Is there a high-quality cat food I can give my cat to reduce shedding?

Ragdoll groomed during the shedding season. Image in public domain.

Conventional response to the question

While there is no cat food that can completely eliminate shedding, you can choose high-quality cat foods that can help reduce excessive shedding and promote healthy skin and coat. Here are some factors to consider when selecting cat food to help with shedding:

1. Look for foods with a high-quality protein source: Cats are obligate carnivores, so their diet should primarily consist of animal-based protein. Foods with high-quality protein sources like chicken, turkey, or fish can promote healthy skin and coat.
2. Omega-3 and Omega-6 fatty acids: These essential fatty acids are crucial for skin and coat health. Foods containing fish oil, flaxseed, or other sources of these fatty acids can help reduce shedding and improve coat quality.
3. Limited fillers and carbohydrates: Avoid cat foods that have excessive fillers and carbohydrates, as they may not provide the essential nutrients your cat needs for optimal coat health. Look for foods with a lower carbohydrate content.
4. Nutrient balance: Ensure that the cat food you choose is balanced and meets the nutritional needs of your cat. High-quality commercial cat foods are typically formulated to provide the right balance of vitamins and minerals.
5. Avoid artificial additives: Some artificial additives and preservatives may contribute to skin and coat issues. Opt for cat foods with natural ingredients and minimal additives.
6. Consult your veterinarian: If your cat's shedding is excessive or if you're concerned about their coat health, it's a good idea to consult your veterinarian. They can recommend specific cat foods or dietary supplements tailored to your cat's needs.

Remember that genetics, age, and environmental factors can also influence shedding, so even with the best diet, some shedding may still occur. Regular grooming, such as brushing your cat's fur, can also help reduce shedding by removing loose hair and preventing matting.

Comment on the above

I feel it necessary to comment on the above which, by the way, is a conventional answer taken from sources on the Internet. I think, to be fair, you will find some websites being a little overoptimistic about the prospect of a certain cat food reducing the shedding of fur from a domestic cat.

Why should I say this? Because it is entirely natural for a domestic cat to shed fur when there's more light not, by the way when it is warmer. It is light which dictates when and how much a domestic cat sheds.

Some people believe that seasonal temperature changes dictates when a domestic cat sheds but my reference book written by four distinguished veterinarians tell me that "shedding is influenced more by changes in ambient light. The more exposure to natural light, the greater the shedding. This applies to both neutered and intact cats."

I guess, on that basis, if you kept your cat in a darkened room they wouldn't shed! But that's entirely impractical and cruel. Cats kept indoors full-time exposed to constant light may shed lightly and grow a new coat year-round.

But the point here is that it is a natural process and so feeding high-quality cat food with the intention of reducing this natural process is not going to produce a dramatic change. There might be a slight improvement partly because good quality cat food would improve the overall condition of the cat including the condition of the skin and it makes the skin more supple and the hair strands softer and silkier.

Breeds

I have said it before but I will say again briefly. There are no cat breeds (except hairless!) or individual cats who don't shed fur. All domestic cats of whatever cat breed shed fur because, as stated, it is a natural process. I wouldn't believe what you read on the Internet about certain breeds not shedding fur. They are not really true.

The hairless cats don't shed hair because they don't have any real hair except for a downy coating and so you won't have the problems of shedding hair but you will have other problems of keeping the skin of the hairless cat clean and in good condition.

Oregon has done three things which improves animal welfare in the state

Pet shop sales

The American state of Oregon has become the latest to ban the sale of commercially-bred dogs and cats in pet stores. This development follows California, New York state, Maryland, Maine and Illinois together with hundreds of cities and counties nationwide.

This sort of law is critical because it does three things to improve animal welfare namely:

1. Encourage people to adopt/rescue;
2. Educate the community about dog and cat (and rabbit) abuse in getting them puppy mills and
3. Stop the abuse.

Nathan Winograd tells us that because of these sorts of laws preventing pet stores generally getting their animals from commercial breeding enterprises, the number of commercial breeders in the US has declined by 30%.

The Nebraska Department of Agriculture records show that half of the state's commercial dog and cat breeders have left the business according to Nathan Winograd's report to me in an email.

