For Cat Lovers

I've had to shave my cats. My short hair, I was able to do with the clippers I use for my sons. He had dandruff really bad, so his mats were the worst. My neighbor had to use her dog clippers on the long haired cat while I held her down. so technically, I didn't use a groomer, though she did know what she was doingas she does her dogs regularly. It was a little wild, but she was so happy afterwards. They will look different, there's no denying that, but the matted look was not attractive.

I worked in a feline practice for a few years and we would shave long hair cats for different reasons one being that the cat was too stressed and did not like having the knots combed out. As for the cat suffering any depression from not having any hair, that is false. They could be stressed from having gone through the act but not having hair is not a problem at all. Not sure what you are wanting to do with her hair. Are you wanting to shave it or cut it short?
With her being 17 years old it would not take much to really stress her out. I would go very slow and take a long time to finish taking many breaks or take her to a vet to have her sedated (using gas only might be the best route to take for a cat her age and maybe some blood work) for a haircut.
Not sure if I answered you question or not (?)
C.

We had a beautiful black long hair cat until she was 21 years old and we took her to the groomer every 4-6 months until the last 6 months when she was too sick. It is well worth the expense 2 or 3 times a year. Your cat is more comfortable and the groomer had the tools and experience to shave out the knots if necessary. The groomer we used shaved her belly and "armpits" shorter to prevent knots coming back right away. Talk to your groomer when you find one so you can get your kitty in before she is a mass of knots (I struggled to get to it when I had a new baby in the house). After 10 + years with a long hair cat I got to the point where I could comb or snip a small knot out but once it was a bigger tangle, it was time for the groomer. In an ideal world a long hair cat does best with daily brushing. I never could manage that but I tried for every other day or at least a few times a week.

First of all -- DON'T cut them out! It's very easy to cut skin when you're doing that.

I've had a long-hair cat now for 15 years, and I've gotten her shaved at least twice a year for all those years. She gets all matted and knotty. I imagine that having knots in your fur would be uncomfortable. After she gets shaved, I find that she is more playful and happy. I think because it frees her of those knots. If I were you I'd get your cat shaved. Much easier and quicker than brushing out knots.

Someone mentioned the color changing if you got her shaved. Well, if she's a Russian blue she'll be gray with short or long hair so I doubt that will be an issue for you.

I don't now about putting a cat into a depression with a haircut - but once we had to give a very long-haired cat a "lion cut" and he was pretty embarrassed for a while.

If your kitty has sensitive skin, this job is best left to a professional. Cutting tangles out is risky because the scissors can cut the skin (I know this from experience, and that kitty didn't come near me again for a long time!). On the other hand, not removing the tangles can lead to skin problems. You might see if your vet could do this for you, or maybe the vet could recommend a groomer who works well with older cats.

One of my tenants has a huge, fat, furry cat and she has her shorn once a year because she gets so matted during the winter months. Her cat doesnt seem to suffer any behavior problems from it and actually sort of gets a "tude" like she just got home from the salon with her new doo. The groomer leaves a big puff ball on the end of her tail, it looks rather amusing.

use a light conditoner ( such as baby conditioner) on her and run a brush thru it twice a day. That should help. it did for my mini border collie that i had.

I have cut my cat's fur a few times when it got tangles. She never got depressed, but was a lot younger...

I have a tuxedo long hair. Her fur gets matted really easy if I don't keep on top of it. We'ce had to shave parts of her several times now in the 2+ years we've had her. The vet does their best to not shave more than they need to to get the mats out and make things look even. Mostly we get her belly shaved and her "arm pits" I guess you could call them and sometimes her haunches. She is so much happier when the mats are out of her fur! It's never sent her into any type of depression or anything. She's even a rescue cat that we rescued off the street after being abandoned. I honestly think she's relieved. It's dangerour to cut them out yourself as it's super easy to nick the skin underneath and they really don't like it at all. The vets have always said she's the easiest and sweetest cat and she never puts up a fuss or cares. I have to comb her every day, if not more to totally keep up on the mats. With 3 kids and 3 other cats besides here..plus the house and I home school..yeah..you can tell it doesn't get done each and every day, though I do it as mucha s possible.
The tightness of the fur in a mat is far more annoying than shaving them and giving them a fresh start :)

I had a longhaired cat who I would regularly take to the groomers for a summer cut (it's basically shaved). But I did it because I was allergic to him and it helped with that. I've never heard of it causing depression but he did seem mad for a day after, I think it was because they always put a bow on him! After that he was fine.

I've got a long haired maine coon. He's a wonderful guy but needs to be brushed several times a week or he gets matted. If the knots are not on the skin then yes snip them out. If the knots are at skin level then you might want to have her shaved. No she won't get depressed at all.

Try to avoid it by brushing often. It'll help cut down on the fur shedding problems too.

here is why you should NOT shave or close trim the hair
1. can be tramatic to the animal
2. the color will more than likely change all the cool patterns that you may not notice at first glance but YOU see when you pet her will be GONE
Take her to a good quality groomer have them address the issue initially then ask them how to maintain this at home.