Help Gifa Has Got Weak Hairs

[KittyRoyale]

So my two kittens Sonar and Gifa are doing well so far, next vet appointment is in 3 weeks but and last one was almost pretty violent. They both have been on same diet and i started feeding on seperate bowl when i noticed Gifa would eat faster than Sonar and Sonar who eats more but slowly would feel threatened by this eating speed and ma start hissing and growling. Sonar seems to be fine even though smaller then Gifa in size with pretty strong hairs which wont come off even ii pulled on it softly or brushed it. Gifa on the other hand is making me and my visitors quite uncomfortable she is growing more rapidly than Sonar and is pure muscles. Her hair seems too weak when compared to sonar's they just come of at every soft pull and brushing. This is not alarming as she is still healthy and very fury even more fury (i even started thinking she might be growing more than she can keep). She has no ring worm, fleas or skin condition and if not for the fact that my bed is covered with her fallen hairs when ever she lies there and my couch, blankets and cloths too. I cant clean them all, my visitors cant sit on my couch without having hairs on their dresses so i had to limit them to the bedroom and other rooms.. This condition is is happening to Gifa only and the Vet i took her to see (is not a cat specialist) says it might be attributed to her diet. But she's been eating all her favourite foods which is raw based. And wont swith to canned food no matter how i try. She is also milk obsessed (her milk is lactose based my kittens are very tolerant) and will only drink a particular brand of milk. I dont understand what might be causing this as I've read tons of articles on cats shedding and this is different and the cat is still too young. I doubt my vet visit will go well ( for a 1000 miles journey) as th already made a check for every thing my vet asked about on the phone. Last check is the blood test and the vet mentioned something about steroids and dieting too ( i dont know what). Is anyone familiar with this condition? Perharps i could also use some advice and suggestions from real life cat owners than Nigerian vets who rarely get cat visit and mostly never owned one (i do respect my vet by the way, she is the only one i found in the country with high THEORITICAL knowledge of felines with a randomly seldom practical field experience...plus she sends them gifts every month since our visit )

*The White one is Gifa
* She is super agile, strong, fast and playful
* at Six months she can take a 5/4 feet leap up the wardrobe or fence (Sonar can't go that far) she also snaps a pen in pieces in seconds (Sonar can never do that) she rather play with people than toys.
*She is also recovering from a sprain

(

 

[KittyRoyale]

Notice the hairs on the bag. I just kept it now and she lay on it for about five minutes. Thats what happens when she lays on anything even when i carry her my body is covered with hairs

 

[mservant]

First things first, This pair are seriously cute, and look full of trouble which is probably why I've fallen instantly in love with them.

Gifa sounds very like one of my former kitties, Pal, as a kitt'. She was a lean and bouncy muscle babe too and despite looking smaller than her litter sister weighed almost twice as much (as a result of the muscle). Like Gifa she was also extremely generous with her fur and I used to say she should be bald the amount she shed every day. From the day I brought her home I swear all anyone had to do was breath near her and the fur would fly off in clouds.

Like you I wondered about diet and tried altering her food, adding fur supplements and also regular grooming. All the grooming did was give me enough collected fur to consider starting up a cat-fur yarn company. Along with filling my vacuum with fur on a weekly basis it also resulted in a normally cat tolerant friend head home from a visit with newly diagnosed asthma and a steroid prescription! My vets never came up with an answer other than that some cats shed more than others, and Pal certainly did that. You might like to know that other than developing arthritis (likely due to her over-zealous bouncing as a kitt') she lived happily to the grand age of 21 and 10 months.

I hope all is well with Gifa and you see her shedding settle, at least when it is cooler and she needs to keep more of that fur to herself.

Oh, and it might be tough on furniture and clothes but I found that slicker brushes were also pretty good for getting large amounts of fur of fabric - as are microfibre cloths.

 

[di and bob]

That bag looks like my house! I would venture to say that most cats in your area must be of a breed that doesn't shed much. And then there is Gifa....she may have a different breed in her background that normally sheds, yes it is normal, my house is full of fur and their blankets are covered, it is a never ending battle.The 'furminator' is a type of comb that gets rid of excess hair remarkably well, they are a little pricey but well worth it. You also said she is the only one that likes her milk, she may be getting lactose intolerant as she gets older. if you can get goats milk, that is very good, and kitten replacement milk, but then she may gain weight.There are several lactose free milks available now, you might try that. You might also get some treats that have vitamins for cats,just in case she is lacking something. Most advertised for older cats are full of them. All the luck!

 

[nese]

They are adorable kitties
Is the raw food you feed pre-made or do you prepare their food yourself?
It may be lack of zinc and/or biotin. There are vitamin and mineral supplements for cats, I recommend you to check one which includes high zinc and biotin. It really makes huge different.

The other thing that gives fur more shine, softness ans strenght is omega 3. You can also check it. We give Omega 3 to our cats occasionally.

 

[KittyRoyale]

First things first, This pair are seriously cute, and look full of trouble which is probably why I've fallen instantly in love with them.

Gifa sounds very like one of my former kitties, Pal, as a kitt'. She was a lean and bouncy muscle babe too and despite looking smaller than her litter sister weighed almost twice as much (as a result of the muscle). Like Gifa she was also extremely generous with her fur and I used to say she should be bald the amount she shed every day. From the day I brought her home I swear all anyone had to do was breath near her and the fur would fly off in clouds.

Like you I wondered about diet and tried altering her food, adding fur supplements and also regular grooming. All the grooming did was give me enough collected fur to consider starting up a cat-fur yarn company. Along with filling my vacuum with fur on a weekly basis it also resulted in a normally cat tolerant friend head home from a visit with newly diagnosed asthma and a steroid prescription! My vets never came up with an answer other than that some cats shed more than others, and Pal certainly did that. You might like to know that other than developing arthritis (likely due to her over-zealous bouncing as a kitt') she lived happily to the grand age of 21 and 10 months.

