two cats for a couple of days now, I've noticed a sort of problematic routine in my little girl's grooming. Kimmy sheds constantly - I probably get a brush full of hair out of her several times a day. Her brother Galahad has never shed.

What I've noticed is that Galahad grooms himself all the time. He's sort of a clean freak. Kimmy, however, hasn't been caught doing this once. I think that might be why she is shedding so darn much. I've attempted to move her closer to Galahad so that maybe he will groom her too, but he doesn't seem very interested.

Any suggestions?
 

margd

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It might help to prime the pump, so to speak. Try rubbing something wet and/or tasty on Kimmy's coat in strategic places and that will get her tongue going in no time. I don't think you can convince Galahad to groom Kimmy unless he feels like it although he will probably be very interested in whatever you put on her coat. They should be separated when you try this. I'd start by just rubbing her with a damp cloth but you may have to add a bit of juice from her food for the best encouragement.

It's odd that she doesn't groom herself. Has she been to the vet yet for a check-up? Failure to groom can be an indication that a cat isn't feeling well so it's always worth checking the medical angle out first.
 
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Kitty Beholder

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It might help to prime the pump, so to speak. Try rubbing something wet and/or tasty on Kimmy's coat in strategic places and that will get her tongue going in no time. I don't think you can convince Galahad to groom Kimmy unless he feels like it although he will probably be very interested in whatever you put on her coat. They should be separated when you try this. I'd start by just rubbing her with a damp cloth but you may have to add a bit of juice from her food for the best encouragement.

It's odd that she doesn't groom herself. Has she been to the vet yet for a check-up? Failure to groom can be an indication that a cat isn't feeling well so it's always worth checking the medical angle out first.
Thanks for the response. Believe it or not, shortly after I created this thread, I did find Kimmy grooming herself - but, alas, only her legs and belly. Never her back where she really sheds. I will try a damp cloth and see if that convinces her. I would try juice from food, but I currently feed them dry food.
 

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I have read a few articles about why cats groom themselves. Grooming themselves isn't related to how much they shed. If a cat has a lot of loose hair and licks all that up, it will throw up hairballs because the fur will sit in its stomach undigested. They lick to remove debris from the fur like dirt or other other stuff.

If a cat is shedding a lot, the first thing I would look at is it's diet. Are they eating all dry food? Cats should really be on a wet food diet or at least some wet food. Also is the food full of soy, wheat, and grains? Cats need protein and fat in their diet.

One of my cats was eating a lot of dry food and it was low quality. She also shed a lot. I cut back on the dry food and changed it to a higher quality high protein food. I mix more water in with her wet food to try to get more moisture in her diet. I also give her a salmon oil supplement. The shedding has decreased.

You have to change the diet to fix the shedding, otherwise if the cat does start grooming more, you will be cleaning up vomit left and right. That may actually be why your cat isn't grooming itself- because it doesn't want to lick all that hair off and throw up hairballs. You may have the cause and effect backwards. The lack of grooming isn't causing the excessive shedding, rather, the shedding is causing the lack of grooming.
 
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Kitty Beholder

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I have read a few articles about why cats groom themselves. Grooming themselves isn't related to how much they shed. If a cat has a lot of loose hair and licks all that up, it will throw up hairballs because the fur will sit in its stomach undigested. They lick to remove debris from the fur like dirt or other other stuff.

If a cat is shedding a lot, the first thing I would look at is it's diet. Are they eating all dry food? Cats should really be on a wet food diet or at least some wet food. Also is the food full of soy, wheat, and grains? Cats need protein and fat in their diet.

One of my cats was eating a lot of dry food and it was low quality. She also shed a lot. I cut back on the dry food and changed it to a higher quality high protein food. I mix more water in with her wet food to try to get more moisture in her diet. I also give her a salmon oil supplement. The shedding has decreased.

You have to change the diet to fix the shedding, otherwise if the cat does start grooming more, you will be cleaning up vomit left and right. That may actually be why your cat isn't grooming itself- because it doesn't want to lick all that hair off and throw up hairballs. You may have the cause and effect backwards. The lack of grooming isn't causing the excessive shedding, rather, the shedding is causing the lack of grooming.
Wow, I did not think of that. Currently they are eating Purina Cat Chow Complete. The woman at the shelter recommended leaving dry food out for them to nibble on throughout the day.

