Question - cat to go under anesthesia

[jeneticallymodified]

No white - just the dilute orange, a really soft apricot color. Doesn't she look like one of the Hollywood sex goddesses from the 1930's? You would never guess that she lived rough for a couple of years, until we were able to catch her.

Her brother Sebastian, who lives with me, has the same fur, but he's not as photogenic because he has a long Roman nose. He's a pistol, very smart and most often obnoxious. Their brother Willow also has the identical fur, and a very sweet face and demeanor. He lives with my sister. All three were dumped down the road from my sister's, as kittens.

she has to have some white on her somewhere, genetically- or she'd be a freak (no offence) no? it looks in the pics like she has a little blended around her nose, paws, ear hair, etc. just not tuxedo style. regardless, she's a stunner.

awwww. poor babies. they have good genes, regardless of their origins.

 

[jeneticallymodified]

Wow, she's gorgeous! My niece has a fluffy cat with "personality" who likes to bite and scratch when the mood hits and will in no way let her near if there's a matting issue. She has had him sedated a couple of times with no problem. Hard to say, though, since each animal is different.

mats are VERY painful for cats- they pull on the skin, they can cause horrible messes. i remember how horrid it felt when my mum brushed a knot out of my hair when i was a little kid.... i can't imagine how much it'd suck to be totally covered in hair like that, and matted up.

 

[mlp]

she has to have some white on her somewhere, genetically- or she'd be a freak (no offence) no? it looks in the pics like she has a little blended around her nose, paws, ear hair, etc. just not tuxedo style. regardless, she's a stunner.

awwww. poor babies. they have good genes, regardless of their origins.

Are you sure that dilutes have to have white on them? Because neither Serenity or Sebastian do - each hair is lighter at the roots than at the ends, but I have never seen anything lighter than cram on either of them, and I've lived with them a long time. One of my other cats, Y.A.C., is also a dilute with no white, although he has tabby markings. I do have dilute bicolor yellow tabbies also.

I'm not an expert on cat genetics, by any means, but aren't the *blue* cats actually dilute black? And I have seen photos of blues that don't appear to have any white.

 

[Ansciess]

Her brother Sebastian, who lives with me, has the same fur, but he's not as photogenic because he has a long Roman nose. He's a pistol, very smart and most often obnoxious.

Please post his picture - I'd like to see that nose

 

[shyvas]

This is Serenity:

View attachment 378

She is a knock out !!

 

[mlp]

Please post his picture - I'd like to see that nose

Well, here is the full effect of The Nose:


Here are a couple of more flattering pictures of Sebastian. The one with Tao and Zen does the best job of depicting the true color of him, Serenity and Willow. (Tao anden are a deep, brownish orange that I've never encountered on any other cats,) In the other picture, he's with Doc, the former feral who bit twice all the way through my palm, the first time we met. Doc turned out to be one of my sweetest lover boys.

For years, I had a collar on Sebastian, with not one, but three, bells, so that I could hear him when he tried to sneak out.He's the only one of my cats who tries to get out, not because he wants to be outside, but because it's one of the games he plays with me. He's one of the three smartest cats I've ever lived with, and his primary source of amusement is getting one over on me. I have tracked him through a frozen creek in bare feet, only to give up and return to the house to find him sitting at the back door, with a "Well, aren't YOU the stupid one!" expression on his face.

He figured out how to move without setting off the bells, so he doesn't wear them any more - there's no point.

 

[sallyomally]

I want to come to your house,mlp!

 

[KLS52]

Your cats are beautiful...but more important, they are lucky!!

 

[mlp]

Thanks, guys! I could use the extra petting hands - in the evenings, I have a line of cats waiting for lap time.

 

[jeneticallymodified]

Are you sure that dilutes have to have white on them? Because neither Serenity or Sebastian do - each hair is lighter at the roots than at the ends, but I have never seen anything lighter than cram on either of them, and I've lived with them a long time. One of my other cats, Y.A.C., is also a dilute with no white, although he has tabby markings. I do have dilute bicolor yellow tabbies also.

I'm not an expert on cat genetics, by any means, but aren't the *blue* cats actually dilute black? And I have seen photos of blues that don't appear to have any white.

i think i'mma have to admit defeat on that. it looks lieka whole bunch of different things could be going on to make that beautiful coat.

 

[Wolfie]

There are a few long-term resident cats at the shelter here that they sometimes put under for grooming because doing it any other way would likely get the groomer decapitated or at least a finger or two amputated. So far all has gone well but I, too, worry any time one of my animals goes under for any reason, even for something minor like x-rays or dental. So in other words I don't know what to tell you. I certainly hope "the groomer does it with the vet right there" means the vet administers and monitors the anesthesia. No way is a groomer qualified to do that. I'm not even sure that would be legal. My vet uses gas anesthesia, the same stuff they use for humans, and the dogs are always awake pretty quickly afterwards, within minutes.

 

[mlp]

Serenity's blood work up was perfect, she came through fine, and we're back home.

 

[KLS52]

Yay! So glad to hear that.

 

[mlp]

Thank you. It was worrying me, and even more so because it was my fault , since I didn't keep up with what was going on with her coat.

 

[KLS52]

Sucks when we do the best that we can, and then some, and sometimes it's still not enough. Don't feel guilty. I haven't tackled Bogart's matted-ness yet. I have a lead on someone who will do the sinus flushing at a price I can afford, or should I say a price that won't be as painful as the $3200 quote from that crazy hospital, lol. It could happen as soon as Monday (fingers crossed). Once I get him settled with that, I have to seriously find someone who will work on his coat.
So did Serenity just have her stomach shaved? This is my first long-haired cat...can I assume the hair grows back when they are shaved? I'm asking because it looks like someone cut clumps from around Bogart's mane. He's been with me for six weeks now and it doesn't look like any of it has grown back...he's still very choppy looking. Of course it could be that he never really had a mane since we aren't 100% sure of he is. Everyone is assuming he's at least part Maine Coon. I would try and cut some of the big matts out but I don't want to do that if it's not going to grow back and fill in.

 

[mlp]

It'll grow back out. Some cats take longer to grow their fur than others.

The groomer wanted to shave Serenity down so that her fur would be a uniform length, and I told her no, I just wanted the matted areas shaved, and I emphasized the same to the vet. (I discovered with my first Great Pyrenees that groomers are reluctant to leave an animal's fur looking choppy; they think it reflects poorly on their skills.) But I know from experience that cats are pretty conscious of their appearance, so I didn't want Serenity to have to deal with having all her long fur gone if it wasn't necessary. And, from a practical point of view, I didn't want to risk her getting sunburned - my cats have access to an outdoor enclosure.

So, Serenity has her tummy and lower hips shaved. Her back and most of her sides didn't have any mats. I think she's feeling pretty good - when I woke this morning, she was lying next to me, on her back, with her legs spread out. Her tummy must feel so much better now.

IME, long haired cats get really luxurious coats only when they're feeling 100%. So, if Bogart's sinus problems can be fixed, I think you'll see his mane fully grown in in about six months.

 

[mlp]

Sucks when we do the best that we can, and then some, and sometimes it's still not enough. Don't feel guilty.

Meh. In my case, I just wasn't paying enough attention. If I had caught it early, I could have taken care of it myself, before it got so bad.

In Bogart's case, the top priority has to be to get him feeling better. Just check periodically to make sure the mats aren't getting so bad that they're pulling the skin - I've heard of cases where the skin actually splits from the matted fur pulling it.