As a cat owner, you might be in love with your cat’s fur, be it a Persian, Siamese, Ragdoll, or any other type of breed. Cuddling up to your cat and petting their soft fur gives you comfort and unconditional joy. However, the same fur can become a source of anguish for you when you see it suddenly sticking to your clothing, bed sheets, sofas, or lying around on the floor in some form of bunches. Cat fur is like clothing for your furry bundle of joy; it protects their skin from dust and keeps them warm during winters.
Why Do Cats Shed So Much?
However, just like a change of clothing needed by us humans, cats also shed their hair and claws a lot. Have you ever wonder why do cats shed so much? There is no need to worry about it or get frustrated. Hair shedding is a normal part of cats and must be treated the same way you would treat if you are experiencing hair fall.
Here is what you need to know about your pet love:
Causes of Hair Shedding in Cats
There are various reasons why your cat may be losing their precious fur strands; not all of those reasons are alarming. Some of those reasons are based on just a cat’s natural shedding cycle due to a change in seasons. Here are some of the reasons that can cause your feline friend to lose their hair.
Change in Seasons
One of the primary and most common reasons cats shed so much hair is that there has been a change in the temperatures. As the weather transitions from winter to spring, the temperature starts rising, and the same coat that made cats feel warm begins to make them sweat. It is natural for cats to start losing their beautiful fur in such circumstances, and you might experience fur present on your clothes or coming out in bunches all over the furniture.
Here we’d recommend that you bear with it and just use a grooming comb (Amazon ASIN #B08RCRVBYB) to brush your cat’s fur at least once daily. This will significantly reduce the amount of fur that falls around your house. Hence, brushing the fur will cause loose hair strands to come during the grooming process.
Fungus or Parasitic Infestation
Suppose you are suspicious that your cat may be a victim of fungal or parasitic infestation. In that case, the effect of this is excessive shedding of cat hair that you may have seen around the house. One such infection can be by ringworm fungi. They are one of the major reasons for cat hair alopecia. Once the spores of this fungus enter the hair shafts, they will then feed on the keratin ingredient. The keratin is responsible for building up a cat’s hair follicle. It can result in cats having a circular patch of skin as a result of losing hair.
Cats can also excessively shed their hair due to being infected with mites or fleas.
Internal Body Issues
Some cats may experience food allergies which can cause their feline fur to fall out. Apart from this, cats can be allergic to dust or mites, which causes them to scratch the inflamed and itching area repeatedly. The result? They overgroom themselves, which causes itching and their hair to fall out, similar to how humans lose hair due to dandruff.
Other internal body issues can comprise certain metabolic conditions. One of which is hyperthyroidism. This term refers to the over-production of a hormone known as the thyroid, which is directly responsible in humans and animals for maintaining healthy hair. We know this is difficult to grasp, but thyroid hormones work the same way inside you as they would for your cat. So an imbalance of this hormone can cause severe hair loss resulting in excessive hair shedding.
Why Do Cats Shed Their Claws?
Now some of you may have come here to find out why cats shed claws of all things. But, to tell you the truth, it is quite common for your feline companions to shed their claws after every 2 to 3 months. A little biology may help you explain why cats shed their claws.
The cat’s paws are also supplied with their blood, and this is where their claws grow. However, when their claws grow beyond the reach of the blood supply, the outer layer, also known as the ‘claw husk,’ gets peeled off. Under this outer layer is a new layer of the nail that is fresh and sharp; hence, it is ready to be weaponized by your furry companion.
So when you see nail pieces of your cat’s claw lying around the scratching post, carpets, mats, or on the floor, then it means that your cat outgrew their old nails and just got a brand new manicure and pedicure courtesy of Mother Nature!
This is why to help your cat; you should get an interactive cat scratching post (Amazon ASIN #B08M5VJHR2). The scratch post would allow your cat to knead their paws and scratch its claws regularly so that its nails can be easily collected from there and not found lying around the house.
Our Final Thoughts
Cats are little bundles of joy. Sometimes, people are discouraged from keeping them as pets because of the shedding, which they consider a huge issue. There are different ways to get around the problem of excessive shedding. We hope this article provides you with a detailed insight into why do cats shed so much hair and claws. So that you can help your cat the next time you come across fur strands.
