hairballs, anyone ?

Does your cat vomit hairballs ? Hair that is ingested during self grooming can exit the body in one of two ways – It can either pass in the stools when your cat goes to the loo, or be vomited back up. In ex…treme cases is can sit and clog up the intestines, needing surgery to be removed.A great way to help decrease hairballs is regular grooming to help your cat with its coat. Also, specific hairball control cat foods are widely available. You might also want to try a lubricant from your vet or pet shop which helps hair pass through the intestines and into the stools.

Of course, any worries on this subject – don’t hesitate to get advice from your vet.

little milly

We met up with Milly again in Ripponden, Yorkshire.

Milly is a 2 year old Ragdoll, who has the most amazing fluffy coat.

The first time we met up last year, there was far too much off it and it took some time to work through, and a few clumps here and there.  A couple of sessions on and Milly’s coat is much more manageable and not a mat in sight !  Milly and mum have been able to brush through and keep well on top of it.

However, that’s not to say we didn’t take a fair amount of dead hair away during the session.  See the piccie on the left – all the dead hair that came away.  A lot of hair for a small cat !  In fact, Milly looked like she’d lost weight afterwards.

Mum Abby later commented :

“Great to see you again.  Thanks so much for helping Milly with her very fluffy coat !  Just in time for this heat wave !  She seems so much more comfortable now and also looked like she’d lost half her body weight after she’d seen you !  Thanks again.  See you soon x”

Nice seeing you again Milly …. What a good girl !

pretty holly

What a nice session we had with Holly in Padiham, Lancashire, when we met up again recently.

Holly is 4 years old and has a gorgeous, lush coat.  We see her on a regular basis, to keep the knots at bay and she is now well used to the proceedings.

Always vocal – telling us exactly what’s been going on since our last visit, maybe ! – Holly lay patiently on her side whilst we got to work underneath.  She even obliged by turning further and laying on her back with all 4s in the air, for some of the time !  She’s not keen on being combed in this area, but it does get easier for her as each session occurs.

No knots or mats in sight, but she was ready for her brush out as some of her coat was extremely thick and would soon have started to clump.

After the session, Holly went straight out into the garden to catch up on her sunbathing !  Well done Holly – such a good girl !!

what do you think ?

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lady mitzi

We called in to see the lovely Mitzi again, in Billinge, Wigan, Greater Manchester.

At around 9 years old, Mitzi is the most gorgeous girl you can imagine.  She is quite – if not totally – deaf these days.  However, Mitzi still enjoys holding a two-way conversation (she watches your lips, and knows just what’s being said !).  A very vocal girl!

Mum can brush a little on top, but isn’t really able to get to the under carriage or around the backend.  Despite that, it was pleasing to see that between them, mum and Mitzi have managed to keep on top of her long, thick coat very well since we last met up.

Today was mainly about a brush out, and removal of a few ad hoc mats underneath.  Mitzi’s coat was extremely full and thick and she lost a lot of dead hair during the session.  As usual, she protested whilst laid on her side (Mitzi’s protesting is a long, loving gaze into your eyes, along with a plaintive meow !), but was much happier stood on all 4s for the most part, whilst we brushed away.

It’s a shame that she wasn’t up for the photo shoot after the session.  For most of the shots – just at the moment we clicked, Mitzi managed to look the other way or walk towards us.  Nevermind … You still look gorgeous on this piccie, Mitzi !!

After the session, mum Sue said :

“Thank you , once again , Sandra , for looking after Mitzi so well.   There was very little fuss from Mitzi as she knows that Sandra is so gentle and she genuinely cares for her.  Sandra did a thorough and considerate job and Mitzi’s coat is healthy and beautiful once again.  Thank you from me and Mitzi.”

Thanks Sue ! .. and well done Mitzi.  See you later in the year for your Autumn brush out, chick.

lovely lily

We were delighted to meet up again with Lily.  Lily is an 11 year old British Longhair who lives with her mum in Preston, Lancashire.

Last time we saw Lily back in February she was quite heavily matted and needed areas of her coat removing to make her more comfortable.  She really wasn’t keen on the session, and made this quite apparent throughout the session.

