# What's it like to live with Persians?



## mpicard (Aug 1, 2004)

I foster domestic short hairs for my local humane society and I've only ever owned short-haired cats. Recently I had the unusual opportunity to foster two female perisan kittens. They are the cutest kittens I've ever fostered and their personalities are particularly sweet. I lost a cat to cancer three months ago and am considering adopting my foster girls. I've been doing a lot of research on the breed from books, but haven't talked to anyone who actually lives with a Persian. Some friends are dissuading me saying I will be vacuuming up loads of fur for years. Does anyone here own a Persian? What are they like to live with in terms of grooming and shedding? I've already experienced how affectionate, loving and loyal they are and am quite taken by the breed, just a little intimidated by the fur factor.


----------



## Payge (May 12, 2004)

Persians do shed a lot, my parents own a flame point himilayan and theres clumps of white fur everywhere and he gets brushed daily. He also gets his fur shaved into a lion cut every summer as he likes to spend time on the screened in porch and its very hot and humid where they live. Though personally I think if my mother cleaned a bit better it wouldnt be so bad. Usuaully its the same clumps of fur I see in corners and hard to sweep areas for a few days at a time.

They are wonderful to have around, a true lap cat but you must stay on top of grooming them, if you forget for even a week they can start to get matts in their fur which not only look bad, they have to be shaved off because they pull at the skin and can cause a lot of pain. Most Persians have a lot of eye drainage, you have to clean their faces often with a warm wet facecloth, (or you can leave it snotty but its not very pretty).

With all that having been said though, I think they are their own unique and special breed and like all cats, have the ability to make you melt just by looking at them. Good luck!


----------



## Mike (Jan 27, 2004)

mpicard said:


> Does anyone here own a Persian? What are they like to live with in terms of grooming and shedding?


Well, I think Angel actually "owns" me, instead of the other way around, but I will try to answer your questions.

If you own a Persian kitty, you also have the opportunity to own a Perian rug. :wink: Angel does shed, but it is really only necessary to vacuum every 2-3 days. And I am talking about a silver (read: white) Persian and dark cherry carpet, here!

Angel adopted me back in January and in that time, I think I have removed 4 or 5 mats from her coat. And she will NOT hold still for grooming, not at all. If she sees a comb or a brush in your hand, she will vanish in a heartbeat. The only area that seems to be an issue for mats, is in her neck line and she loves to be petted and scratched there, so when I feel small mats I just work them out before they become a problem.

Her general temperment is worth the extra time with the vacuum cleaner, as far as I am concerned. She is SOOO laid back. And, in my not-so-humble opinion, you cannot beat the looks of that "down to the floor" coat that Persians wear.

I hope this helps you with your decision.

Peace,
Mike


----------



## AddFran (Jul 10, 2004)

Mike,
Angel has the prettiest eyes. I just noticed them in your sig. 

I've never owned a persian, but I have a friend who has two of them and says she'd never own another cat! That's gotta say something!


----------



## Gabreilla Moushigo (Jun 14, 2004)

I have a Persian, he is still a baby though - and is still growing his adult coat (the longer hairs are so cute growing out!)

They are a ton of fun! Since my persian is doll faced I don't have to worry about eye drainage - but I do have to be concerned about eye crud and the occasional snot - since he is white with pink skin it shows up a lot more. He is very loving when he wants to be (when he doesn't want to play) - and I'll have to agree with Mike - the brush makes him run. =P I simply brush his back, sides and tail while he is eatting and distracted - much eaiser. The hardest place to brush is his tummy. Someone told me once that around their legs tangles the most - so I make extra sure to hold him down and get those places. I would brush him EVERYDAY to make sure their hair is mat free, I brush my cat every other day - but once his coat is full length... I'll be sticking to it. ^_^ I don't notice a lot of shedding - he DOES shed - but not a whole lot - I have tan carpeting so it doesn't show up anyway. If you vacume once a week it should be ok - but no hair balls that I've seen.

If you have to trim their nails - it's just a bit harder than a short hair since they have all that fur between their pads - but if you get a fluffy cat - your asking for that anyway - and it's not that big of a deal. I hold the fur back and the skin around his pad - and snip snip!

