Cross Breeds

is shaving my maine coon cats (booty) the best choice to keeping it clean?

My cat sometimes Gets his butt all dirty and I have to wash his Butt in the Sink, Will having it professionaly shaved keep it cleaner?

Public Comments

1. Yes, I think this would be OK to do. You might need to get a vet to sedate him to do this if he won't allow you or a groomer to do it. While you're at it, if he's due for a teeth cleaning, nail clip or any other maintenance, I'd do that too at the same time.
2. It sounds like he may have other problems. Does he have diarrhea? Usually cats will keep themselves meticulously clean, but if it gets to be too much, they can just give up. I would consider looking into whether or not his diet should be changed. I have Maine Coons and never had this problem to the point where I wanted to cut their hair off. You can go ahead and cut the hair on his bottom, it wont look pretty and it will keep it cleaner, but that isnt really addressing the real problem. Good luck with your kitty.
3. I have the same problem with a Maltese schi tzu cross pup. I took her to the vet and asked about it and the vet said she was normal and healthy but that she had an unusually hairy anus. I bought a lady shaver just for her ( well she is a lady!!!!!!!) and just groom very close so that it doesn't look strange. I do it at least once a week so that she is used to it and at first I only did a little at a time. When I did need to wash her I put an old litter tray on the grass outside and bathe just the spot with warm water. I wear disposable plastic gloves for this.
4. Bozema is correct. My vet also shaves the hair off the back of our Maine Coon cat because it can get really nasty as it's long back there. It doesn't hurt her, and the vet says she will feel much better without all that stuff hanging from her!
5. Even your local Vet will sometimes shave the area for you for a small fee ($8-$10). Cat's typically keep themselves very clean, but with the long hair breeds they can get fecal matter caught in their fur near their rear end. Keeping it shaved will be the best option. Call your local Vet or local groomer and get prices. Usually if your just having the rear end shaved, they typically do ok and do not need sedation.
6. Yes, and it is quite common to have to do this for longhaired cats because their hair just gets in the way. It will definitely help your cat stay cleaner.
7. Yes, it will help. I refer to this as the kitty brazilian. You can have her shaved by a pro (I don't recommend doing it yourself) or you could just give her a butt haircut with scissors. I've done both. Naturally you don't cut it down to the skin but you can give it a nice trim. I've had this done for Poppy. She used to suffer from loose stool and keeping her shaved helped that situation quite a bit. (Naturally I also addressed her diet which really solved that problem). But because she was/is overweight, she has a large belly so when she urinates it tends leave an odor behind. So the occasional butt bath is still in order for me. And again, getting her shaved does help with that quite a bit. Between times I'll give her the occasional wipe with a pet wipe. If it gets bad, I'll give her a butt bath. And then if I take her to a groomer, she'll get the shave and bath.
8. I would try keeping it clean the same way you are doing. If you don't have time to bathe your cat often enough, use a flushable wipe cottonelle makes one or you can use a baby wipe. If you shave your cat, it can cause skin irritation, itch when the hair starts to grow back and this may not even solve your problem.
9. it would probably be okay to have it trimmed up..dont have it completely shaved tho..that would look silly.
10. Why do you have to be so extreme and think shave. I've always had longhaired cats and dogs and of course they get problems. What's wrong in you using a small pair of scissors and simply cutting the fur gently away yourself, rather than submitting your pet to what could be an added pressure by having to visit the vet and have a stranger handle its backside.