# Do kittens shed?



## hal1 (Jul 16, 2011)

Some of my questions/observations are about my cat, but I don't know if it's breed specific.

I know Bengals are a low shedding breed, but what about kittens in general? My 3 month old loses no hair at all. None on the bed sheets, nothing anywhere. I guess don't mean real shedding, but just light natural fur loss.


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## saitenyo (Nov 28, 2010)

I don't know what the norm is for bengals, but my mixed kitties shed like _crazy_ and I am pretty sure they have done so since they were kittens. I have to remember not to pick them up or hug them if I'm going out somewhere nice...unless I want to add "cat hair shirt" to my attire.

So I am envious of your shed-free kitten.


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## doodlebug (May 13, 2006)

None of the cats I've gotten as kitten have really shed until about a year old.


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## Vivid Dawn (May 31, 2010)

There was a wooden decorative sign at a boutique I saw once...
"No outfit is complete without a few cat hairs"


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## Jess041 (Jul 6, 2009)

doodlebug said:


> None of the cats I've gotten as kitten have really shed until about a year old.


Same for me.


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## Nora B (Nov 6, 2010)

I foster orphaned kittens that need to be bottle fed and kittens that are sick enough to require constant attention before they can go to regular foster homes. I am almost always dealing with mixed domestic short hairs with a few longer haired babies coming along once in awhile.

The reason I posted all that is because my answer is so different. All of the kittens I have had shed lots. I am certain it has to do with how bad off they are. None seem to shed much when they are just recieving formula but older babies that are 7 weeks plus do tend to shed, especially if they were really wormy or emaciated when they first came - they seem to drop a lot of brittle fur and then grow in a softer coat. Kittens with lots of fleas sometimes drop almost all their fur and then grow back sparsley at first.

Healthy kittens don't seem to shed as much but overweight kittens and cats seem to shed much more.
Nora

Toby is absolutely beautiful!!


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## yingying (Jul 19, 2011)

Both my kittens are long hair, but they rarely shed when they were beforem 4 - 5 mth old. Arrr, how I miss those times when my suits were fur-free...


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## catloverami (Jul 5, 2010)

Most kitties don't shed much at all until they're in their adult coat and then hit the early spring when the lengthening of days trigger coat drop.....and then again in late summer in prepartion for a winter coat.


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## Penny135 (Apr 6, 2011)

Mia is a DHS and she sheds a lot ( 5 months old). Has sence I got her ar 7 weeks old.


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## saitenyo (Nov 28, 2010)

Nora B said:


> I foster orphaned kittens that need to be bottle fed and kittens that are sick enough to require constant attention before they can go to regular foster homes. I am almost always dealing with mixed domestic short hairs with a few longer haired babies coming along once in awhile.
> 
> The reason I posted all that is because my answer is so different. All of the kittens I have had shed lots. I am certain it has to do with how bad off they are. None seem to shed much when they are just recieving formula but older babies that are 7 weeks plus do tend to shed, especially if they were really wormy or emaciated when they first came - they seem to drop a lot of brittle fur and then grow in a softer coat. Kittens with lots of fleas sometimes drop almost all their fur and then grow back sparsley at first.
> 
> ...


I wonder if that explains Athena's plethora of shedding when we first got her. I can't remember when Apollo started shedding but Athena shed a lot from the start (she was 4 months) and she was underweight when we got her since she was recovering from bad illness as a kitten (severe URI). Her coat was very greasy too. She still sheds a lot as an adult but her coat is at least in nice condition now.

I dunno about the healthy adult cats don't shed much thing though. My cats are definitely not overweight and are in fantastic health (both always have good vet appointments) and they still shed quite a bit. They don't loose large patches of fur or anything, but I do find cat fur on most surfaces that they sleep on regularly (and all over myself after holding them). I think some cats just shed a lot regardless.


