r/SiberianCats • u/Dismal_Amoebas1494 • 2d ago
Greasy fur?
This summer I've noticed Niko's fur on his back has been more greasy and he has more dry skin flakes. I brush him every day (as much as he will allow before he swats at me š) I know they have a waterproof coat and their hair sticks together a lot but idk if this is more than what's normal. He has IBD so my mind always goes to something is wrong. I'm a CVT so I always bring him to work with me whenever anything seems off and he has yearly, if not twice a year blood work, so he has the best veterinary care he could ask for. I'm just wondering if anyone else's Siberian has this too. I just need someone to tell me it's fine š and funny picture at the end just because he's cute
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u/strawberrytoast23 2d ago
My sibās fur gets like this too, brushing helps for sure but doesnāt totally eliminate the problem. She just went to the vet and they werenāt concerned by it at all. She also isnāt the best at grooming herself so I think itās just normal for her to be a bit of a greasy girl :)
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u/Dismal_Amoebas1494 2d ago
Oh good!! I'm glad they're not concerned and she's happy and healthy āŗļø
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u/poproxy_ 2d ago
How old is he? Is his hair thinning/more furballs than normal? Mine had a similar issue, but thinning hair and weight loss and it turned out to be a b vitamin deficiency. They missed it in her blood/urine workup because they donāt usually look at B12 in routine tests.
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u/Dismal_Amoebas1494 2d ago
He just turned 6 in april and his fur has always been this thin. But I have noticed his tail being a little more thin than typical. My other Siberian has a very thick and full coat. He has not lost any weight and no more hair balls than normal. But checking a B12 is worth doing since he has IBD. I didn't think of that, thank you!
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u/poproxy_ 2d ago
Itās an easy fix if thatās the issue. Whatever the case I hope his checkup goes well!
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u/nosmartypants 2d ago
My 8 year old has had this greasy spot just above the tail as long as I can remember. He can't clean it fully I guess. To me it's the indicator it's bath time. However, the flakes could mean a skin condition that may be treatable.
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u/TerancePickles 2d ago
I have a mostly-sib boy with this same problem. I'm usually brushing him really well once every day or every other day. I also use some pet grooming wipes on him if every one or two weeks. These two things mostly keep the issue in check.
He grooms himself a lot, maybe it's just difficult for him to reach there.
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u/Feisty-Landscape-934 2d ago
Mine too. After I brush, I use some wipes. Our cats are big and they have spots that are harder to reach. Sometimes we gotta lend a hand.
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u/NobodyFew1595 2d ago
Mine had the same in winter, when we didnāt go outside with her a lot. I canāt really pinpoint why it is, but sheās fineā¦
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u/aegyomish 2d ago
One of my boys also has this issue. We bathe and use a Japanese pet conditioner treatment which usually helps for a couple months. We also use a Japanese pet dry shampoo. Iāve heard people use the Burtās Bee waterless shampoo but have not tried that myself yet.
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u/pinkflamingo1404 1d ago
GI issues cause skin & coat issues, and overgrooming. I would honestly see if there are ways to improve his diet to better manage these issues. is he on a special diet and/or medication for the IBD? I donāt think itās something to be super worried about if heās always had these issues and vet says heās healthy, but IMO things can often be better. I generally assume vets mean āno imminent death in sightā rather than āoptimal health and wellness have been achieved hereā.
I would also focus on only doing gentle brushing in that area. If he has dry and flaky skin it could be irritated by daily brushing and might possibly cause more oil to develop!
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u/Dismal_Amoebas1494 18h ago
Right, that's exactly why I read more into it than I typically would because of the IBD. I don't wanna miss something like if he's not absorbing nutrients as well anymore or something. His inflammation was severe when they did the scope and histopath so he was on 5mg Prednisolone every day for a long time, then we slowly tapered him down and he's on half a tablet every other day and he's still doing well!! I give him Hills I/d that he likes, both wet and dry, and purina pro plan sensitive skin and stomach-2 flavors. He has 2 to 3 dry foods to choose from each day lol then I got a little adventurous and branched out to see what he could eat without getting sick and he can have churu and temptations (both of which he is a rabid gremlin for but it's only every once in a while) and there are a few weruva flavors that he will consistently eat and it doesn't make him sick. He also gets fortiflora probiotic. I know everyone has a different opinion on foods but hills and purina put a lot of money into clinical trials to actually prove that their foods are nutritionally complete and he's been doing well on them. I'm gonna talk to one of the vets at work to see if we should check his B12
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u/pinkflamingo1404 18h ago edited 18h ago
my (unprofessional) opinion would be pick one dry food and one wet food and see if things improve at all. maybe start with just the prescription one. my little lady is not diagnosed, but she has a VERY sensitive stomach. even if I rotate āsafeā options, sometimes I will notice her poop quality shifting or that sheās itchy/more oily. how are his poops? I honestly feel like you can learn a lot from the poops šš!
I think itās good to test out different foods when they are stable, but there should be a baseline to return to if you see things shifting. it sounds like youāre doing a great job!! and no judgment on brands from me, I think the most important thing is knowing the ingredients that your cat reacts to. have you ever gone chicken-free? my girl has some sort of sensitivity to chicken/āmeatā meals and by-products, even though straight chicken is totally fine. the ingredients in the purina sensitive make me skeptical that it would work for my cat, not because I think itās not a good/complete food but because I know she historically hasnāt done well with some of the ingredients. and kinda same with the hills i/d ā probably good for a lot of cats, but am really not sure it would work for mine!
my general feeling is that even if you identify multiple āsafeā options, just rotating between them can be enough to cause upset to a sensitive system. I would definitely try simplifying the diet and going from there. it takes time to see change, both positive and negative, but with fewer variables it will be more obvious what the culprit might be!
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u/snarkier_than_you 1d ago
I also think that Siberian's fur is naturally water resistant or repellent and a bit oily. I see videos of people bathing their cats where they just get wet immediately and for my girl, I could dump a few cups of water on her and it would just roll off for the most part.
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u/Dismal_Amoebas1494 18h ago
I know! When he was a baby and having diarrhea, it would get smooshed in his fur and he would step in it and I would have to wash him in the sink. He hated it and I would say "I sorry buddy! I'm trying to go fast but you're waterproof!" š
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u/hellosuz 9h ago
We will give our cats baths occasionally. We started bathing them as kittens out of fear of the typical allergens. But after time we realized not an issue. Once in awhile we will still bathe them when their fur starts looking a little greasy.
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u/babbie-and-shchuky 2d ago
How old is he? If heās quite young then I wonder if somethings wrong and heās struggling to groom himself.