Long haired cat owners help!

Hi everyone. I'm a proud owner of a Maine coon and birman and love them to pieces. There hair however is driving me mad, this is my first summer with them together (bandit only joined us end of September) and I'm going over there hair every other day with the furminator and bathing them once a fortnight but nothing seems to be helping! Usually my Maine wins for hair shedding but now bandits just as bad! I'm also in the process of saving to have my carpets ripped up to have laminate put down because I'm sick of crawling on my hands and knees to pick up the hair that's embedded on the carpet! My work clothes are all sealed in plastic bags - I work in an office and having cat hair all over you isn't good and as the majority of my clothes are black and bandit has brilliant white hair it sticks out like a sore thumb haha. Have any of you long haired cat owners got any tricks to help control 2 indoor cats hair from getting everywhere?

I have two Maine Coons, and my baby girl who passed away in December was a part Maine Coon with some Persian in her.  I discovered the Philo Comb last October (when I bought the raised bowls at the same place).

It's expensive, but every word of the description is totally true.  It's much, much gentler on the skin and the fur than the furminator (i have that too).  When you see it, you'll think it will break, but TRUST me, it won't.  When you get it, you'll think there's no way it's strong enough or that it could possibly be durable, but it is!  It gets through tangles and even some mats (though you do need the furminator for the worst ones)

Here is a pic of the aftermath of about 5 minutes with my big boy just now!

http://www.classycatdishes.com/product/new-unique-philocomb-japan/

(you want the size E3)

His belly is proof to me that angels exist

Ahh his coat is beautiful! I'll have a try with that thank you so much for your response. I always think when I'm doing my Maine with the furminator that it'll never stop coming out and because her undercoat is still very soft and fluffy I worry it's just ripping it out and not just removing the dead hairs? Anybody else experience this with the furninator?

The furminator is great for matted fur, but yes, it will always keep pulling fur out, no matter how much you brush.  This is because each bristle has a blade.  I only use the furminator in the summer, when he gets very hot (i hate air conditioning, and always have the windows open unless it's 90-100 degrees, but my babies get a little warm sometimes).

The Philo Comb is much more gentle, and it only pulls out the loose/"dead" fur, rather than pulling out ALL the fur

I know some groomers will tell you that the Furminator is awful for the coat and the skin because it's metal and sharp, but sometimes, you just have to do what you have to do!

Overall, I feel like the Philo is amazing for my daily brushing needs for both of my boys, while the Furminator is needed for special situations

If you have any other questions about Maine Coons, let me know!  Mine aren't purebred, that I know-of (rescues), but I will never get any other kind of cat.  They're amazing!

Your little guy/girl is gorgeous too! 

Aww they are stunning! Thank you she was still only a few months old in my profile pic but here's her now she was my first ever cat and I can honestly say she was the best first cat I could of had. She came from a great breeder and was so well socialized when she came to me and she just strutted in like she owned the place at 15 weeks old haha. She's now 18 months old and still growing! Maines are just so playful and talkative but shes always ready to have a cuddle in bed Im still learning a lot about being a good cat owner and raising a maine coon so it's nice to find somebody who has experiance with them.

she's gorgeous!  Please feel free to ask any questions!  I've had at least partial-Maine Coons for 17 years

I've got two Siberians, and I am thoroughly grateful for the tip about the Philco comb!  Cat fur is just part of life though.  All you can really do is be sure to feed a healthy diet with omega 3's added and spend a lot of time combing your cats.  Right now I use a simple long-toothed comb, as the slicker brushes don't get at the undercoat.  The Zoom Groom is also effective and judging from my cats' reactions to it, it feels really, really good to the cat.  I own a stack of grooming tools, including the Furminator, but I haven't found the rest of them to be that useful except that I do furminate their backsides to help prevent poop "cling-ons." 

Bandit, ripping up carpet won't improve your life I'm afraid.  With floors, you get cat hair tumbleweeds everywhere.  I'm constantly picking them up.    I advise spending your money on a good vacuum cleaner and one of those long flexible wand ends to clean under furniture.  If I ever have $800 to spare I'll consider getting a pet Roomba.

I wouldn't have it any other way though.  My cats are just beautiful, and snuggling with them and rubbing their tummies is pure luxury.  Gorgeous photos of those Maine Coons!

sophie1 said:

 
I've got two Siberians, and I am thoroughly grateful for the tip about the Philco comb!  Cat fur is just part of life though.  All you can really do is be sure to feed a healthy diet with omega 3's added and spend a lot of time combing your cats.  Right now I use a simple long-toothed comb, as the slicker brushes don't get at the undercoat.  The Zoom Groom is also effective and judging from my cats' reactions to it, it feels really, really good to the cat.  I own a stack of grooming tools, including the Furminator, but I haven't found the rest of them to be that useful except that I do furminate their backsides to help prevent poop "cling-ons." 

Bandit, ripping up carpet won't improve your life I'm afraid.  With floors, you get cat hair tumbleweeds everywhere.  I'm constantly picking them up.    I advise spending your money on a good vacuum cleaner and one of those long flexible wand ends to clean under furniture.  If I ever have $800 to spare I'll consider getting a pet Roomba.

I wouldn't have it any other way though.  My cats are just beautiful, and snuggling with them and rubbing their tummies is pure luxury.  Gorgeous photos of those Maine Coons!

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Thank you for the compliments!  I work hard to keep their coats healthy and beautiful, but the Philocomb (when i googled it just now to get the video, I realized it's one word, not two)  has totally made that much easier!  My little girl (the one with Persian fur) passed away in December, and was very tiny and sensitive as she aged.  Her fur was prone to mats, and I wish i had known about the Philocomb sooner as it would have made grooming a much less painful ordeal for her.  The bristles won't cut their skin (the Furminator can cut them if you use it on mats that are too close to the skin, I speak from experience).

My boys LOVE brushing sessions, but for them, the benefit has been in the fact that this is much more gentle on the fur itself.  You're not ripping out fur like you do with the Furminator; you're just grabbing the loose, undercoat fur that would end up causing tumbleweeds or hairballs (most likely, both)!  It's the most effective grooming tool i've ever had.  I have slickers, the Zoom Groom thingie, a dog brush I kept from when I had a roommate with a shiba inu doggie.. I've been known to use lint rollers from time to time...

Here's a video of the Philo in action!  It's in Japanese, but kitty love is universal!  If you skip to about 3:00, you'll see her really get into it with her ragdoll!  (I know, I'm totally obsessed!)

 

Thanks so much for that, Rachbu.  I got my kitty a model E2 Philocomb and it works great -- much better than his boar bristle brush alone -- to collect his loose undercoat hairs.  He loves it!

YAY!!  That's awesome! It's such a special way to bond with your kitty.  I just tap the bristles on the sofa cushion, and my boy comes running!  Enjoy!