Why cats have mustaches that fall out

A pet’s mustache falling out or breaking off may be the first sign of internal abnormalities.

A cat’s mustache is falling out – causes, treatment and dangers

“A cat-cat, a huge mustache,” – so the folk saying characterizes the appearance of the cat. If you look at the animal carefully, from the upper lip you can see a growing bundle of mustaches. If you look even more closely to the animal, you can find the same structure and length of hair growing over the eyes. Sometimes they contrast in color with the tone of the cat’s coat, giving nobility even to simple mongrel animals.

The upper hairs are called eyebrows, but they are also called “whiskers.” There is no such thing as a cat mustache. In the classic sense, whiskers are a subspecies of hair. They are supposed to perform a heat-saving role. The function of the long hairs on a cat’s muzzle is different. They help the animal to navigate in space. They are called vibrissae according to the terminology adopted by the veterinary world. They belong to the sensory organs of the animal.

Each hair inside the skin has a spacious hair pouch, to which capillaries and nerve endings approach. They connect in the trigeminal nerve, the main artery of the nervous system in the head area. Thanks to the vibrissae, the cat receives information about space, the size of objects and navigates in the dark. The picture of the animal’s world is formed by the combined flow of information from the vibrissae, eyes and ears.

It is not uncommon for the owner to notice a picture of a cat’s whiskers falling out. There is no reason to panic, but in some cases the animal should be examined.

Why a cat’s whiskers are falling out

There can be many reasons why a cat’s mustache is falling out. They can be divided by designating:

Injury to an animal’s viburnum is difficult. This sensory organ is extremely flexible and it is difficult to break or pinch it. But if there are parasites on the animal’s body, they can cause loss of vibrissae.

Temperature changes

Abrupt exposure to temperature changes can cause a mustache to fall out. The explanation is simple: droplets from warm breath on the surface of the hair freeze at low temperatures, disrupting the structure. The result is hair breakage.

Parasites

The search for external causes of moustache loss should begin with an examination of the animal. If he has fleas present, this may be an indirect cause of the fall out. Fleas feed on the cat’s skin and blood from the capillary.

Another parasite that lives on the body of even a pet is the dewclaw. The little bandit focuses on destroying the undercoat. Both fleas and dewclaws cause the cat to itch, which can create trauma to the hair follicle. This causes the cat’s whiskers to fall out. This traumatic cause is one of the most common.

Taking medications

Tired of being sick, using antibiotics or hormones, the body directs all its energies to maintaining vital organs. Hair, teeth, claws and vibrissae are not among them. Their nutrition will be reduced, so there is loosening and loss. The best remedies will be vitamins, which can quickly replenish the balance of necessary substances.

Moustache loss in cats

Vibrissae (Ed.: vibrissa; lat. vibrissae, from lat. vibro – to sway, to wriggle; commonly – mustache) – haptic mechanosensitive long stiff hair of many mammals, protruding above the surface of the coat. Usually vibrissae are located in groups on the head (near the nose, near the eyes, on the upper and lower jaws, etc.), sometimes on other parts of the body. Vibrissae in felines are arranged in bundles near the eyes. Very similar to the typical hair, but thicker and several times longer than theirs.

Why does a cat need a mustache?

In life, members of the feline family use them as an organ of smell and touch. A cat can use its whiskers to navigate in total darkness. It senses any change in the environment (pressure, temperature…). Thanks to this navigation, the animal can do without sight, but only if it has well-developed vibrissae.

The whiskers can serve as an indicator of a cat’s mood. Whether flattened or spread out to all sides… everything says about their mood at the moment – aggression or complete interest and predisposition to communicate.

Many of you have probably wondered why cats tend to shed their whiskers. Does it have something to do with shedding? Maybe they don’t get enough vitamins?

Causes of Mustache Loss

Of course, cats lose their whiskers! And it is a normal physiological process. But it is necessary to distinguish natural change of whiskers from pathological loss!

In a natural change, the tendrils will fall out one by one, the old one will be replaced by the new one. And it will have nothing to do with molting. Whereas with diseases, whiskers may fall out several pieces at a time.

First, it can be skin lesions caused by various kinds of fungi (microsporiasis, trichophytosis – “ringworm”)These first of all lead to hair loss, and then to vibriosis.

A disorder in the diet

Among the underlying causes of mustache loss in cats, there is a nutritional problem.

Improperly chosen diet, the use of cheap low-quality dry food or canned food negatively affects the entire body. First of all, the body’s defenses are affected by the lack of mineral and vitamin complexes.

Vitamins such as retinol and ergocalciferol deficiency affects brittleness of vibrissae. An optimal level of collagen plays an important role in maintaining the elasticity of cat whiskers. When these substances are deficient, not only vibrio loss and brittleness occur. Also the structure of the hair is disturbed, the claws are broken, unpleasant odor from the mouth may occur.