Commercial Breeding Enterprises (CBEs) engage, according to Nathan Winograd, in "systematic neglect and abuse of animals, leaving severe emotional and physical scars on the victims. One in four former breeding dogs have significant health problems, more likely to suffer from aggression, and are psychologically and emotionally shut down, compulsively staring at nothing."

Ban on animal testing for cosmetics

The second good thing that Oregon has done very recently is that the governor of that state has signed into law legislation which "bans the sale of cosmetics that have been subjected to new animal testing". This puts Oregon in line with more than 30 countries and 10 states in America namely California, Hawaii, Illinois, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Nevada, New Jersey, New York and Virginia.

Domestic abuse shelters

And finally, Oregon are going will provide $1 million to "support pet-friendly homeless and domestic violence shelters, removing obstacles to safe refuge and supplying vital resources for people in need who have pets."

It's a well-known problem that domestic violence shelters do not often provide accommodation for women with pets which prevents them taking refuge in the shelters which put them back into the family home where they may continue to be abused by a bullying partner. So, this is an advancement both to women and to their pets. Often, as I understand it, women do not leave the family home despite abuse because they won't leave their companion dog or cat.

On that topic, by the way, it is not uncommon for the abusive partner to abuse the family's companion animal as well and use the animal to threaten the partner which may lead to animals death.

What the Brighton cat killer died of (if it interests you!)

We have the inquest report on the death of the Brighton cat killer. You may remember him. He went around Brighton killing domestic cat that were outside on the street. He did it for quite a long time and killed a large number of cats but was eventually caught on a CCTV camera when he returned to the scene of one of his crimes.

Steve Bouquet, The Brighton Cat Killer. Photo: Eddie Mitchell.

He was a former Royal Navy gunner. His name was Steve Bouquet. I am writing in the past tense because he died in prison after he was convicted and sentenced to a prison term.

Yesterday, at an inquest held in Maidstone, Kent, coroner Patricia Harding confirmed his cause of death as Covid-19 pneumonitis and a secondary cause of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. At the time he had been receiving end-of-life care for thyroid cancer at the prison where he was incarcerated, HMP Elmley.

So, Mr Bouquet died of a Covid-19 infection which affected his lungs as this disease does. The coroner decided that it was not clear where he had contracted Covid. He tested positive on December 28. This was a day after he was admitted to Medway Maritime Hospital as he was having difficulty breathing and had a cough.

He was treated with antibiotics and oxygen and other medication specifically to treat coronavirus but his condition progressively deteriorated.

For the sake of completeness, he was jailed for five years and three months at Hove Crown Court in July 2022. He had been found guilty of 16 offences of criminal damage (i.e. the murder of or injury to 16 domestic cats). He was also found guilty of the possession of a knife.

As I recall, he stabbed the cats to death. He died on his 55th birthday on January 5, 2022. His cruel actions caused an awful amount of distress in the cats' owners as you can imagine. Nine cats were killed while another seven were injured. In memory of those killed their names are: Hendrix, Tommy, Hannah, Alan, Nancy, Gizmo, Kyo, Ollie and Cosmo.

During sentencing the judge, Jeremy Gold QC said that his behaviour was "cruel, it was sustained and it struck at the very heart of family life. It is important everyone understands cats are domestic pets but they are more than that. They are effectively family members. They are much loved by the adults and children who live with and care for them. Cats and all domestic animals are a source of joy and support to their owners, especially during lockdown."

Absolutely correct. It is nice to see a judge recognising that simple fact and the law is out of date because you may remember I referred to criminal damage above. If a person kills a cat in the UK, under the law, they are effectively damaging an inanimate object not a sentient being who is a family member. That's because the law regards domestic cats as chattels just like any other inanimate possession.

Boy adopts rescue cat with the same odd eye colour and cleft lip as himself

There is a nice symmetry in this relationship. The boy was bullied at school because of his cleft lip and odd-eye colour but he found his soul mate in a bicolour cat - grey tabby and white. The piebald gene causes the bicolor coat and that gene made one of the cat's eyes blue and the other yellow. And as it happens the cat has a cleft lip. Both of these conditions are fairly rare in cats.

Heterochromia iridium is the scientific name for on-eye colour. It was probably inherited by the boy although it might have been caused by trauma. For the cat, it was also inherited because the cat inherited the piebald or white spotting gene which gives him his coat and his odd-eye colour.

