Grooming 101: Pinned Resource

Hi everyone! I am so excited to finally have some time to organize my cat care routine!! Felix is 4 and an orange tabby who is very vocal, and Bella is a 2-year-old dsh who is super quiet. I want to start a thread to share general guidelines for grooming, bathing, and coat maintenance. What are the basics we should all be doing? I have seen a few posts about bathing a cat without a fight but I want to know about brushing and nails too. Any tips are welcome!!

River is 6 and a dsh with outdoor access, Kettle is 3 and an indoor tabby. For River, I do not bathe him unless he gets into something toxic. The dirt washes off on its own. I trim his nails every two weeks or so. See nail trimming tips for how I hold the paw. For Kettle, I brush him once a week to keep the fur from matting. He hates it, so I keep it short.

Hello! Smudge is 9 and a tabby who is very independent, and Sam is a 4-year-old mix who is clingy. I brush Smudge every other day because she is so independent and doesn't like being handled much. Sam I brush daily because he is clingy and enjoys the attention. For bathing, I follow the advice in choosing a cat shampoo and use a very mild formula. I also use a non-slip surface to reduce anxiety, which helped a lot with my previous cat.

Ziggy is 6 and an orange tabby who is very food-motivated, Biscuit is 2 and mixed. I don't have time for long sessions. I use a slicker brush for Ziggy for 5 minutes a day. Biscuit is short-haired so I just wipe him down with a damp cloth when he is dirty. I clip their nails when they are asleep. Check managing cat dander if you have allergies, but I don't have that issue.