If you notice a broken vibrissae at the cat it is recommended to apply for help to the veterinary clinic. The veterinarian will perform a general clinical examination, and help correct the cat’s diet.

You may need to change the food, or include vitamin and mineral complexes in your pet’s diet.

Dermatophytes

Fungal infections often provoke the development of serious skin lesions.

There are many different fungi, but not all are capable of causing disease.

Dermatophytoses are diseases of a fungal nature that provoke lesions of the stratum corneum of the skin, hair, and claws. The most common causative agents of dermatophytosis are Microsporum, Trichophyton or Epidermophyton.

Notably, dermatophytes fungi feed on keratin (a protein component). Infection with dermatophytosis occurs when a healthy cat comes into direct contact with particles of infected hair or detached skin scales from a sick cat.

A pet can be infected with dermatophytosis by using contaminated ones:

One of the first signs of fungal infestation in a cat is the breakage or loss of whiskers.

Noticing the first signs of disturbance in the condition of the pet, you should immediately seek help from a veterinarian. At home it is difficult to determine the cause of abnormalities, as well as to prescribe an adequate treatment.

Due to the large volume of questions received, free veterinary consultations are temporarily suspended.

How to help your pet

If the whiskers don’t grow on their own, the cat’s behavior has changed, and there are alarming symptoms – show him to the veterinarian. Your doctor will examine you and take the necessary tests. After diagnosis, a treatment regimen will be prescribed, for example, in the case of hormonal malfunction will prescribe medications to correct the concentration of hormones in the blood. To get rid of parasites the vet will prescribe anthelmintics. Vibris will recover after the cure of the underlying disease.

Monitor the nutrition of the animal. If the cause is a lack of nutrients, provide the cat with a balanced diet that includes foods rich in vitamins and proteins. If the pet’s food budget is tight, at least give him normal meat and vitamin supplements periodically. The best solution is to buy expensive food, which will contain all the necessary nutrients.

If an allergic reaction is diagnosed, in addition to taking antihistamines, complete elimination of contact with the allergen will help to recover. If the cat reacts to certain foods, then eliminate them, transfer the cat to hypoallergenic food. Sometimes household chemicals, such as cat shampoos, can be an allergen.

It is important to keep a sufficient level of humidity in the room for your pet to feel well. A humidifier should solve the problem of excessively dry air. If not, hang a wet cloth on the radiator.

If it is not a disease, and the whiskers do not fall out on their own, new ones will grow. Cat whiskers fall out and renew themselves, just like an animal’s fur. But if it’s not a natural mustache loss, take your pet to the vet. It may be a manifestation of a disease that needs to be treated.

Why does a cat’s mustache break?

1. The cat’s whiskers were chewed off by the mother cat . Sometimes kittens become independent too early: kittens start exploring their homes, exposing themselves to danger.

When kittens become too active, the cat chews their whiskers.

2 . A cat sets its whiskers on fire. A curious purr can smell a cooking dish in a pan and set her whiskers on fire from a gas burner.

3. The pet is deficient in vitamins . . Mineral and vitamin deficiencies cause a cat’s whiskers to become brittle and break at the tips.

4. Skin diseases . . Pathogens can affect both the viburnum itself and the hair follicle.

In addition to tendril loss and breakage, the skin around the tendril may be red and swollen, with itching and festering.

5. Fungi and parasites . Often the cat’s whiskers are chewed up by dermestid worms.

Also cat whiskers become brittle from a lack of useful elements due to worm infestations.

The area of the animal’s muzzle can be affected by the leprosy, which does not spare the whiskers as well.

6. Metabolic disorder . Metabolic dysfunction in the cat’s body negatively affects the functioning of internal organs and the appearance of the animal.

When the intake and absorption of organic compounds is seriously impaired, it becomes noticeable, even if the pet is feeling well.

You could say that the condition of the mustache is an important indicator of your pet’s health.

How a pet can be harmed by its owner

Very often the owner is the cause of a pet’s ill health. The owner causes it by doing the following things:

Such actions may damage the pet’s mental state. The cat will be poorly oriented in space, sleep restlessly, limp, experience discomfort. A cat’s mustache is removed only if it is prescribed by the veterinarian. A common reason for forcing the use of this measure is moustache ingrowth into the skin or fungal infections.

How to keep a cat from losing its whiskers

A cat will have a healthy and beautiful mustache if the following rules are followed:

• Periodically prevent parasites on the skin and in the cat’s body by using special products.
• Feed the cat according to a suitable diet and feeding regime.
• Pay attention to signs indicating an allergy. Eliminate the causes that caused it in time.
• Do not forget to vaccinate your pet against viral infections according to its schedule.
• Periodically bring your pet to the veterinarian for check-ups.
• Provide the cat with proper care and grooming.

Trimming or pulling the cat’s whiskers is contraindicated. Not only is this uncomfortable, but it can have undesirable consequences. With proper care and compliance with all recommendations, a cat’s mustache will not break, and once it has fallen out, it will grow new vibrissae.