grey persian

[lcowan3]

I was always a dog person... I now have a grey persian. He has a rust color (highlight) on his back. He is almost 2 1/2. I don't have papers, don't want to breed, I am simply looking to find out what he is, I know he is full bred, High Quality,,,,, NOT important to me.. How to take care of him and his special needs is what I am looking for. Help me please. He is a real sweetheart. I don't know what the best food is for him. Currently I am trying IAMS for hairballs, he is not real fond of it. He wants can food all the time. I don' t mind that but I need to know what he needs. What is the best brush for him? I have to comb him out, I currently have a cheap brush from the grocery store. Help me keep my new kitty happy... He has reaaallllllly bigggggg teeth.. don't want to get bit because I did something wrong... hahahhah He has gotten ahold of my heart...looking for some experienced help.
Thanks
Leonard

[jenluckenbach]

Hi and welcome.
It will be hard to identify your cat's breed without seeing, but as for other questions, a lot of experience here at pet talk.

Grooming is my specialty (as I am a pet groomer). A small size slicker brush is good to have around. But the best tool to keep the coat in tip top shape is a shedding COMB. This is a metal comb that has alternationg long and short teeth. And prevention is the best way to handle brushing. In other words, don't allow the coat to get matted. Knots grow into mats very quickly.

Iams is a good food, but the hairball remedy variety MAY cause diarrhea (as I found out) due to the laxative ingredient. You may wish to mix another variety with it. But if he hates it, you may just want to switch. I believe that all cats should eat dry food. Canned is OK for a treat, but I do not like them to become addicted to it. If you need to coax them to eat dry, mix the canned right into the dry (that is what I do for my 2 fussy eaters)

Feel free to ask more questions.

[bluekat]

hello,
what you have is a solid blue persian. Persians, or any longhair cats need lots and lots of grooming. a couple minutes a day should do. Get a good comb and a brush.
With the food, do not feed him canned anymore! If you feed them too much canned food, they will just keep getting fatter and fatter. When i got mine, he wanted canned food all the time. But slowly, only give him dry. Iams is a good brand, but i feed Performatrin, and its pretty good for me.
if you want, you could pm me with questions, i'm happy to help you.

[lcowan3]

I can't thank you enough. Austin is his name, He does not like the Iams so I put him on Purina one Chicken and Rice. He loves it.. does not even ask for canned any more.. I would like to put a few pounds on him but he seems healthy. I figure he knows when hes hungry better than I do. He is an incredible addition to my family.. I always thought Persians were so High Strung. He is mellow, very playful, and has a whole lotta love to share. Imagine this. A Dog person talking so highly of a silly cat. He's mine now.

[All Creatures Great And Small]

(yeah! score another one for the cat side!)

Welcome to Pet Talk, by the way, and you will find that kitties are easy to love and generally easy to care for, too. I've never had a long-haired kitty, so I can't advise on the care of the fur, but I agree that dry food is best for the kitties. Since the one I have now got started on both, I still give him a small can of wet food every day, but he has a bowl full of kibble always out. He doesn't always finish his canned portion, either. My last kitty, who lived to be 15, ate nothing but Science Diet dry all her life - and after 15 years, she still got excited whenever I brought home a bag of it! She would tip it over and gnaw on the end of the bag trying to get it open!

I'm using Iams dry and canned for my kitty now though, since the ingredient list seems to have more actual meat in it, but I don't think he's too crazy about the dry Iams (I use the hairball formula too). I may switch back to the Science Diet Hairball, which he was on originally. He LOVES the canned Iams; especially all the fishy flavors! My vet, too, suggested that I try to put some weight on him, but hey - you can't force feed them, right? He's just a naturally slender guy (lucky) I guess. I offer him just about anything good that we're eating, but he's very picky .

[lcowan3]

okay so I have to brag..... here is a picture of my silly sittin kitty. Every one loves him here. I manage a town house community. He is the Office Kitty. I had to put out notices to residents that he is not wild he is mine and please stop feeding him. Now they come to see him here. He is a hoot. One resident gave him a bath, brought him to me and said he is such a ham. They have 2 collies and he goes over there to play with the dogs. What a cat.

[bluekat]

Awwwww...what a cute cat you have! Some of my cats like to sit like that too!

[Steffi N]

Your assistant manager

is a beautiful ball of fluff and full of purrsonality. Enjoy life together.

[slick]

Welcome to PT! I have a Persian named Max and he really isn't that high maintenance.

I clean his eyes/facie every day because of the tearing, his ears get a cleanout once every 2 weeks or so and I trim his nails every couple of months. As for combing, I'm able to comb his tummy and sides and front bib but cannot get anywhere near his bummy. He needs combing every day but with me working 12 hrs a day he gets away with every 3 days or so. I have a fine toothed flea comb to get out the nasty snarls and a wider comb that I finish off with. Twice a year he goes to the groomers to have his bummy shaved.

As for food, I adopted him when he was 4 and his previous owners brought him up on junk food (Friskies and the like!) Since he is 10 now I have him on a low protein diet, dry in the morning and wet/dry at night. I do not free-feed.

I do find that Max is overly territorial and does not take well to strangers. Don't know if that the breed or not. Anyway, good luck and hope to see lots of pictures!!

[cocker_luva]

i love persians. i used to have a persian/siamese mix. he was so beautiful.

[caralynn529]

I have a Himalayan (also a type of Persian, if you're not familiar with the breed). She just turned a year old on April 1st.

My first piece of advice: Please brush your Persian everyday!!! My Isabelle hates to be brushed but we both suffer through it every night and she hardly ever matts! I don't bathe her very often, but I would probably recommend it once a month or so (that's about how often I do Isabelle) to keep down on matting.

As for food goes, I also use Iams because Isabelle loves it, but right now I've got a mix of the kitten formula, hairball formula, and regular formula...she doesn't even really care for the canned food, but I do give her a little Fancy Feast every few weeks!

Persians are very laid back cats. Isabelle's not much of a lap cat, but she does have her purring moments when she's sleepy! They are "people" cats meaning that they like to be with you wherever you go and help you do whatever you are doing! Isabelle always stays right next to me, but she just doesn't want to be touched too much!

But Persians are incredibly sweet cats! They just require a little extra attention to keep their fur looking beautiful! Good luck with your new Persian and I know he's probably completely stolen your heart by now!!! He's quite the cutie!