Why do cats have broken whiskers?

Various lesions of the skin, the culprits of which are various microorganisms, lead to the deterioration of the hair follicles. Their blockage as a result leads to the loss of whiskers. Pathogenic agents also affect the structure of the vibrissae, causing them to break. This is not the only symptom of dermatological diseases. These diseases can also be accompanied by reddening of the skin, its peeling, itching, festering. The exact cause of kitten's mustache breakage can only be determined by a veterinarian after performing diagnostic procedures.

Why does the cat's whiskers break off

What is a cat mustache ? It is an analyzer, which has no analogue in humans (but it's a pity), responsible for navigation and orientation in space. Even a blind cat can survive, because the amount of information supplied by the whiskers to the brain is enough to successfully hunt.

The correct name for the whiskers is. vibrissae . Morphologically, the vibrissae is a special type of hair, elongated, thickened and generously equipped with innervation and musculature. Therefore, the occasional loss of whiskers is a natural and normal event.

However, an excessive loss or breakage of whiskers disorients the cat and causes great stress. So, controlling the quality and quantity of a cat's mustache is not the last thing on earth.

The reasons for the breakage of cat whiskers, many. They can even be divided (conditionally) into several groups:

The latter, in turn, can be associated with the presence of unwanted "lodgers": infection or parasites, or with the development of a somatic disease.

What are the causes of moustache breakage that are not related to deteriorating health? The most innocuous is the consequences of a cat fight. Even cat games are very tough (because they are an imitation of hunting and defense against enemies), let alone fights! And broken whiskers are minimal casualties after figuring out a cat-relationship.

However, this cause is excluded if your cats do not fight, or if you have only one pet. What could be the reason for the "bummer"? Firstly, the pet's excessive tendency to explore the depths of the apartment, with getting stuck in the most inappropriate holes.

If such a reason is unlikely – for example, your treasure prefers safe entertainment: controlling your family members' food intake, lying on the couch, and so on, then it makes sense to suspect nutrition.

Something on the cat's menu might have triggered the allergy (an allergy can develop for anything at any time, even if the cat was happy to eat the product from a young age with no consequences). In fact, anything can provoke allergies. For example, cats' shampoo.

What does a cat need a mustache for?

Mustache representatives of the feline family, as well as many other animals, are vital. They perform an important function – to determine the position of the surrounding objects. Each vibrissae, like a normal hair, has a bulb, which is immersed in the skin and surrounded by many nerve cells. Cat whiskers react acutely to air currents repelled by objects. This information travels to the brain via nerve endings.

This organ of touch allows its owner to form in the head a three-dimensional model of the surrounding space. This method is so accurate that animals can even overcome a number of obstacles in complete darkness or with eyes closed without bumping into objects on the way.

Why do whiskers fall out?

All members of this family, regardless of age, sex, physiological condition and breed, periodically lose their whiskers. It is a normal process, similar to the renewal of the coat, although it is not attached to the molting.

There is no need to worry about the loss of vibrissae or to take any measures, because. After a while, the kitten's or adult cat's mustache will grow back.

What to do if a cat's whiskers are falling off

In order for a cat to walk around with a rich mustache, you need to follow some simple rules:

• The food should be rich in both vitamins and minerals. Lack of any element leads to loss of vibrissae, that is, they can be either chipped or shortened.
• Kittens are better fed natural food, because it better meets the needs of his body. You can add eggs and vegetable oil to his diet.
• The body of a teenage kitten needs an additional intake of calcium, phosphorus, vitamins. To help your kitten, you should consult your veterinarian, and you should not select the drug and dosage yourself, because you could harm your pet by doing so. As a rule, during this period the veterinarian prescribes Omega-3, vitamins A and D, calcium.
• If the pet gets a ready-made, quality food, it does not need additional vitamins and micronutrients.
• To solve the problem of mustache loss, you should have your veterinarian test for a fungal infection. If it is confirmed, once it is treated with the prescribed medication, you can forget about this kind of trouble.
• You should also be tested for helminths, and if they are confirmed, the veterinarian will prescribe the necessary medications.
• If the cat has problems with mineral imbalance, the veterinarian may prescribe the drug Gamavit, which can be injected or can be fed to the animal.

If the owner takes care of the kitten, finds a balanced diet, checks for fungal infections and eliminates psychological problems, over time, the broken vibrissae will grow back, and the pet will be able to navigate comfortably.

Why does a kitten's whiskers break: causes, treatment?

