Should I Shave Him?
 

My 14 year old short haired cat seems to be admitting defeat with his coat maintenance lately.

He has been to the vet and seems to be otherwise "healthy" just aging and starting to show signs of it.

His coat is very matted and he sheds an incredible amount constantly (patting him is becoming difficult due to the handfuls of hair that just fall right out of him). I brush him as often as I can but it doesn't seem to be keeping the mats at bay.

I have never had to shave a cat before and am wondering at what point should it be considered? I've only ever known long haired kitties to get this done and I'm not really sure whether this is something that would even provide any relief for my guy.

Anyone have any experience with this?

Thanks in advance folks!

Our 17 year old DSH is like this too. She never was good about grooming herself but it seems that with age her coat is shedding funny and she has clumps of loose hair sticking out in tufts all over her. Sometimes they are still attached. I don't see how shaving would help, really. The hair is coming out of her skin so I think it would still happen. Assuming you mean to shave the hair short, not right off. We just keep brushing her. She doesn't like to be brushed but we do our best. We are able to keep up enough that there aren't any matted clumps but if there were I'd cut them off with scissors, not shave.

Mats can be painful because they can pull on the skin. And if he is shedding a lot that can be hard on the digestive system because it can can result in furballs. I would certainly recommend shaving, at a cat-friendly groomer.

p.s. Are you sure the cat is healthy? Fur conditions can indicate health issues.

Best of luck :-)

There are sprays for cat and dogs when their fur get matted , do NOT use a hair spray for people hair ! Your cat will be licking it off and people hair sprays are not meant to eat . I agree shave will not help , it could made your old cat skin feel weird when he lying down and cause stress .

Cat friendly groomer
 

As Sooz mentioned, a cat friendly groomer is so important. Visited one groomer last year who had to use a collar. The cat was completely stressed out.
This year same cat but a different groomer. Totally amazing. No collar, no hissing, no howling and no biting. The cat was completely relaxed. He was shaved because of matted hair and it surely helps to keep him clean in the litter box.
On the other hand, the 21 year old also has matted hair which does not seem to bother him. So I use a special brush to pull out the mats until he objects.