I hope all is well with Gifa and you see her shedding settle, at least when it is cooler and she needs to keep more of that fur to herself.

Oh, and it might be tough on furniture and clothes but I found that slicker brushes were also pretty good for getting large amounts of fur of fabric - as are microfibre cloths.

Wow thats very interesting and i tought this was completely abnormal, my vet did suggest the same but i felt too concerned that it might be a health issue so i insisted on the blood test. Thanks soo much am quite relieved!

 

[KittyRoyale]

They are adorable kitties
Is the raw food you feed pre-made or do you prepare their food yourself?
It may be lack of zinc and/or biotin. There are vitamin and mineral supplements for cats, I recommend you to check one which includes high zinc and biotin. It really makes huge different.

The other thing that gives fur more shine, softness ans strenght is omega 3. You can also check it. We give Omega 3 to our cats occasionally.

I haven't exclusively given them the omega 3 suppliment yet, and yes i do prepare most of thier meals (mostly turkey breast and rabbits sometimes i blend in some extra liver too). I'll call in on my vet for the zinc and biotin recommendation. Thank you soo much for pointing that out

 

[KittyRoyale]

That bag looks like my house! I would venture to say that most cats in your area must be of a breed that doesn't shed much. And then there is Gifa....she may have a different breed in her background that normally sheds, yes it is normal, my house is full of fur and their blankets are covered, it is a never ending battle.The 'furminator' is a type of comb that gets rid of excess hair remarkably well, they are a little pricey but well worth it. You also said she is the only one that likes her milk, she may be getting lactose intolerant as she gets older. if you can get goats milk, that is very good, and kitten replacement milk, but then she may gain weight.There are several lactose free milks available now, you might try that. You might also get some treats that have vitamins for cats,just in case she is lacking something. Most advertised for older cats are full of them. All the luck!

well i must confess thats a fun relief. So sheding could be attributed to certain breeds?.....i had no idea. Am glad my house is not looking worse than that. I did get them some of that vitamin filled treat but my vet said to hold on until after the visit. I could suspect the breed too. Their mama wasn't a shedder their papa too wasnt a shedder but both parents where pure white short haired. I was surprised they kittens had Back and reddish brown pattern. Well i could live with that and a new vacuum cleaner , i called in at the petshop but they dont have that brush. I'll just add it to my online shoping whishlist. Thanks by the way, i have a strong feeling my vet would say just what you suggested.

 

[nese]

yes i do prepare most of thier meals (mostly turkey breast and rabbits sometimes i blend in some extra liver too).

I guess that may be the reason. I also prepare our cats raw meal myself (since we do not have any pre-made raw food available in our country) and made a lot of research in order to be able to feed them a balanced diet.

Turkey breast is low in zinc, and rabbits are low in taurine. Instead of turkey breast, you can give them thighs they are higher in zinc than breasts.
But lamb is even better than turkey in terms of zinc content.
I also recommend you to add hearts, liver and egg yolks to their diet, they all contain high amount of zinc. I also add gizzards, spleen, different meat sources and bones to ours diet.

However, please check the available recipes on the internet to maintain correct ratios. It is very important for long-term health.

 

[KittyRoyale]

I guess that may be the reason. I also prepare our cats raw meal myself (since we do not have any pre-made raw food available in our country) and made a lot of research in order to be able to feed them a balanced diet.

Turkey breast is low in zinc, and rabbits are low in taurine. Instead of turkey breast, you can give them thighs they are higher in zinc than breasts.
But lamb is even better than turkey in terms of zinc content.
I also recommend you to add hearts, liver and egg yolks to their diet, they all contain high amount of zinc. I also add gizzards, spleen, different meat sources and bones to ours diet.

However, please check the available recipes on the internet to maintain correct ratios. It is very important for long-term health.

For real?.... Well even if it's not causing the shedding i hate to know my kittens ain't getting the best from thier meal. I cant easily get premade food either and my vet isn't really a pro dietitian. I'm really glad you pointed this out am going to have to research and review thier meal properties. I wish i could find a great working recipe. I want my pretty little devils to eat healthy.I'm going to try the subtitutes you recommended and monitor them for the next week. The can be very choicy on what meat they are served (if i mixed beef with rabbit, they'll eat all the rabbit and leave the beef) i dont just know how to introduce new meals to them

 

[LTS3]

Please see this for raw feeding resources:

Raw Feeding Resources

Additional resources:

Making Cat Food
Home
Feline Nutrition Foundation

What country do you live in? Raw meats and organs and such are fine without supplementation as long as the ratios are correct (80% meat, 10% bone, 5% organs, 5% liver).

 

[nese]

I'm going to try the subtitutes you recommended and monitor them for the next week

Do not be sorry, they are very young, it is a good time to make some adjustments on their diet. They may like some meats and do not like others, each cat has different taste.
We have 3 cats, they do not like gizzards for example, I grind them together with meat and then they eat it.

I keep the ratio of bones between 7-8%, organs 5% and liver 5%. I grind 2 kg meal in one time, divide it into 100 gr portions and then freeze at least 3 days before serving. I add 2 egg yolks, for iodine I add dried seaweed to this mix.

You can get very helpful info from raw feeding section of this forum.
In our country, most of the vets also do not approve raw feeding, and do not have detailed knowledge about it. Luckily, ours is not one of them

You will need at least couple of weeks to see the results. Even if you use supplements do not expect to see results in just one week.