Cat Shedding
Shedding cats can leave a lot of hair lying about the house, and it can be a real chore to clean up. But don’t worry - there are ways to manage and control cat shedding that will put an end to the constant battle against cat fur.
Before attempting to control cat shedding, it’s important to understand how and why it happens.
Cat shedding is a healthy, natural response to longer days in the spring, and shorter days leading up to winter. In the spring cats shed their warm winter coat because it is no longer needed. Before winter they get rid of old hair so they can grow a new winter coat and have it in tip-top condition during the colder months.
However, shedding that follows this pattern only happens in outdoor cats. The benefits of this for you, the cat owner, are twofold. Firstly your cats will do most of their shedding outdoors, and secondly it will be limited to twice a year.
With indoor cats the story is different. Because the temperature never really changes, and the lights are on past nightfall even on the longest summer days, indoor cats have lost their natural shedding rhythms and do it all year round.
Now we all know how much cats love to be groomed, so buy a brush and give your cat a therapeutic (for both of you!) brush as often as you can. There is no harm in doing it every day. Not only will you be removing cat hair that would otherwise be left around your house, you will help prevent hairballs and be able to keep an eye out for skin diseases.
Although brushing is probably the singlemost effective tool to control cat shedding, using wet wipes, covering your cat’s favourite places with an easily washed blanket, and a diet rich in omega-3 can also help reduce cat shedding.