Greasy Kitten

I have a few questions about cat grooming and cat grooming products. My 14 month old's (domestic medium hair, female) coat seems to be oily or greasy. A few months ago her coat was clean, fluffy and silky. Now, the greasiness started to develop as it got warmer here and as she went through her first adult shed. I have no clue if any of that is related or just a coincidence. Salem does tend to hot and uncomfortable very easily so I am constantly running the air conditioner. She still grooms the same amount without any difficulty, at least that I have seen. The grease is mainly on her chest, belly and back legs with her back, head and mane are for the most part unaffected. I have had cats that were older and could not groom as well. You could feel the oil on your hands after petting them. The oil on Salem's coat does not transfer to your hands. I have to admit that Salem is my first cat without short hair. So, maybe this is normal or at least normal for her. If that is the case, I will try to stop worrying as much and just accept her as she is. I don't care how she looks. I am just worried that maybe there is something wrong or that I just don't know how to groom a medium haired cat. Salem's coat is nothing like I have ever felt before on a cat. The hairs are very fine, silky and densely packed. Her coat is almost water proof as in drops of water just bead and run off her. Since I have never owned a longer haired cat before, I was kind of assuming that this is fairly normal. But, the sudden oiliness is worrying me. Is there something special that needs to be done to maintain a long haired cat? Right now, I just brush her and she hates it. I use a soft bristled brush and all she does is get mad and fight me. I mean she REALLY gets MAD. It is hard not to laugh because how can something so fluffy and cute have such a temper? lol I think she just does not like to be held in one place. She has kitten things to do and does not appreciate the interruption!
Anyways, I have been looking into cat grooming products. I found a few that I want to try, but they all have aloe in them, like 90 % of the products out there have it. Isn't aloe toxic to cats? Is it safe to use shampoo or grooming wipes with aloe? I think I might try grooming wipes before going straight to a full on bath. Has anyone ever used them and had any real success? I know that is kind of a broad question considering the astronomical number of brands out there. I just don't even know where to start. Does anyone have a favorite grooming product? I am not even sure if Salem will benefit from being bathed whether it be wipes or shampoo. Could it make her coat worse like when we over wash our face and make it more oily? Any advice would be much appreciated, especially from long haired cat parents, past or present. Thanks!

Wow, she's GORGEOUS!!
Try starting to brush a little bit when she's asleep.

This might help--earthbath is good I think, but as with any such products, the shorter the list of ingredients especially chemicals, fragrances etc, the better.

How To Safely Bathe A Cat: The Complete Guide

Furballsmom said:

Wow, she's GORGEOUS!!
Try starting to brush a little bit when she's asleep.

This might help--earthbath is good I think, but as with any such products, the shorter the list of ingredients especially chemicals, fragrances etc, the better.

How To Safely Bathe A Cat: The Complete Guide

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Thank you! I often catch myself staring at her and thinking "how am I so lucky to get to take care of such a little beauty?" I am in love with her tail. It is so fluffy and wavy! I just love Salem to pieces!
Earthbath was one the brands I was considering. So, I will probably give them a try. Thanks!

Moka said:

Could it make her coat worse like when we over wash our face and make it more oily?

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About this, I don't know, but I was wondering - is she licking more frequently?

Furballsmom said:

About this, I don't know, but I was wondering - is she licking more frequently?

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Not that I have noticed and I spend all day every day with her. From the pictures, Does she look greasy to you?

My boy has cottony belly fur that mats, at a certain length, if I look at it wrong, so I also have to keep a sharp lookout for those which might be the same situation for you with the oiliness that's going on.

The only other thing I could think of would be to try a food change and see if that makes a difference in her coat

She may learn to enjoy/tolerate brushing, but let the tail be the last thing you attempt. All of mine have gone into psycho land when I tried to brush their tails, not the legs, but the actual tails. I think that is because there is almost no flesh padding the tail and they feel the brushing more there than any where else. If you brush the rest, I'm sure she can handle that fluffiness herself.

