Find out when or how is the best time or situation for this activity.
Last week we turned up the heat and showed you how to keep your furbaby cool this summer. This time we put our feline furchild on the vet’s pedestal.
Assisted cat grooming is a controversial topic… the best way to approach it is to consider not what we want or maybe think a cat likes (oud perfumed shampoo?) but to consider what we know a cat needs…
The fact is that grooming is such an important part of natural feline behaviour and impacts:
- A cat’s health,
- A cat’s social position and
- A cat’s personal identity.
For these reasons, many Veterinary Professionals advocate that cat grooming services such as shaving and bathing are only beneficial when they are not going to negatively impact a cat’s health and welfare and that purely cosmetic cat grooming is unnecessary.
Instead, we should consider intervening with cat grooming only when we know that it will have a positive impact upon their health and/or wellbeing.
Reasons such as:
- When there is a contamination of coat (i.e. chemical/environmental).
- Aiding diagnosis or treating skin issues (such as Ringworm).
- A cat is arthritic or has other pain and injury management issues that makes them unable to groom themselves effectively.
- Cats with oral issues that prevent them from grooming.
- Long-haired cats that will benefit from welfare improvements following a trim (especially considering the UAE climatic conditions).
- Heavily matted cats.
What vet professionals really want to help build is a greater awareness among all pet parents regarding the benefits of assisting their cats with their natural grooming habits… which supports our cats to look and feel their best and enables all purry-pet parents to positively impact their wonderful felines!
For example, brushing your cat can be a very pleasurable activity and promotes cat/owner bonding which is another great reason for building this into your feline devotions…. It really is an enjoyable and relaxing activity for your cat (and you). Although, using the right type of brush is important (ask your vet for recommendations).
However, conversely… bathing your cat is likely to have a distinctly adverse impact as, for example, this removes important scent identifiers and essential oils from their coat… plus is very unlikely to be an activity that your cat will enjoy… so a triple whammy going against all three key considerations mentioned at the top of the page!
In summary:
- Supporting your cat with their natural grooming routine can be beneficial for their health and welfare
- It is great to start from a young age but also can have a huge role to play for senior cats who may struggle to self-groom
- Brushing is a great way to nurture and strengthen our relationships with our cats
- Consider “what would my cat want” and it might not be that dragon haircut or scented bath, but just a simple lovely, leisurely brush… !
And if in doubt, please ask your chosen vet care provider for their advice…!
Dr. Katrin is the founder of the German Veterinary Clinic. Her passion and commitment to delivering the highest standards of animal care as well as her extensive knowledge and experience has enabled the clinic to expand and flourish.
Dr Katrin is currently a resident in Veterinary Behaviour Medicine of both the European as well as American College of Animal Welfare and Behaviour Medicine and is the first (and only) veterinarian in the Middle East to specialize in this field. This means that GVC is the only clinic that can treat the mental, emotional and physical health of all our pet-patients.
