I was told my cat was 11 months in March but his coat is suddenly changing

stephanie10

TCS Member
Thread starter
Young Cat
Joined
Apr 9, 2015
Messages
41
Purraise
3
I adopted a shelter cat in March and was told he was 11 months old, though I'd assume this was an estimate as they told me he was born a stray. 

He's a very big cat. He got sick the day after we brought him home and at his sickest, he weighed 11 lbs and he had a growth spurt since then. 

Two weeks ago, I noticed that the few white hairs he has in patches on his chest and between his legs started getting long. A few days ago, I noticed he was starting to grow longer black hairs throughout his coat. Today, I noticed that he's growing longer hairs between his toes. 

I'm a bit baffled because I thought that by 11 months, his adult coat would be grown in and it just started getting warm where I live so it seems odd that he'd be growing longer hair now. 

Is it possible he could be younger than a year old at his his size? Could a cat this big still be growing his adult coat? I find it hard to believe that he's all of a sudden going to be a long hair. 

The reason for my concern is that I have been feeding him adult cat food and I hope I'm doing the right thing!




 

catapault

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Oct 5, 2010
Messages
3,597
Purraise
9,293
I don't have an answer to your question but do want to say what a magnificent, handsome cat you have.
 
Last edited:
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #3

stephanie10

TCS Member
Thread starter
Young Cat
Joined
Apr 9, 2015
Messages
41
Purraise
3
Thank you so much! I can't even describe how much I love him 
 

Columbine

TCS Member
Veteran
Joined
Feb 27, 2015
Messages
12,921
Purraise
6,224
Location
The kitty playground
As a general rule, the bigger the breed the longer it takes to fully mature. I'm not sure about coat changes, but it's perfectly possible that your boy is still growing. Even 'regular' sized cats aren't fully mature until 2 years old.

Regarding food, I think adult cat food is fine from 6 months. You just need to feed a little extra if the cat is hungrier - just watch that you're feeding for growth as in maturing/developing as opposed to growth as in fat ;)
 
Top