For a long haired cat I suggest a comb rather than a rush, especially with the coat texture you describe. Have you checked her teeth? I know that sounds crazy, but I have a boy who got really greasy looking. It turns out he was diagnosed with stomatitis. You could try corn starch if you can comb it out completely. You could also take her to a certified cat groomer. She is a beauty!

I named my grandpa senior cat Salem (he is peach) Salem is such a good name! Yes, I named him after the talking cat in Sabrina the Teenage Witch from the 90’s.

I’m wondering if she is spilling her wet food onto her chest? I would brush her. I use a king rubber cat shape brush on all the kitties and they like it (expect the belly brushing.)

Also have you tried unscented cat bath wipes? Or unscented foaming cat baths? The foam bath is a great way to bathe your kitty because there is no water. Also there is a haircut where they shave her belly to prevent matting. There is the Tiger where they shave all of the cat’s fur to the same length (1/4 inch to 1 inch long. Personally I think your girl would be cooler with her fur 1/2 inch long plus they bathe them when they give them this hair cut. Me, being the weirdo that I’m am, might consider giving my cat the Dragon hair cut ...... or the dignified Tiger.

I would try having her teeth looked at just in case.

danteshuman said:

I named my grandpa senior cat Salem (he is peach) Salem is such a good name! Yes, I named him after the talking cat in Sabrina the Teenage Witch from the 90’s.

I’m wondering if she is spilling her wet food onto her chest? I would brush her. I use a king rubber cat shape brush on all the kitties and they like it (expect the belly brushing.)

Also have you tried unscented cat bath wipes? Or unscented foaming cat baths? The foam bath is a great way to bathe your kitty because there is no water. Also there is a haircut where they shave her belly to prevent matting. There is the Tiger where they shave all of the cat’s fur to the same length (1/4 inch to 1 inch long. Personally I think your girl would be cooler with her fur 1/2 inch long plus they bathe them when they give them this hair cut. Me, being the weirdo that I’m am, might consider giving my cat the Dragon hair cut ...... or the dignified Tiger.

I would try having her teeth looked at just in case.

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Yeah, Salem is a cool kitty name and it just fits her so well.
No, she could not have spilled wet food on herself because she refuses to even go near wet food let alone eat it. She is a very stubborn kibble addict. I have not given up on getting her to eat wet food, but boy is she picky. Salem's teeth seem fine to me. I am getting her used to brushing them and she has no real issue with it. She does not have any redness and she does not act sensitive. I am not brushing them frequently enough yet to even potentially make her mouth sore, I am pretty gentle and I let her kind of tell if she has had enough. Oddly, teeth brush is something Salem willing accepts. But, not brushing her coat. Weird cat. I did just get done brushing her a bit more thoroughly. I had to chase her around our apartment with the brush for about 15 minutes, but it helped a little. She was not really in distress or I would have stopped. I would say Salem was more annoyed. Now, as far as taking her to a groomer and having her shaved, I would love to. But, (It seems like with Salem there is always a "but") she was hand raised by me and I live alone. She is absolutely petrified of anyone other that me. Even people she has seen many times will sending her running for cover. She is essentially feral to everyone except me. A cat like that would probably need to be sedated to be shaved. Not only can I not afford that (not even close), but I would hate to have Salem anesthetized once a year for the rest of her life. I hope I don't sound like I am just making up excuses. I want to do whatever I can for my little one, but I don't think taking her to a groomer is possible right now. I do like the idea of a dragon cut though. lol Maybe, with time and patience I can get Salem used to a pair of clippers (with a safety guard) and shave her belly? I don't know.
I am going to try unscented cat wipes first before going full on with a bath. I have tried foaming dry cat shampoo and it just seems to make things worse. It leaves a sticky film on her coat no matter how little I use.

posiepurrs said:

For a long haired cat I suggest a comb rather than a rush, especially with the coat texture you describe. Have you checked her teeth? I know that sounds crazy, but I have a boy who got really greasy looking. It turns out he was diagnosed with stomatitis. You could try corn starch if you can comb it out completely. You could also take her to a certified cat groomer. She is a beauty!

