If your cat sheds fur, be happy, your cat is fine! In fact, it is healthy because it sheds when it should. But when it sheds excessively, it becomes a problem. Do the following to control excessive shedding of your cat so you are not collecting hair from every nook and corner of the house.
#1 Give Your Cat Nutrients that Keep it from Excessive Shedding
Give your cat a proper diet. A cat needs fatty acids for healthy hair. If you give it homemade food, use ingredients with fatty acids in it. Feed a lot of meat. If you use canned food, use the one that has omega 3 and omega 6 in it. A cat with deficiency in omega 3 and omega 6 can have extra hair loss, dry and greasy skin and will have a dry and dull fur coat.
#2 Brush Your Cat’s Fur Regularly
Brushing your cat’s fur regularly reduces excessive shedding. One of the main benefits of brushing is that most of the fur gets pulled out with the brush. So, when it sheds, there isn’t much left for you to mop off the floor or clean out of your drain. Brushing its fur also keeps the fur healthy and silky. If your cat has long hair use wire-bristle brushes. If it has short hair use softer-bristle brushes. Alternatively, if your cat doesn’t like brushes you can always use grooming gloves. These gloves have rubber nubs on them like a comb. You cat won’t know you’re brushing it until the job is done and you have removed all excess hair from its fur.
#3 Bathe Your Cat Regularly
Give your cat a bath every two weeks. Use a bath tub or a sink to bathe it. Before applying any shampoo on it, rinse its fur until it is completely wet. This way it would be easier for you to apply shampoo all over the fur easily.
When you rinse the shampoo out, all the fur that needs to shed will shed. Afterwards, apply a leave on hair conditioner. The conditioner will moisturize dry fur and make it stronger. Stronger fur will shed much less.
#4 Keep Your Cat Hydrated
Give your cat wet food instead of dry food. Cats don’t drink a lot of water and as a result get dehydrated quickly. Due to dehydration, cats shed excessive fur. If you can find a way to feed it a lot of water it may be helpful but the right way to keep it hydrated is to give it wet foods.
#5 Take Your Cat to the Veterinarian if it has Alopecia
Shedding a little extra is one thing and losing complete patches of fur from its coat is quite another. If your cat starts having bald patches on its body then it is probably suffering from alopecia. This is something to worry about. Your veterinarian will prescribe you special medication and medicated shampoo for your cat. Follow all instructions of the vet if you want to treat your cat for alopecia.
Your cat is a part of the family too. This means that you are responsible for them! Take care of the little creature that brings laughter and so much joy in your life.
