Long haired cat care

[Spirael]

We're adopting this adorable ball of fluff next week from our local shelter.

We're a family of experienced cat servants, but we've never had a semi long haired cat before. What do we need to know about attending to this little prince's every need that differs from short haired cats?

Aww, he's gorgeous!

Just brushing, brushing, brushing. Even if they hate it at first, they do eventually come to enjoy it.

Oh and that (malt?) paste to help with hairballs.

Also he will shed white fur on your dark clothes and black fur on your light clothes so have a good supply of lint rollers to hand.

That is an excellent cat.

Buy some hairdressing scissors so you can chop out any knots. And get him used to being brushed.

And forget about trying to have carpets/clothes free from cat hair. It won’t happen. Let it go. It’s over.

If his fur ever does get matted (e.g. in the "armpits" or tummy,) it's far less traumatic for the cat if you just cut it out than if you try to comb it out. I have some blunt-ended scissors for this- I mean, the scissors are sharp, not blunt, but they have rounded tips so as not to stab him if he moves suddenly.

I have a persian and use a metal comb instead of a brush. Much better for getting any knots out.

For our previous long haired cat (from a shelter aged 5) after trying many brushes and combs we found this to be the best (amazon). Any larger knots we would cut out.
After this cat sadly had to be PTS we now have another semi long haired cat but she is able to manage her own coat and we just cut out any lumps she cant reach. She doesn't like being brushed

Get them used to brushing early. I can’t stress how important this is!

Mine get a daily quick brush with a soft baby brush type brush and a once a week comb to make sure no knots.

When young, trim the hair around their bottom as they WILL get poo stuck in it and use your floors to try and remove it. 🤢

Thanks so much for the advice, everyone. I have invested in several small brushes for while he's still tiny, and will train all his servants to brush him regularly. Once he matures a bit, I'll upgrade to industrial sized brushes that will cope with whatever glorious mane he grows!

I'll also look at getting some round tipped scissors with which to safely trim the fur around his bottom as required, and many treats with which to apologise for the outrageous indignity that such a process will cause him. (And I've located a local professional cat groomer as a backup plan!)

Same with my Persians. Or a grooming rake. A tangle teaser was good for a quick every day brush. I use thinning scissors rather that normal scissors to cut knots as it reduces the risk of cutting them. Mine saw a professional groomer every few months.

Oh and a hygiene trim is a must!

Gorgeous kitten. 😻
I have two long haired moggies and they manage their own coats. We brush or comb them occassionally - but that's about it. Sybil did get a bit matted once but there hasn't been a repeat of it. However they really pick up garden detritus (and the odd slug 🤮) though, so they do need to get used to combing and brushing
I have never needed to do a 'hygiene' trim. My rufty tufty moggies somehow manage to avoid getting crap on their very hairy backsides without a problem. 🤣

Mine loves being brushed. She actually drools and I offer a brush as a treat activity because she likes it so much.
In the summer watch out for slugs getting stuck in the fur.
With mats you don't have to cut them off at the skin, sometimes just cutting a chunk off allows them to groom out the rest.
Hairball food/paste occasionally is a good idea.
Beautiful kitty - mine is very similar looking to yours.

We have a Siberian and have been told they are less prone to tangles and mats than some long haired cats but it does still happen.

This comb is good - the teeth rotate so it doesn’t pull as much Ferplast Gro 5794 Cat Comb with... https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00C7DKAL2?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

He does sometimes get poo on his fur. Less than you might expect but it can happen so be prepared for that.

And we’ve had slugs stuck to his tummy after he’s been out in the garden. Better than poo but still not pleasant - but they do pull out easily.

Agree that cutting out mats / poo is much easier and more pleasant for the cat than trying to comb / wash them out. Our cat is a pet and not for show so it doesn’t matter if he has fur cut out and it doesn’t show anyway - he has plenty more!