Do you have any ideas as to how I should change this feeding schedule with the introduction of wet food? Any recommendations as to which brand I should look into? Preferably something I could get from a big box store.
 

MeganLLB

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Wow, I did not think of that. Currently they are eating Purina Cat Chow Complete. The woman at the shelter recommended leaving dry food out for them to nibble on throughout the day.

Do you have any ideas as to how I should change this feeding schedule with the introduction of wet food? Any recommendations as to which brand I should look into? Preferably something I could get from a big box store.
My cat that was shedding was also on Purina. I changed it to a grain free low carb high protein food. That is what you should look for on the bag. Same with wet food really. There are so many brands its hard to recommend one. If you are looking at grocery store brands Fancy Feast Classics are not too bad.

I feed my cats 1/4 cup of dry and half of a 5.5 oz can per day. Or one 3 oz can

You want to look for a protein like chicken as the first ingredient, and little fillers like potatoes and vegetables and rice.

That salmon oil supplement I use you can get at PetSmart or PetCo. Also Missing Link is a good supplement. They helped a lot with the shedding. But overall changing the diet I think is the thing to do.
 

MeganLLB

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I'm sure there are articles or other threads on here about introducing wet food. Maybe another member can point you to them.
 
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Kitty Beholder

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I will look into introducing them to new food. Poor Kimmy also threw up her first hairball today. It was orange in color, very wet with lots of fur. Is this normal? Will she be okay?
 

MeganLLB

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I will look into introducing them to new food. Poor Kimmy also threw up her first hairball today. It was orange in color, very wet with lots of fur. Is this normal? Will she be okay?
It is to be expected if she has a lot of loose fur, so it is normal in that sense. Do you have a brush? While you transition foods, can you brush her everyday? That would help. There is also like a paste type stuff you can get for hairballs. they lick it off their paws or you put it in their food.

I think she will be okay. Just look at maybe trying a different food and brush her everyday and that might help.
 
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Kitty Beholder

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It is to be expected if she has a lot of loose fur, so it is normal in that sense. Do you have a brush? While you transition foods, can you brush her everyday? That would help. There is also like a paste type stuff you can get for hairballs. they lick it off their paws or you put it in their food.

I think she will be okay. Just look at maybe trying a different food and brush her everyday and that might help.
I have been brushing her multiple times a day - she fills those brushes with hair very fast! I have noticed her eating more and grooming more, so I think part of it is just her being nervous about her new environment. According to the shelter, this will be the third home she's had in just two days (being a stray, picked up by the shelter, then adopted by me over the course of 48 hours).

The shelter recommended I pick up a certain brand of Grain-Free food, but it was something like 22 dollars a bag. When I run out of the Purina (they are very slow eaters, it seems, so that may take a while) I will definitely start a wet/dry feeding regimen with higher-quality food.

Thought I'd share a picture of my sweet girl:

Kimmy1.jpg
 

MissMolly08

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I agree with a diet change! My cat Molly was on Purina Cat Chow indoor for most of her life (I adopted her at 8 weeks old and she in now 9 years). She always shed SO bad. I could get brushes full of hair in one grooming session as well and she had a problem with hairballs. I recently switched her to a better quality dry food and also added wet food into her diet. The shedding is getting so much better! I brushed her last night and didn't even get 1 full brush of hair off her. I've also been topping her wet food once or twice a week with some of that hairball gel previous poster mentioned.
 

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Having had my two cats for a couple of days now, I've noticed a sort of problematic routine in my little girl's grooming. Kimmy sheds constantly - I probably get a brush full of hair out of her several times a day. Her brother Galahad has never shed.

What I've noticed is that Galahad grooms himself all the time. He's sort of a clean freak. Kimmy, however, hasn't been caught doing this once. I think that might be why she is shedding so darn much. I've attempted to move her closer to Galahad so that maybe he will groom her too, but he doesn't seem very interested.

Any suggestions?
Get a fine tooth comb for cats. It will get mats out and remove any loose fur as well as keeps the fur from flying loose. You need to comb not brush at least everyday for a week for at least an hour. If your kitty is a lap cat like mine he will love it.
 
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