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## Nora B (Nov 6, 2010)

saitenyo said:


> I dunno about the healthy adult cats don't shed much thing though. My cats are definitely not overweight and are in fantastic health (both always have good vet appointments) and they still shed quite a bit. They don't loose large patches of fur or anything, but I do find cat fur on most surfaces that they sleep on regularly (and all over myself after holding them). I think some cats just shed a lot regardless.


I think I mistyped - I didn't mean healthy cats don't shed much - I meant healthy kittens don't seem to shed much. The overweight cats i have dealt with seem to always have more loose fur in their coats than more fit cats so maybe I just notice the shedding more in the heavy ones as it comes off in my hands when I pick them up - Perhaps they just cannot self groom as well so it seems as thought the overweight cats shed more.... as for kittens though, the amount of shedding and general health do seem related. I think your description of Athena matches up to what I see with rescues very well.


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## hal1 (Jul 16, 2011)

Nora B said:


> Toby is absolutely beautiful!!


Thank you


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## Susan (Mar 29, 2010)

doodlebug said:


> None of the cats I've gotten as kitten have really shed until about a year old.


That's also been my experience. I have two long-haired cats (a Ragdoll and a Ragdoll/Persian mix). They barely shed at all when they were kittens, and I thought "This is great...they don't shed". Then they had their first birthday!

So, enjoy the shed-free days while you can.


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## saitenyo (Nov 28, 2010)

Nora B said:


> I think I mistyped - I didn't mean healthy cats don't shed much - I meant healthy kittens don't seem to shed much. The overweight cats i have dealt with seem to always have more loose fur in their coats than more fit cats so maybe I just notice the shedding more in the heavy ones as it comes off in my hands when I pick them up - Perhaps they just cannot self groom as well so it seems as thought the overweight cats shed more.... as for kittens though, the amount of shedding and general health do seem related. I think your description of Athena matches up to what I see with rescues very well.


Ahh that makes more sense! Yeah thankfully mine don't have any fur coming off when I pick them up or anything. It just ends up coating their favorite chairs/my lap/etc. over time.  Thank goodness for sticky tape!


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## olgapattison (Jun 6, 2011)

Does any of you have cat hair all over the kitchen and getting into the food you eat or make? I seem to have this problem.


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## MowMow (Nov 6, 2010)

Extra fiber! I've even found MowMow hair on my plate when I'm eating out. It just seems to migrate into everything...


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## yingying (Jul 19, 2011)

olgapattison said:


> Does any of you have cat hair all over the kitchen and getting into the food you eat or make? I seem to have this problem.


Do you allow your cat to get on the kitchen counter and dinning table? If so, then you may want to train him/her not doing so, for both yours and the cat's good. If that's not the case, then I think you should brush your cat more frequently. Apparently he/she has too much dead hair.


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## olgapattison (Jun 6, 2011)

They don't get on the tables in the kitchen, but he really does have a ton of dead hair. I use furminator deshedding tool on him but it doesn't help, I can sit there for an hour brushing him with the tool and it will still pull out equal amount of hair every time no less. It almost feels like there is something wrong with him because he loses so much hair.


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## yingying (Jul 19, 2011)

First of all, I remember someone mentioned before that her Furminator actually pulls out good hair if she brushes certain places for too many times. Not sure if that's true, but I think the general rule is don't use Furminator excessively. Try using a regular brush after you brush your cat with Furminator couple of rounds. 

Second, do they always shed that much or only recently? Right now is the season changing time so cats will start shedding a lot to change into their winter coat. 

Third, excessive shedding could be a diet or health related issue. Could you try feed them something better so see if the situation changes? 

Last thought, are your cats of certain breed? Some breeds tend to shed a lot, and some breeds are low shedding, so you cannot really compare two cats.


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## olgapattison (Jun 6, 2011)

I will try using a slicker brush then instead of furminator in case furminator does pull good hair out. He is a British short hair kitten with plush coat, I brought him home 4 months ago but he didn't start dropping enormous amount of hair till 2 weeks ago. So maybe it is related to seasonal. I am feeding him Royal Canin and Sience Diet, will try to go with organic, maybe he is allergic to additives and preservatives. The older cat is Himalayan breed.


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