The boy's cleft lip is inherited as well. It may be a genetic mutation and deficiency or it might have been something that the mother came into contact with in her environment or what she ate or drink or the medications that she took during pregnancy.

This is obviously a great relationship because both the boy and the cat benefit tremendously from it. The boy can mentally process the fact that he was bullied by interacting with his cat. He can find solace there and some comfort. And of course, the cat will benefit tremendously as well.

It is possible to operate on a cat with a cleft lip. The boy has already undergone that operation quite clearly. I remember funding a cleft lip operation of a cat in Malta. The cat was rescued by a charming woman, Martha Kane, and she didn't have the money to pay for an operation so I used monies acquired through advertising on my website to pay for the operation. I'm proud of that. Although I forget about it most of the time and it has just come to my mind while writing this article.

Yesterday was the birthday of Henry Bergh the founder of the ASPCA

Henry Bergh. Image in the public domain.

The world and particularly Americans I feel have an obligation to thank, at this time, Henry Bergh, the founder of the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA). 

Nathan Winograd has reminded me of his birthday as he sent me an email yesterday. I had heard of him so I need no reminder of his history. He was a great man. Many people would agree with me.

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow wrote this about him:

Among the noblest of the land;

Though he may count himself the least;

That man I honor and revere;

Who, without favor, without fear;

In the great city dares to stand;

The friend of every friendless beast.

Winograd refers to him as 'The Great Meddler'. This is because with great commitment, passion and persistence he meddled in the lives of those people in New York City - and I guess other places - who abused animals. He fearlessly stopped their abuse.

He got New York to pass an anti-cruelty law and put a copy of that law into his pocket and then took to the streets of New York every night for the remainder of his life to protect animals against the abuse of humankind. An amazing man as I said.

I guess nobody can match that today but some come close.

Henry Bergh stops animal abuse in 19th century NYC. Image in the public domain.

Winograd refers to a report of the time about Henry Bergh which went as follows:

The driver of a cart laden with coal is whipping his horse. Passersby on the New York City street stopped to gawk not so much at the weak, emaciated equine, but at the tall man, elegant in top hat and spats, who is explaining to the driver that it is now against the law to beat one’s animal. Thus, America first encounters ‘The Great Meddler.’

And then Winograd goes on to explain an example of his meddling. He describes one winter evening during the New York City rush-hour. People were rushing to horse-drawn carriages to get home. The horses were exhausted and flogged near to death to pull overloaded cars along a railway line.

It was snowing and the ground by slushy. When one overloaded car reached the corner near where Henry Bergh was standing the driver was about to abuse his horses again to keep them moving forwards when he heard the shout "Stop!" and "Unload!" It was Henry Bergh telling the man to stop and unload his car. The driver shouted back, "Who the hell are you?"

The driver refused to comply with Bergh's request. Bergh then pitched him into the snowbank and unhitched the horses. This, apparently was a common sight in New York City at the time.

Winograd then refers to the words of Henry Bergh himself about his day-to-day efforts to curb animal abuse under the law that he had campaigned for:

I am in slaughterhouses; or lying in wait at midnight with a squad of police near some dog pit; through the filthy markets and about the rotten docks; out into the crowded and dangerous streets; lifting a fallen horse to his feet, or perhaps sending the driver before a magistrate, penetrating dark and unwholesome buildings where I inspect collars and saddles for raw flesh; then lecturing in public schools to children, and again to adult Societies. Thus, my whole life is spent.

It paints a very hard picture. This was a man of high endurance, great commitment and persistence as mentioned. He was driven by a great compassion to help animals, those creatures more vulnerable than humankind against our exploitation.

Perhaps not many people know of his name but everybody on the planet owes him a debt of gratitude. I'm sure that millions of animals have been saved by his valiant efforts to improve animal welfare in the 19th century. He lived between August 29, 1813 and March 12, 1888. A time when animal welfare was far worse than it is today but there is still a lot of work to do.

If your cat smells bad there is something wrong. Time to investigate.

Image: in public domain.

On the mumsnet.com website a lady asks if cats smell? She says that her cats don't smell which is normal she says if a cat is healthy. She is seeking reassurances from other mumsnet.com users.

Actually, domestic cats do smell slightly when they are healthy. It is a subtle, pleasant smell. Most cat caregivers have kissed their cat on various parts of their body and picked up the smell. It is a pleasant experience.

