We have two cats that are both around 4 years old. We took them both to the vet last week for routine immunizations and grooming (we had them shaved in the Lion cut) and ever since Fluffy (who BTW is no longer that fluffy) has just been crabby. He hisses at us and hides under my dd's bed. Neither of the cats have ever hissed at us, not even the kids. What is going on with him? Is this behavior going to be his typical demeanor from now on????

By Luvn29 on Monday, August 22, 2005 - 10:11 pm:

Maybe he is just royally ticked off about his new look! hehe!

No really, maybe he is just acting out because the immunizations have him feeling cranky. Toddlers do that, so maybe cats do, too. Also, he could be sensitive from a not so great shave. Maybe the clippers pulled a little or he's sore from the shots. Or, maybe he is just a cat with an attitude (not a bad thing...) and is letting you know he wasn't in the mood for the vet this time.

I actually know dogs better than cats, so I don't have any real advice. Hopefully he is just having a grumpy spell, and will turn back into the sweet lovable cat you're used to.

By Pamt on Monday, August 22, 2005 - 10:13 pm:

I doubt it will be typical, but he's probably mad as heck! Just give him some time and he'll get over it. Our cats always pout for awhile after the go to the vet.

By Trina~moderator on Monday, August 22, 2005 - 10:21 pm:

My hunch is he's stressed out from his traumatic experience at the vet. (In his eyes. LOL!) It's not unusual for our cats to be a little put off for awhile when we get home from the animal hospital. Just curious, why did you opt for a lion cut? We've had our cats groomed in the past but never did lion cuts.

By Kaye on Tuesday, August 23, 2005 - 01:43 am:

my step moms cat would always act that post lion cut. We always joked about him HATING his look!

By Mommyof5 on Tuesday, August 23, 2005 - 09:31 am:

Trina,

The Lion cut was a my dh's doing and after we got them home he admitted that he must have missunderstood her (tends to happen when you have a cell phone premanately attached to your ear for business). He asked what they could do to cut down on the amount of hair they shed and she gave him what he wanted....

By Ginny~moderator on Tuesday, August 23, 2005 - 10:06 am:

Tammi, shaving a cat's fur will only cut down on the shedding temporarily, until the fur grows back in. If your dh is annoyed at the shedding, you have three choices - don't have cats or get hairless cats (there is such a breed), brush them throughly once or twice daily, or give hubby some serious lessons in vaccuuming.

I don't blame Fluffy one bit. He is probably amazingly peeved and missing his fur. As his fur grows back in and he can resume his normal grooming behavior, he will probably calm down.

I looked at some lion cut photos and personally, from the photos I saw, I think it is ugly.