Care

1) The cat/kitten should be gently combed daily with good quality, wide-tooth metal comb. Do comb from head to tail paying special attention under the front legs, around the ears, on the tummy and between the back legs. These areas are where mats occur easiest so daily combing is a must!

2) The combing action must be gentle and smooth. Avoid pulling the cat’s skin. In addition to the metal comb, I also like to use a small brush to “air” the fur. You may want to use a pin brush with no “balls” on the ends of the pins as this can pull out fur. A small “slicker” brush for under the arms or on the tummy is also helpful.

3 Wash the area around the cat’s eyes daily with a “Kleenex” tissue, clean washcloth or cotton ball moistened with warm water. Then dry the fur.Proper care of this area will prevent stains around the eyes, which sometimes occur in flat-faced Persian Cats.
You can also wipe the fur around the eyes with a boric acid irrigation solution, which can be found in any pharmacy “over the counter”. This solution also helps reduce fur stains. Dampen a tissue or a cotton swab and wash the area around the eyes with this. Finally, gently dry with a soft napkin removing the excess solution and drying the skin.
After the eye area is completely dried, you can apply a powder to help absorb new tearing stains. A simple homemade powder consists of 50% Boric Acid Powder mixed with 50% common kitchen cornstarch.
This dry powder is applied around the eye area with a small, soft cosmetic brush or cotton swab. Pack the powder into the fur well. Avoid getting the powder into the eye itself, or causing damage to the eye with the cotton swab. This powder applied under the eyes can absorb any falling teardrop during the day.
Recently I have found a new powder for our cat’s care, which is very effective to prevent tear stains and additionally is of great help for those cats who have abundant tear secretion.
This powder is applied under the eye with a small, soft cosmetic brush or cotton swab as described above. This procedure conceals the tearing up and also covers any stain with a wonderful white appearance. This “miracle powder”, which we sell at reasonable prices, is called Eye Grooming Powder.

4)Bi-monthly ( or more often if necessary) you should clean inside your Persian’s ears with a cotton swab or cotton ball taking care not to go into the ear too deeply. You can also clean the erect part of the ear with a warm moistened washcloth to eliminate any dirt or wax build-up. I also use the brand “Vet Solutions” ear cleansing solution which you can purchase at your vet’s office. Your vet can also instruct you on proper ear cleaning procedures.

5) Hopefully, you have provided a good scratching post for your Persian, but even then your cat’s claws both front and back should be clipped once or twice a month. Your veterinarian can also teach you how to clip the claws. A cat nail clipper is inexpensive and relatively easy to manipulate once you get familiar with its utilization.

6) For a “pet” Persian that grooms itself well, you will probably only need to bath it once a month. Step one is to comb the cat thoroughly leaving no mats. Bathing a cat with mats will not make them disappear! If you have mats present that you simply cannot remove by combing or splitting, place the teeth of the comb between the cat’s skin and the mat. Then run the scissors on TOP of the comb and cut under the mat.
Some owners prefer to maintain a shaved tummy, as this is an area where mats are more frequently formed.

7) For the monthly maintenance bath, I recommend Ivory Liquid Dishwashing Detergent. Mix 1 part Ivory to 7 parts warm water. Wet the cat down well first with warm water then apply the Ivory mix. Thoroughly wash the entire cat’s body avoiding the eye area. Don’t be afraid to scrub the feet, between the toes, legs, tail and around the ears where oil glands secrete. Do not rub too vigorously the cat’s body, as this might cause mats. Rinse the cat thoroughly with warm water. Repeat the process once more and then rinse…rinse….rinse well! You can stop the bath at this point, or apply shampoo.
You can use any good quality “human” hair shampoo. I prefer “Pantene” with 1 part shampoo to 7 parts (warm) water dilution for the majority of Persian coat types. Once again, after applying Pantene, always rinse….rinse….rinse thoroughly with plenty warm water.
It is very important to emphasize that a thorough rinsing is essential, as any remnant of detergent or shampoo will make drying the fur difficult and will cause a chaff-like fur once dry.

8) A deep sink with hose nozzle sprayer is most effective for a thorough bath, reaching all the cat’s important areas, such as underneath, around the neck, etc. Cats usually do not mind bathing, they are just frightened by the sound of the water.
Towel dry by blotting and squeezing the coat. Don’t rub too vigorously or you may tangle the wet fur. Dry the cat thoroughly with a hairdryer set on low or medium heat. The cat must be dried completely! Absolutely no moist areas should remain. If allowed to simply “air dry”, you may be unpleasantly surprised with matting under the arms, around the rear, on the tummy, etc.
To do a thorough job, the whole bathing/grooming process can take at least an hour but the result will be a clean, well-groomed, healthy and HAPPY PET!!