A cat’s hair grows out during a 60 to 90 day cycle, rests during a 40 to 60 day cycle, and then falls out. This is mainly influenced by the length of day. During the longer days of spring, more hair falls out. As the days shorten, less falls out and the coat appears to thicken. Indoor cats are less affected and shed on a year round cycle. The hair of a long-haired cat does not grow faster; the growth stage is just more extended than for the short-haired cats.
The gene for long hair is recessive in cats. This means that there must be one copy passed to the kitten from each parent. The mutation that created long-haired cats occurred centuries ago in Central Asia, probably as a survival mechanism to protect the cats from the cold climate. They were brought to Europe in the 1500's and were initially referred to as "Persians".
The hair of a cat is not like human hair. We have a single hair growing out of each follicle. Cats have up to 6 primary hairs, (each surrounded by secondary down hairs), growing from each follicle. The cat also has arrector muscles, (muscles that lift or erect the hair), surrounding each follicle. They raise their hair in response to anger, fear and cold temperatures.
The short-haired breeds that have evolved to cope with hot climates have fewer secondary "down" hairs and shed what they do have at a faster rate. The cold weather, long-hairs have more "down" hairs and retain them longer. If the short-haired breeds are still too hot, they shed their primary hairs at a faster rate.
We are pleased to welcome Snowball to our practice!
