Best tools/techniques for grooming short-haired kittens please

Hi. I have a pair of sixteen week-old Ocicat kittens with beautiful, velvety coats. Not sure what the best grooming regime is, i.e. how often, with what kind of brush, do I need a comb or chamois, etc.

It's not that I couldn't muddle through -- I'm not an idiot -- but there are people with a lot of experience on these forums and I thought I'd tap into the vast well of knowledge/experience. Many thanks!

I'm a big fan of the FURminator brushes - http://www.furminator.com/

They're expensive, but I think a great way to keep your kitties coats shiny and velvety. My girls aren't a big fan of being brushed, but they tolerate the furminator, and it gets heaps of fur out, and their coats are in much better condition than any other brush we used.

As for how often, given they're indoor, short haired cats, I would say once a week is sufficient, but you can certainly do it more often, especially when you go from winter towards summer and their coats shed a little more.

Do you plan to show the kitties? If so, you may want to get them used to baths fairly soon. If you don't plan to show them, I wouldn't bother.

Ocicats have a short tight coat and really don't need to be groomed like other shorthairs. I run a flea comb thru Charlie once in awhile (and still don't get much fur).

Its best to use your hands Just pet them really hard when in the shedding season and you will get most of the loose hair. You can use the flea comb then to gather the loose fur.

BTW Charlie's a show Ocicat so please do not use anything on your Oci kittens other then the flea comb.

Originally Posted by GoldenKitty45

BTW Charlie's a show Ocicat so please do not use anything on your Oci kittens other then the flea comb.

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As always since I joined this board, I'm very grateful for the advice of an Oci expert such as yourself, GoldenKitty45 (and thank you, Sarahp, for the helpful link re. the Furminator).

Okay, so flea comb only, huh? Fine by me! They've hardly shed at all so far and their coats are gorgeous and glossy but I want to take good care of their coats and get them used to whatever the regime is going to be. Nothing else at all, right? No brush, no glove, no chamois?

Sarahhp, I'm not allowed to show these kitties (not that I would, anyway) but your advice re. bathing is well taken. How often would you both expect to bathe a pet Oci?

You can use a glove or chamois on them - but hands are the best (natural oils in your hands).

As far as washing the pet Oci - I might do it a few times a year. Charlie only gets washed when he gets shown (1-2 days before). He doesn't go to shows every month. So it might be 2-3 months between shows; other times it might wind up once a month.

Unless they are dirty, its not really needed. Tho you have silvers and you might want to use Nexxus Simply Silver shampoo (and a tiny bit of conditioner) on the silver coats. Or you can use Kenic Sno-Flake Pet Shampoo (order it from Jeffer's Pet catalog) Charlie gets washed in the Sno-Flake shampoo.

BTW we need some more of your kitten pictures

Yup, flea comb for Demetri too.

The zoom groom brush is great for shorthaired cats. It's more of a massage tool really than a brush but it gets out a lot of loose hairs and most cats really like it.

You can see me using it on Nikita here: