Tips on getting my cat more tolerant to brushing?

cmshap

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Willy is a huge shedder, and I try to brush him every day. It makes a major difference in terms of hairballs and hair on the floor that I have to clean.

But he isn't entirely tolerant of it. He lets me do it for several strokes along his back, and then either turns around and starts biting at the brush, or leaps off my lap (and he is a natural lap cat so my lap is where he wants to be normally).

I've tried doing shorter brushing strokes, then stopping and waiting, then resuming, etc. But he only really tolerates it to a point and then leaps off my lap.

I just keep doing it periodically throughout the day, but it annoys both him and me, as it's a daily process that is really obnoxious to do.
 
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tabbytom

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Since your cat is a DSH, I suggest that you use a soft bristle brush to brush his fur. You did nit mention what type if brush your are using for him. Some cats are more sensitive to steel brushes as it digs the skin too much and also brushing too hard will irritate the cat.

Soft bristle brush does not do that. Also you need not to brush him very hard. With soft bristle brush, soft brushing will do and most of the fur will be caught in the brush and as with all types of bruising, fur wlll also drop on the floor.

This is what I use for my boy
IMG_3492.JPG
 
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cmshap

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Since your cat is a DSH, I suggest that you use a soft bristle brush to brush his fur.
This is such a simple potential solution I can't believe I didn't think of it before. 😂

I use the "FURminator" brush which is steel, and very well may be the reason he doesn't like it.
 

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tabbytom

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I use the "FURminator" brush which is steel, and very well may be the reason he doesn't like it.
Nah, you don't need this one. Soft bristle brush will do. My boy loves being combed. Each time he gets up from his sleep, he'll automatically lay in prone position and asked to be combed. I comb him several times a day.

Edit :

After combing my boy, I use a fine tooth comb to clear the fur on the brush
 
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cmshap

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Nah, you don't need this one. Soft bristle brush will do. My boy loves being combed. Each time he gets up from his sleep, he'll automatically lay in prone position and asked to be combed. I comb him several times a day.
I love this, it's so simple.
Thank you for the suggestion!
 

catloverfromwayback

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What sort of brush do you use? That can make a difference.

Okay I see the answer is there already, lol!

I tried the Furminator on Maddie (also DSH) and it was a complete dud.

I occasionally use a slicker brush on Daisy, because she has very thick fur, but mostly the King Zoom Groom. It’s soft, almost massages her, and gets lots of fur out. She loves it.

6931B818-2936-4CFD-A172-7AE913B45264.jpeg
 
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cmshap

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What sort of brush do you use? That can make a difference.

Okay I see the answer is there already, lol!

I tried the Furminator on Maddie (also DSH) and it was a complete dud.

I occasionally use a slicker brush on Daisy, because she has very thick fur, but mostly the King Zoom Groom. It’s soft, almost massages her, and gets lots of fur out. She loves it.

View attachment 446169
That's interesting, is it really soft rubber? Also how effective is it at picking up hair? I know rubber can make hair cling to it...

Edit: I saw you already said it is effective at getting fur out. I just reacted initially after seeing the pics.
 
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cmshap

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It’s soft enough to do no damage to a cat’s skin at all, and gets lots of hair out - here’s a demo!

Wow, that looks awesome! Thank you for the suggestion!

Willy loves to be petted and stroked so I think something softer like all the suggestions in this thread are the way to go.

Also that rubber one picking up that much fur looks amazing.
 

catloverfromwayback

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Wow, that looks awesome! Thank you for the suggestion!

Willy loves to be petted and stroked so I think something softer like all the suggestions in this thread are the way to go.

Also that rubber one picking up that much fur looks amazing.
Glad to help! I’m only familiar with the Australian sellers, but I’m pretty sure I saw it on Petco’s website too.

If Willy loves stroking and petting he should be fine with it - my two cuddlers come running when I get it out.

EtA and that was only a few seconds of brushing, after a couple of minutes I could stuff cushions with Daisy’s fur! :lol:
 

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The Furminator is great for getting a massive amount of hair. I think that’s because it actually thins the coat though. I will just do that a few times a year. She’s not a fan of it either. I always start with the head. She loves having the sides if her face brushed, and I don’t brush anywhere else until I have a real good purr going.
 
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cmshap

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The Furminator is great for getting a massive amount of hair. I think that’s because it actually thins the coat though. I will just do that a few times a year. She’s not a fan of it either. I always start with the head. She loves having the sides if her face brushed, and I don’t brush anywhere else until I have a real good purr going.
That's good to know. Maybe after I try a gentler kind of brush and get him used to doing that for a while, then he will be a little more tolerant of the FURminator when his really heavy shedding periods are happening.

BTW, can anyone explain how the "shedding waves" occur and why? He's a domestic shorthair, and goes through periods of extreme (at least how it feels to me, I may be exaggerating as a human having to deal with the vacuuming, etc.) shedding, followed by little shedding, followed by extreme shedding again.

He's strictly indoor and has a very comfortable life. Just curious about why this happens in waves like this.
 

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I have read that experts claim it doesn’t with indoor cats, but frankly, I don’t believe them. With mine, springtime starts heavier shedding. If she is exposed to heat in the summer, like hanging out in the sunroom with the plants, she will shed a ton. With Fall, the shedding goes way down, etcetera. It may depend on where you live, and how temperate you keep your home, whether you have central air and so on.
 
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cmshap

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I have read that experts claim it doesn’t with indoor cats, but frankly, I don’t believe them. With mine, springtime starts heavier shedding. If she is exposed to heat in the summer, like hanging out in the sunroom with the plants, she will shed a ton. With Fall, the shedding goes way down, etcetera. It may depend on where you live, and how temperate you keep your home, whether you have central air and so on.
That makes sense.

I live in an older apartment building where we have radiator heat. And live in the Midwest where winters get cold. So I am in a constant cycle of hot/cold as the hot water starts/stops flowing through the radiator to keep the apartment warm in winter.
 

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I have to say, I find the zoomgroom to be a pain to use because the darn thing is a "self cleaner", which is to say I end up with fur everywhere but in the brush after getting it off the cat 😒😑
Yes, I usually find I need to sweep it off Daisy’s back with my hand, as in the video I posted. Worth it though, for me. I tried grooming gloves and found them effective but a hassle to use, and she prefers the Zoom Groom.
 
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