# Tips on shaving a crazy persian cat



## itsybuggy (Mar 12, 2010)

Hello everyone

I raised my persian cat since she was 9 weeks old; she is 6 now. For years we`ve been grooming her proffesionally, and it always cost us pretty penny because as mellow as she is around the house, once she sees a groomer with the clippers, she turns into a demon cat.
Since economy went bad, i`ve been shaving her on my own, for two years now, and even though i have help from my husband and daughter, she always ends up looking like a clown. She is just plain nasty while we`re attempting a shave. Otherwise, she never did or would scratch anyone. 
She is due to be shaven again, i was thinking of doing it this weekend, but i am sure there is some trick out there that i am not aware of. Please help, if you can...
Thanks in advance! BTW, she will let me do her back, but nothing else. Not without a fight.


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## hoofmaiden (Sep 28, 2009)

I never really understand why people shave cats.  It's so much better to groom regularly--easier on all involved, esp. the cat. Part of having a longhaired cat is working w/ them from the beginning to accept, or even enjoy, grooming. My mom's 2 Ragdolls lay down happily for grooming.

What's the point of having a longhaired cat if you remove the hair all the time??

I would have her professionally groomed -- shaved if necessary if she's developed mats -- and then get into the habit of grooming for 5 min. a day from hereon out.


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## Heidi n Q (Nov 22, 2006)

I feel fortunate that the kitties I shave are very agreeable. I can do both by myself, using just a toy or brush to keep them near me ... and my secret trick is a clothes pin with a strong spring to use as a 'fake scruff hold'. It is like having an extra hand. If the kitty is a little too active, I will put us in the smallest bathroom because the clippers will reach *everywhere* in that bathroom from the plug and the kitty can't get away.
_Both of these cats only get shaved if they develop snarls and matts. Usually I can brush them and keep the snarls from even becoming matts. I haven't had to shave anyone in several years._

Squirrely-Jo loves the attention and Shasta will 'talk' to me during the entire process; her giving little meh's, merr's and meow's and I make the same noises back at her and/or just talk and 'converse' with her.

S-Jo:






























Shasta:


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## itsybuggy (Mar 12, 2010)

Thanks for the tips. We shave her because we live in Phoenix AZ, and she likes to hang out in the backyard. We have rock landscape, so when she rolls around, she gets matted everywhere. I think it`d be selfish to keep a cat indoor 24-7 for the sake of having pretty persian with long hair. We noticed that if she`s shaven, she will never vomit hairballs, but even with every day brushing which my daughter will happily do, she vomits her own hair couple times a week, at least. Also she is not very skilled in her litter box, and usually when her fur grows she will have pieces of litter hanging all over her belly. One more thing: we noticed that she is 100 % more active and in good mood after all the fur comes off, even though she hates getting haircut.


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## RachandNito (Nov 21, 2008)

Seems like a valid enough reason to shave her. Do you trim her claws? If not, I would recommend looking into it. It will dull her nails, so if she manages to land a strike you won't get as injured.

A good article to teach you about the process
http://www.cat-world.com.au/how-to-trim-your-cats-claws

Also, I would use a style of clippers called "whites". Not all the brands call them this, so here is a pictures. Normal human nail clippers can hurt, or even split the nail.


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## itsybuggy (Mar 12, 2010)

Yes, i`ve been trimming her nails since we had her. She doesn`t seem to mind that part at all. Problem is that she tries to bite while being groomed or shaved, and these are serious bites. Demon cat. :twisted:


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## Jack&Harley (Nov 2, 2008)

We have a long hair cat and he is pretty okay with us shaving him if necessary--we had some mat issues late last summer. But the issue with him is his backside although infrequent he gets stressed and will have an issue. He won't let us near the rear with the clippers. I called the vet about shaving him for us and they said if we wanted to shave him they could give us a light sedative pill to give him so that we can do this on our own. I'll be making an appt next week to go in and have him weighed so the MD can give the right dose and hopefully Jack will be wearing clean "pants" from now on. 

Leslie


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## Alpaca (Dec 21, 2009)

I guess one question I have is, how do you get the cat used to the NOISE of the shaver?


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## RachandNito (Nov 21, 2008)

> I guess one question I have is, how do you get the cat used to the NOISE of the shaver?


OOH! OOOOH! *waves arms up and down* I can answer that! I wanted Nito to stop being afraid of the vacuum, because he would get soooo stressed whenever I would clean (hiding for hours on end after I was done). So I started with the hand held dirt devil. He knows the "touch" command, so I signaled to the dirt devil (which was off) and had him touch it, and rewarded him heavily several times. Then I picked it up and moved it towards him, and then rewarded him. After he was fine with that, I turned it on for a second and then quickly off, and rewarded. He soon got the hang of that, so I turned it on longer. After he was sitting calmly while it was one, I began to inch it towards him. In the end, I had him touching the dirt devil while it was on. I repeated this process with the big vacuum. From that day, he no longer runs and hides from any vacuum. He simply gets up high on his cat tree, or somewhere else, to watch.

You can apply a similar technique with the clippers. Get them out and present the clippers, and reward. If the cat makes a move to sniff and investigate the clippers, heavily reward. Run the clippers while off gently through the cat's fur as if you were shaving them. Reward. Turn it on for just a moment, and if the cat is still there and hasn't bolted, reward. Gradually increase the amount of time the clippers are on, rewarding and praising the entire time. This might take several days. But over time, hopefully kitty will become desensitized to it! 

It only took Nito 3 days of practice to lose his fear of loud noises (esp. vacuums). But I credit this to the fact that he already knew touch, and so the vacuum became an object of training, instead of a monster. But remember- patience will get you far in life especially when it comes to cats. Good luck!


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## Alpaca (Dec 21, 2009)

Miu is a med hair but i really liked it when they shaved her butt (at my request) when they did the spaying. It looks cleaner and tidier, it's just in case she gets mushy stuff, then it wouldn't stuck to her fur as badly. I don't own a shaver yet. Was hesitant to buy it because I was afraid of her running off in fear of it. Then it would be a waste of money. But i'll try your tip. Thanks!


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## RachandNito (Nov 21, 2008)

Another thought: Can you trim up the fur around her rear with scissors? Just being sure to be extra careful of course!


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## Alpaca (Dec 21, 2009)

She's a bouncy kitten so not sure. Perhaps I'll have to do it while she's dozing like when I try doing her nails. Thanks!


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