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Salem likes to bite her brush. I am a little concerned she might try that with a comb. Would a small slicker brush work? Otherwise I will try to find a good plastic cat comb. Hopefully, plastic would be less damaging to Salem than metal if she bit down on it.
No, the whole teeth/sore mouth thing is not crazy at all. It makes sense a cat would have issues grooming if they had mouth issues. I have started to brush Salem's teeth and she is weirdly ok with it. I have not really been doing it enough yet to potentially make her mouth sore, there is not any redness that I can see and she does not seem sensitive at all.

Kflowers said:

She may learn to enjoy/tolerate brushing, but let the tail be the last thing you attempt. All of mine have gone into psycho land when I tried to brush their tails, not the legs, but the actual tails. I think that is because there is almost no flesh padding the tail and they feel the brushing more there than any where else. If you brush the rest, I'm sure she can handle that fluffiness herself.

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I finally gave her a more thorough brushing. It took a while and I spent most of that time chasing her around our apartment when she managed to wiggle free from me. I almost never brush her tail and when I do, like you I do it last. Salem doesn't exactly go "psycho". She just gets annoyed and she likes to bite the brush. Then, Salem rolls around on the floor and eventually slips from my grasp. Maybe, as I keep working with her and as she gets a little older, she will get better about brushing.

Hi!
Try and have a favorite treat ready for every time you're finished.

A slicker type brush (mine has metal, --not what you're looking for now but maybe later), or a rubber zoomgroom is what we're using. I bought Wahl clippers but ended up going with scissors instead for my boy's mats (I cut only to the length where I can then pull them apart with my fingers) and to keep his belly and armpit fur a bit shorter.

You could try a wooden human comb (the tines/teeth might be thicker than you want?), or plastic.

Try some MusicForCats . com and there's an app called Relax My Cat

Also, just to mention;
Transitioning Your Cat From Kibble To A New Type Of Food (canned, Raw, Or Homemade)

Our Sam always looked greasy around his hips when he was younger. The hair would stand up and look a little spikey-like he was using hair gel or something. He loves being brushed, but no amount of brushing helped. I was convinced he just didn't groom himself there. When he turned about 2 years old, he started to look better. He doesn't look greasy at all now. Maybe he took a little longer to learn how to wash himself properly?

Awww

About your bottle baby being people shy. I would suggest patience. Invite the same couple of people over every week or two (one visitor at a time) and be calm. Toss her her favorite treats every time someone comes over. Do that for 2-6 months or however long it takes for her make some progress and be less afraid. Then slowly get her used to being in the same room as the guests while you pet her. Then the guest throw treats to her. Then both you and your guest pet her at the same time. (Besid

Besides the treat throwing, your guest should generally ignore your cat. I remember being surprised when one day Dante just jumped up on my mom’s chair and accepted pets from her!

It took my boy lots of treats and 6 months for him to like my mom (& we were living with her!) So when I got my foster kittens I encouraged them to be pet/held/get treats from everyone from the get go. When I adopted one kitten, I take him in walks and I offer him a treat every time someone comes by to try to prevent having another super shy cat l. Good luck!

weebeasties said:

Our Sam always looked greasy around his hips when he was younger. The hair would stand up and look a little spikey-like he was using hair gel or something. He loves being brushed, but no amount of brushing helped. I was convinced he just didn't groom himself there. When he turned about 2 years old, he started to look better. He doesn't look greasy at all now. Maybe he took a little longer to learn how to wash himself properly? View attachment 290407

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What a beautiful Boy!

Lack of grooming can also be a sign of depression or stress.