Cat care and accessories
Cat care and accessories
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If you decide that you want a long-haired or a semi-longhaired cat (such as the Maine Coon), you will need to groom your cat using appropriate accessories. Actually, all cats can benefit from grooming and the majority of them likes to be given a daily groom with a soft brush, which additionally helps to build up a bond between the cat and the owner.
The essential cat care accessories include a soft brush and a comb. We usually use two brushes. The first one is a handmade boar bristle brush that helps to keep our cats’ hair untangled. The wooden handle and the natural boar bristle make it hundred percent anti-static. This is very important, since plastic brushes tend to create static electricity in the hair and cats really hate that. It is also a very unpleasant feeling for the person brushing the cat. The tufts of boar bristles in the brush are uneven. This structure makes it possible for the brush to penetrate through the coat, gently untangling it, leaving it smooth and adding extra volume without damaging the hair. Finally, the brush is great for removing dead hair.
The second brush we use is very similar, except that the bristles are made of natural horse hair. It is just perfect for brushing tails of cats representing breeds such as the Maine Coon, Norwegian Forest, etc. Because the coat on the tail contains so called guard hairs, which are very delicate and make bushy tails of long-haired and semi-longhaired breeds look so graceful, it is better not to use any brush rather than a brush or a comb that is inappropriate and could damage such distinct feature of the breed.
Grooming your cat with a natural bristle brush will keep her/his skin well-aerated and help in distributing the sebum (natural oil), which is a lubricant produced by oil glands, throughout the coat. The oils make a natural protection against the sun, wind and various kinds of pollutants.
Brushing is also very beneficial for cats that have not reached maturity, because they produce quite considerable amounts of sebum. Regular grooming not only distributes it throughout the coat, but also removes any excess sebum. Apart from the fact that it helps in creating a protective layer, regular brushing prevents matting and tangling of hair. Not to mention that your cat will look more attractive.
One important thing connected with grooming is that you should not brush your cat’s hair when it is wet. You should first dry it until it gets slightly damp. Remember not to rub your cat’s hair with a towel too firmly. You should rather wrap your kitty in a towel and then pat her/him dry. Only then can you start combing out the hair. This part should be done using a wide-toothed comb, and if you want to keep the outer coat in a perfect condition, you should not use plastic or metal combs, because they are not as smooth as you might think. They may cause microdamage to hair, making it weak and fragile. The best choice here would be a bone comb.
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The next stage, which is brushing, should be done after the fur is completely dry. A product worth using at this stage is talcum powder, which adds extra volume, prevents matting and helps in keeping the skin well-aerated. Your cat’s fur will become beautiful, lustrous, pleasant to the touch, and what is most important – healthy.
While discussing basic cat care accessories, we can not forget about a nail clipper. Trimming claws is very important in cats that persist in scratching the furniture or cats that dig in their claws into you when you pick them up. In these cases, trimming their nails should solve the problem.
Trimming your cat’s claws is a must if you want your cat to enter a show.