Brushing and combing your cat is a bonding experience

I have my hairbrushes, combs, cat brushes, cat combs, slicker brushes, gromming mitts, a curry brush, a "Furbuster" and a "Zoom Groom" for my babies. Whichever I decide to use, both of my babies loved to be brushed and/or combed. If I'm brushing TC in the bathroom (on top of the vanity, of course), Sweetie will come running in to get her turn too.

TC loves to rub his face against my one hand, while I'm brushing him with the other. He loves to be brushed so much, that when he's not asking to be petted over his food dish, he'll walk straight into the bathroom and start nosing the brush and making noise, like he's saying "come brush me". I'll go brush him for a few minutes, and then he'll walk into the living room, still talking to make sure I follow him, and jump up on the sofa (on top of a nice fluffy robe that he has adopted as his new sleeping blanket) to be brushed some more. If I sit on the sofa, he will get on my lap and purr while I brush him. This is a fun experience for him, providing us with some quality time together, while at the same time removing some of the hair from his coat that he otherwise would ingest and cause more hairballs. He loves the attention, and it is amazing how much hair the brushes, comb and "furbuster" remove. Since it is Springtime, I think that he is shedding more than usual, so this ritual is helping to rid him of his thicker winter coat, although he is strictly an indoor cat.

Sweetie also loves being brushed, and will sit on your lap for 15 or 20 minutes at a time to be combed or brushed. She is a little more sensitve than TC, so I have to be careful when I brush her head, as sometimes she doesn't like the angle of the brush over her head. She loves for her back and sides to be brushed, as well as the base of her tail, but don't touch her tummy. Sometimes, she is so happy, she will start kneading to show her pleasure. She loves attention, too, so again, this is good one-on-one bonding for her.

Both babies are avid self-groomers, and will groom themselves before they take a nap, after they take a nap, before dinner, after dinner, and just "because". This is typical as cats love to stay clean, but can cause a problem with the formation of hairballs. I give them hairball medication every week to try and keep the hair moving through the intestinal tract, but I think it helps even more when I can remove a lot of hair through brushing and combing.

Give it a try, and see if it makes your baby happy. Sometimes, if cats are not used to being brushed or comb, it may take a while for them to get use to it, and they may try to bite or grab the brush to stop your efforts. That's perfectly okay. Don't stress your cat out, just try to brush for a minute or two a few times a day, until they finally get use to the sensation and then are looking forward to a grooming session. It's also helpful, if they are in their calm/sleepy mode, rather than their running around the house/play mode.

Let me know what you and your cat think of in-home grooming sessions. If you need grooming supplies, check out our website. http://www.shop.topcatpetproducts.com