There is also that trouble with poopy getting stuck to his bottom - but he is slowly starting to take care of that himself by squating correctly. If their hair is way too long behind them you might want to trim them just in case poo gets stuck there a lot.

Over all I love him and wouldn't have him any other way - his face is so sweet and beautfiul when he sleeps and he loves to lick my face! He also has those beautiful blue eyes... *sigh* He also loves to pose! Even when he is running around - he sits momentairly with that "take a picture of me now - you know you want to - because I'm so fluffy and wonderful" pose that is soooo cute! If you ever had a Persian - it's really hard to not love them to pieces.


----------



## Mike (Jan 27, 2004)

AddFran said:


> Angel has the prettiest eyes. I just noticed them in your sig.


I have to give credit where credit is due. Julie touched up the reflections in Angel's eyes when she did the sig for me. If you look closely at the avatar, you can see what the flash did to her eyes.

Julie did a good job of getting close, though!

Peace,
Mike


----------



## equestrian (Aug 2, 2004)

I too own a dollface (shaded silver) persian and he is indescribeably sweet and affectionate!! 
Very devoted to us people, and extremely easygoing and intelligent. He is VERY doglike. I've taught him many tricks which he does every time I ask of him and he obviously enjoys our "training sessions"!! 

From what I've read, there are different textures of coats in different (genetic) lines, so some persians have a fuzzier coat than others and may tangle substantially more than others. My persian's coat rarely tangles, and if he does, it's always a small tangle in the exact same spot on his neck which I can work out with my fingers. 
I usually only go over him with a brush (at the most) a few times a week, sometimes only once a week or less. He is so agreeable that he happily stretches out on his back and regularly allows me to give him a "sanitary" trim where I trim the hair very short on his underside only: I use (childrens Fiskars Safety) scissors with rounded tips and trim the hair under his tail, and his whole belly, insides of back legs and underarms. His lovely coat is so long, that you can't even tell he has the hair on his underside cut short unless you lay him on his back!
Believe it or not, at this point in time, he sheds less than my 9 year old short haired cat!! This may be due to the fact that my persian is only 9 months old though. 
My kitty does get littly eye boogers in the corners of his eyes, but because he is a doll face it's not much different than the boogers my other kitty gets, the persian just gets them a little more often. 

My persian, with his incredibly sweet, intelligent and interactive personality has had such a positive, enjoyable affect on myself, my family, and our other cat that I can only tell you to keep those baby kittens!!!! 
Certainly don't let the worry of the hair stop you. I vacuum _almost_ every day in the living room, but not even close to _every_ day in other parts of the house, and there is no visible cat hair laying around my house. It is safe to sit on the furniture and rise without being covered in cat hair.


----------



## equestrian (Aug 2, 2004)

Gabreilla Moushigo said:


> If you ever had a Persian - it's really hard to not love them to pieces.


Absolutely!!!! Well said.


----------



## equestrian (Aug 2, 2004)

Mike said:


> Well, I think Angel actually "owns" me,


I've come to the realization Windslow has decided he owns me and he seems to feel he has me trained quite well.

Angel is an absolutely gorgeous kitty, just stunning!


----------



## Jeanie (Jun 18, 2003)

I don't have a Persian, but I took care of my son's very long haired Tabby, and found that the biggest problem was behind his ears. And, like my collie, that was the part he really hated to have brushed and combed! No one else?


----------



## Gabreilla Moushigo (Jun 14, 2004)

Jeanie said:


> I don't have a Persian, but I took care of my son's very long haired Tabby, and found that the biggest problem was behind his ears. And, like my collie, that was the part he really hated to have brushed and combed! No one else?


I didn't think that behind the ears were going to be a prob - I've never brushed behind the ears of my other cat. Boy was I wrong! I have been brushing behind my little kitties ears with a soft brush... very shallowly... *sigh* I found a very tiny mat in his hair the other night! I've been brushing him so much and he has a big tangle!  Oh well... time to snip snip! Definitly check behind their ears and do a good brush with a metal comb.


----------