New cat owners

People who are new to cat ownership might be unsure about how domestic cats smell. This might be because they've read some misinformation on the Internet. Or, they might have a distorted idea about the normal body odour of domestic cats because they have a cat litter tray which is not cleaned enough or, perhaps, their cat is eliminating inappropriately. 

This means that they might be peeing outside the litter box or even defecating outside the litter box due to stress. That by the way will be due to an environmental problem which would be fully in the control of the cat caregiver and it would need to be investigated.

It may be that the entire house smells bad and their cat is picking up some of this odour. There are many possible reasons why their cat might not be smelling nice. Or they think their cat doesn't smell nice. There may be a subjective issue here: the owner's sense of smell might be dodgy or they don't like certain smells. 

It needs to be investigated because this short post has been published to tell people unequivocally that domestic cats don't smell bad. They smell nice.

Some possible reasons why a cat might smell bad

I will try and think of a few reasons why your cat might smell bad. These are some examples.

Oral health

Firstly, he or she might have very poor oral health. Bad teeth and gums are not uncommon in older cats. She might have bad breath. This might give the impression that she smells. This will need to be investigated because poor oral health is painful and it can stop a domestic cat feeding properly or at all if it is very bad.

Ear mites

Image: MikeB

A bad infestation of ear mites can result in a bad smell around the ears. This may give the impression to the owner that there cat smells bad. Ear mites are terrible parasites and they cause a lot of distress to the cat. Urgent medical treatment is required. The owner should not try to clean their cat's ears themselves unless they are very skilled at it. I have a page on that which you can read by clicking on the following link if you wish. Home treatment for cat ear mites.

Diarrhea

She may have diarrhoea and be unable to maintain a hygienic bottom. This may give the impression that she smells. If this is the case you need to investigate the underlying cause of diarrhoea which is a symptom of a range of ill health conditions.

Abscess

He might have an abscess which you've not spotted which is weeping pass which is smelly. That would be unusual for an indoor cat but possible as the most common cause of abscesses are fights. If an abscess is left unattended there will be a big buildup of pus under the skin. It will need to be attended to. It will need to be cleaned out and the cat given a course of antibiotics.

Chemical on coat

Another possibility would be that the coat has picked up some chemical or substance which you've not spotted which smells. Obviously, this should be removed from the coat because anything on a domestic cat's coat presents a health hazard to the cat as they are fastidious groomers normally and therefore will ingest that substance.

Skunk (America)

It is conceivable that an indoor/outdoor cat has met a skunk on their travels and they been left with the owner that that creature chucks and other creatures! Skunks spray to repel potential predators with a foul-smelling, oily secretion stored in their perianal glands.
Not grooming?

Cat fails to groom themselves

And this takes me to the last point and perhaps the most important point. If a domestic cat is not maintaining their own hygiene to a high standard as they normally do by which I mean they are not grooming themselves regularly on a daily basis, it is an indication that they are ill. 

It is an indication that they are not feeling themselves. It may result in the cat smelling not quite right. The usual pleasant nutty smell may no longer be there. This would be a warning sign and the cat caregiver should investigate carefully and it is likely that a veterinarian's visit is required.

Rolling in dirt

RELATED: Why do cats roll in dirt? 3 reasons.

Bathing

Cats don't normally need bathing and they should not be bathed regularly because it's not good for them. But bearing in mind that this page is about a cat smelling abnormally unpleasant it may be a moment to bathe your cat which of course should be done with care and respect.

RELATED: Do cats really need baths: If so, how often?

Can sand cats survive without water?

To the question in the title the answer is YES. I will quote two real experts on this topic: Mel and Fiona Sunquist.

They say:

Given the nature of its desert habitat, it is not surprising that the sand cat can survive without free-standing water. Indeed, for most of the year, these cats do not drink, but obtain sufficient moisture from their prey. One captive fed on fresh rodents and birds refused all freshwater and did not drink for two months, but another drank freely. Though they can live without water, wild sand cats will drink when water is available; in the eastern Karakum, their tracks have been found around pools of water.

Mel and Fiona are the authors of probably the best book on the wild cats: Wild Cats of the World. Their reference for the above information is: 

1. Heptner WG and AA Sludskii 1992 Mammals of the Soviet Union and
2. Roberts TJ 1977 The mammals of Pakistan 

Here is a picture of a sand cat by me using Canva.