Grooming

Regular grooming is crucial for maintaining your cat's health.

Grooming your cat alone might be a challenge, especially when all they want to do is play. Taking care of your cat’s essential hygiene needs is not something you have to do alone. Here at All About Cats Veterinary Clinic, we’re here to give you a break, so you can take care of yourself, while we take care of your furry companions. To have your pet feeling fresh and brand new, call us at 604-986-2287.

Please note that we are not currently accepting new grooming patients at this time and offer our grooming services to existing patients only. For our current grooming patients, a full physical exam is required with one of our veterinarians within one year to assess their overall health prior to grooming. In addition, all cats must be given gabapentin prior to their visit to help with stress management and patient safety during grooming.

What grooming services do you offer?

We are not professional groomers, but our experienced staff are well equipped to pamper and cater to several of your cat’s individual grooming needs. Some of our services include:

  • Regular grooming
  • Nail trims
  • Hygiene clips
  • Ear cleaning
  • Lion Cutting

Please note: We do not offer bathing or hair trimming as part of our grooming services and can only cut hair to the skin using veterinary-grade hair clippers as needed to remove matts. We have two types of clipper blades, that can shave to the skin or leave approximately 2-3mm of hair coat after clipping.

Is grooming important for my cat’s health?

While it may be thought of as just cosmetic, grooming is a very important part of the health and well-being of your cat. It’s important to pay attention to your cat’s fur as it can reveal underlying conditions or abnormalities. Grooming also helps to remove dirt, pests or dead hair from their coat which could prevent hairballs from building up in their digestive system. If left unattended their eyes and ears could also become infected or inflamed from unremoved debris and build-up.

How can I set up an appointment?

To learn more about our grooming services, please don’t hesitate to give us a call at 604-986-2287. Our team would be more than happy to answer any questions you may have so we can get your furry companion in top shape.

GROOMING TIPS

  • Some may think that short-haired cats do not require any grooming at all but this is not true. While their shorter, coarser coat demands less attention than that of a Persian or a Ragdoll, for example, they still need regular grooming to remove the dead undercoat that collects under their soft top coat. Cats use their tongue and teeth to groom themselves and consequently can end up ingesting a fair amount of hair. This hair can collect in their stomach and intestines and subsequently end up on your living room carpet or worse, end up creating a blockage which can turn into a serious medical problem. Using a Zoom Groom, which is a soft rubber brush, is an excellent way of avoiding these problems as it is specifically designed to remove only the dead undercoat leaving your kitty’s fur looking and feeling soft and smooth.

  • The magnificent, lush coat of a long-haired kitty is a beautiful sight, but does not come without required maintenance. Without a proper grooming regime, their coats can easily become tangled and matted before you know it. These matts can cause a significant amount of pain and discomfort, as they pull and can even tear the skin when your kitty moves around. This is particularly true of the armpit and groin areas. Grooming a long-haired kitty can be quite a task, especially since some of them find this particular procedure quite disagreeable. For these kitties, we recommend that professional grooming appointments be made every one to three months depending on the coat type to avoid any problems or discomfort. The longer that grooming problems are neglected, the worse they get, resulting in the need for more drastic corrective measures, greater expenses and more discomfort for your kitty.

  • Proper grooming involves much more than just brushing or combing out a kitty’s fur – attention must also be paid to the face, nails and rear end.

     

    It is crucial to clear away debris from your kitty’s eyes and nose as the skin in these areas can become very red, inflamed and even infected if left unattended. This is especially true of brachycephalic or “flat-faced” kitties such as Persians or Himalayans. As a kitty ages, it is also important to pay close attention to the nails as they become thicker and the nail casings don’t always shed properly. This can result in the nails growing around into the pads which can become infected and very painful.

     

     

    Last but not least, it is important to make sure that your kitty’s rear end is kept clean and free of debris of any kind. Long-haired cats in particular may require regular hygiene clips to keep them free of any caught-up fecal matter which can end up causing problems such as urinary tract infections and skin scald.

     

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