[will]

It's summertime & I notice my cat's liking to lay on the a/c vents a lot.
I've always thought he'd look like a little lion if he had short hair from his neck on down.
Not only would he be cooler, but it'd cut down on the dust bunnies & reduce furball development.
Anyone ever attempted this? I've been able to trim his claws without too much mayhem; I've even worked up to being able to vacuum him. Now, I'm working up to the swimming thing 8)!
Thx,
W.

 

[HelloBeautiful]

Are you talking about cutting your cat's hair?

If so, first of all, I would buy some good quality clippers...it really pays off. I asked a proffesional groomer and you should too.
Second of all, cats have been known to freak out with vacuum cleaners, hair dryers, and other loud things. I would let the cat get used to the sound of the clippers for a few days before hand.
Third of all...kitty clipper cut day! I would ask a groomer how to do it first, then shave. I'm not a proffesional on this, so I recommend asking a groomer first.

If all of this sounds confusing and difficult, just take her to get groomed. It costs a bit but at least you know what you'll get!

Hope everything works out!

 

[Jessica]

Sure, I've clipped my cats fur and if you want to see the outcome just check out the cat picture forum and look under the thread titled "Sampson's new haircut".

Unfortunately for me there's only one groomer locally who will clips cats but I feel she charges too much money and wasn't getting what I asked for. I took it upon myself to barrow a co-worker's clippers(I use Oster clippers and a size ten blade), grabbed myself a volunteer to help hold the cat and decided to do it myself.

Sampson is pretty good about having it done. He gets pretty upset when you shave near his groin and his legs but with proper handling techniques that problem is solved.

If your cat is already used to a vacuum's(I'd LOVE to see a pic of your cat being vacuumed BTW) loud noise, he might be OK with the sound of a clipper. You just need to start out slow and take a break every five minutes or so. This gives the cat a chance to calm down and ensures the clipper blade doesn't get too hot.

Clippers are pretty safe as long as all the blade's teeth are intact but you have to be very careful of "baggy" areas like under the arms and groin. There's a lot of loose, thin skin under there and if the cat moves the wrong way at the wrong time you could nick him.

Maybe there's a groomer who wouldn't mind showing you how it's done if you're that serious about it or your vet might be able to give you a few more instructions.

If you decide to do it, good luck and don't forget the clipper lube!