Dredlocks. :/

Keep the dredlocks or cut them off.

  • Keep

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Cut 'em off

    Votes: 0 0.0%

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meaganandalbert

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Hi there!

So i have been having issues with Alberts coat. The top coat is all straight and has no knots or dreads however his under coat especially on his bum, legs, armpits is all curly and gets major dreadlocks that are very close to the skin. I regularly brush and bathe him but i am wondering if anyone knows of a safe products that will keep the hair from knoting and turning into dredlocks. Also, when i cut them off he carries them around in his mouth for hours as if i have mutilated him. Perhaps he is going through a rebellious stage. Anyway, they have to go, the feel so uncomfortable on his skin :( But then again should they stay if he likes them so much? 

-M&A
 
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sivyaleah

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Lovely cat!

What are you using exactly to groom him?  You mention a "brush".  If so, this isn't going to get underneath his coat very well at all.  You need to get a grooming comb for him. Brushes just sort of gloss over the top coat, never reaching the layer underneath where mats form.

You might want to look into a Furminator or similar.  Many people have great success with this; I just got one and I'm stunned by how much hair comes off with it.  They come in different sizes for different kinds of cat hair.

As for the condition he's in now, if the mats are that bad, you might consider having a professional shaving him down to start from scratch.  Pulling at the mats with any kind of grooming tool is surely going to hurt him and it sounds like there are too many for you to just cut out (and, you need to be careful with this as well).

Oh and the mats are painful for the cat to have; the weight of them will start to pull at the skin.  I can't even imagine how uncomfortable it must be for him to have a lot of them.

BTW, how is it that he's being allowed to walk around with his old "dreadlocks"?  Why not discard them right away in the trash?  
 
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meaganandalbert

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Well, i use his cat brush, has brush on one side, prongs on the other to get small knots out. The knots are fine and i am trained in clipping and shaving when i did my Vet nursing but i am no professional groomer, i just have basic knowledge in the area so i know how to cut correctly and safely. I chop them off they disappear for a week or two then suddenly they are there. He gets the hair after i let him go and he runs!. I obviously pick up the rest and get rid of it but the bit he takes hold of he will keep and won't let anyone near him for a few hours till he comes inside and it is gone? He doesn't eat it because i have found it in the yard a couple of times. He just keeps it for a while. 

I looked up the furminator and it looks very hard and sharp, not sure if this is suitable as he has very soft hair. Just developing dreadlocks all the time. Poor guy loves me scratching where are or have been but i guess i will have to get him professionally shaved. It is winter though :( 
 

sivyaleah

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My long haired cat also has very fine fur. The furminator doesn't bother her at all, in fact the opposite. She loves it, turns over and over so I can get every inch of her, purring like crazy lol.

It's possible your cat may need daily grooming to keep his coat manageable. I wouldn't use the furminator daily, however, a comb would be better. And the pronged one you have may not be doing the job for his type of double coat. A comb with fine teeth, will.get through it much better.
 
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meaganandalbert

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I will try that :) Will be going to the pet shop tomorrow to check others out and see if i can find one. I never trusted the metal ones because they looked so sharp and painful but i will give it a o with a comb. Poor guy just gets his hair so knotty! He loves playing in the bush and mud. Perfect combo for massive dreadlocks. 
 

sivyaleah

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Even my shorthaired cat loves the comb.  I think you'll be surprised how well it works.  If he balks at first, start with short sessions and give him some treats, that should hopefully help him acclimate.  But really, both of my kitties really like the way the comb feels on them, they love all over it when I take it out of the drawer and bring it over to them lol.
 

melesine

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My girl also has curly hair on her britches and belly. I occasionally had to cut small matts off of her but not very often. I found that once she was ours ( she was originally the neighbors cat and they made her live outside) and I made her indoor only she doesn't get matts anymore. And I'm only bathing her once a year so far. She doesn't mind being brushed on her back but her belly is sensitive so it's not always easy to get her to let me brush there. I have used a slicker brush, a shedding blade, a metal comb and the zoom groom on her. I got a furminator recently but I can't imagine using it on her sensitive belly area. 
 
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meaganandalbert

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Albert is Indoor/Outdoor and as long as i get him when he gets in from playing in the water and brush everything off him the dreadlocks don't come around, it's only when i don't see him and he dries off elsewhere. The metal brush got SO much hair out!! and he enjoyed it which was nice. Same issue as Melesine with the belly area though, he attacks the brush if it goes there.!
 

melesine

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Oh yes, I can see how they form when he gets wet and air dries without being brushed or combed. My girls fur shows more curl when it's wet and I make sure to comb her out and break up the dreads so she doesn't matt after I give her a bath. She even attacks the zoom groom which is very soft when I use it on her belly. Your boy is lovely. 
 

GoldyCat

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I will try that :) Will be going to the pet shop tomorrow to check others out and see if i can find one. I never trusted the metal ones because they looked so sharp and painful but i will give it a o with a comb. Poor guy just gets his hair so knotty! He loves playing in the bush and mud. Perfect combo for massive dreadlocks. 
The metal combs I've used all have very smooth rounded tips. They aren't sharp at all. I bought mine online, but if you're going to a store you should be able to feel the tips before you buy one. The ones with wider teeth will probably feel smoother than the skinny teeth.
 
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