This session was evidently more relaxed.  We still had some choice words at times – and teeth and nails in the equation – but this was interspersed with intervals of calm.  We believe that Lily remembered well the last session, and figured that hey, it wasn’t as bad as she’d thought at the time.

We’re hoping that next time we meet up, the session will again be a little easier for all.

Really pleased with you Lily.  Let mum comb, and we’ll see you again for a brush out…..

sweet eloise

It’s always a pleasure to meet up with the gorgeous Eloise in Blackburn, Lancashire.

Eloise is now 18 months old and is a tabby Maine Coon.  Although she is a heavy, hefty lady already she still has some growth to come as Maine Coons don’t mature until they are around 4-5 years old.

She is the most gentle girl you could meet, and loves nothing better than playing out in the woods behind her house.  Thus, she arrives home with twigs and bits and bobs hiding in her long coat.  Although mum is able to comb and brush Eloise, a few areas had tangled and needed to be clipped away during our session.

Eloise was quite fidgety today whilst on the table… Maybe the weather … Maybe time of month (!) … Who knows ? …  but we worked through without too much fuss and we’re sure that Eloise will feel the benefit immediately with her lighter coat.

Following the groom, mum Deborah said :

“Thanks Sandra as always you did an amazing job, Eloise is much happier now and her coat looks and feels great, she is even allowing me to comb her belly without too much bother, now that’s a first x”

Nice seeing you again, Eloise … Stay away from the bracken, please !

lucky lucy

This pretty young lady found her new mum and dad just a month ago – and has landed on her feet.

Lucy is 4 years old and now lives in Tyldesley, Manchester.  She is quite a timid little girl and it has taken some time for her to start to build trust and feel at home in her new surroundings.  There’s not too much known about her history, so mum and dad and taking it slowly – at Lucy’s pace.

We were asked to visit Lucy as she is shedding a great deal of her coat at the moment.  Lucy was extremely nervous about proceedings and it took her a while to settle on the grooming table.  Up to this point she was intent on leaving the session and did her best to escape.  However, at the point she realised that nothing terrible was going to happen she lay quite contently, of her own accord whilst we brushed.  She also enjoyed her paws being stroked by dad whilst we brushed – something that has been out of bounds until the session !

We now hope that grooming sessions with mum and dad with help with the bonding process as Lucy settles more into her new hope.

Following the session, Lucy herself sent a text saying :

“Thanks for my groom yesterday, I feel great now and my fur looks great.  Dozing in the window letting all my outside cat friends see me purrfect”.

Dad Colin added :

“Thanks for your caring time with Lucy”

Lovely meeting up with you, Lucy and really pleased you’re now part of a caring family.  Bet you’ll be really spoiled ….!

did you know …

How you noticed how kittens have spurts of energy, but in fact spend most of their day catching up on sleep.

Well, this is why … !

really lucky, lucky

This lady is 18 year old Lucky.  She lives in Stretford, Manchester with her mum and dad, who love her dearly.

Our services were called upon as Lucky had developed clumps, particularly around her lower back and back end that couldn’t be worked through with a brush.  Lucky is very sensitive to combing as she is now an older lady, and probably has some arthritis around her joints.  The piccie to the right is before the session began.

Lucky wasn’t, however, phased by the clippers.  We began the session calmly by clipping away areas on her back.  You can just about see on the piccie, top left, that she has lost the hair down her lower back.  As it became apparent that clipping was the easier option, we took away quite a large area, including some on the tummy – rather than trying to work through with the comb.  It was a warm evening and we took a break for Lucky to cool down, part way through the session.  Overall, Lucky fared very well, with sweet talk and cuddles from mum.  It’s true to say that after brushing Lucky’s coat, it looked much cleaner and brighter just having removed the dead hair that had been sat there.

Afterward the session, the first thing on Lucky’s mind was some more food.  Mum says she has an enormous appetite and she certainly polished off a couple of portions whilst we were there – although she’s not overweight by any stretch of the imagination.

Well done Lucky …. you did so well, chick !!  We’re sure you’ll be feeling so much more comfy with your new clipped coat.