Kittens usually have long, beautiful whiskers that help the kitten navigate in space.

The whiskers (vibrissae) act like tentacles, they examine objects and help the kitten know what objects are around – whether they can be played with. They act as another pair of eyes or paws, gathering information about what's going on around them. And, of course, when a kitten's whiskers break, he is uncomfortable.

Over time, the mustache will grow back, of course. But it will not happen immediately, mustaches grow quite a long time, about two months. And all this time period, the kitten will be very uncomfortable and difficult to navigate in space.

Let's understand what can cause such trouble as brittleness and loss of a kitten's mustache.

In some kittens, you can observe age-related mustache brittleness. This is due to the physiological processes of the body: teeth, hair and, of course, whiskers change. Not all kittens have whiskers and it does not depend on the breed, but rather on the metabolism of the particular kitten.

One of the most common reasons why a kitten's mustache breaks can be improper nutrition. If your kitten's diet lacks sufficient sulfur-containing amino acids, minerals and vitamins, the mustache becomes brittle and may even fall out. This usually happens with an unbalanced home food diet, then the kitten will need to add amino acids, fatty acids, vitamins and minerals to the diet, but only a veterinarian can prescribe them. Remember that an overabundance of vitamins is just as dangerous as a lack of them. Only a specialist will be able to assess the condition of the animal, calculate the necessary doses of vitamins and minerals, taking into account the age, weight and breed peculiarities of the kitten, as well as to appoint the time of the next reception to control the process of absorption of the vitamin and mineral complex and to monitor the improvement of the kitten's health. Keep track of kitten's nutrition: your kitten's diet should be balanced, and for this purpose you should buy only quality food corresponding to the age of the kitten.

Briefly about the importance of vibrissae

Vibrissae are the toughest hairs that stand out against the rest of the coat. They reach a length of 6-7 cm. They are located on both sides of the nose, above the eyes and on the chin.

The scientific name of the cat's antennae comes from the Latin word vibro, which is translated into Russian as "to wriggle" or "to vibrate.

The main function of vibrissae is tactile, or tactile. It allows you to determine the location and temperature of objects, as well as to evade obstacles. Direct contact is not important here, as the hairs pick up air currents reflected from objects and allow to generate an approximate plan of a room even in the dark.

Unlike usual wool, vibrissae are much deeper and denser under the skin, connected to hundreds of nerve endings and are not subject to seasonal molting. All information collected by them goes directly to the brain.

The position of the antennae also conveys mood. Tension demonstrates increased attention and often accompanies the process of playing or hunting, when the furry pet is fascinated by its potential prey.

Reasons why kitten's whiskers break

The natural renewal of the vibrissae is smooth and imperceptible. The sudden loss of this sensory organ is tantamount to blindness or deafness. A mustacheless pet becomes helpless and can be injured when jumping, failing to calculate the correct trajectory.

Short-term and incomplete breakage is not dangerous, as the whiskers grow back over time. Despite this, this phenomenon can be caused not only by harmless causes, but also by pathological factors that threaten the health of the cat.

Increased brittleness of the mustache or even its complete absence is characteristic of bald breeds: the sphynxes and their hybrids.

Inadequate nutrition and vitamin deficiency

Unbalanced diet leads to a loss of elasticity of vibrias and provokes their breakage. Using quality ready-made diets reduces the risk of avitaminosis to almost zero.

Food prepared by yourself requires special control. Improperly prepared menus can lead to a lack of vital vitamins and minerals, or avitaminosis. More often than not, furry pets are deficient in calcium, taurine and collagen.

You should not make your own menu or prescribe nutritional supplements – it is better to consult a veterinary nutritionist.

Another possible cause is a poor drinking regimen. Lack of fluid in the body can be determined by excessive brittleness and dryness of the coat, drying of mucous membranes and lethargy of the animal.

Animal carelessness

We should not rule out trivial carelessness. Cats are curious creatures. Kittens differ from adult animals and lack of fear. They are equally attracted by a harmless ball of thread and scented candle left on the table. As a result of the next examination, small pets can easily set their antennae on fire. This will be indicated by the curled tips of burnt hairs.

🐾Why a cat's whiskers break: causes, what to do

What adorns the cat and the hussar? A mustache, of course! Only, if a hussar needs them for beauty and dashing appearance, a cat whiskers serve as "scouts", which will tell the distance to the prey, calculate the trajectory of the jump, help to orientate in the dark, examine objects and even their temperature.

Scientists call a cat's whiskers vibrissae. There are vibrissae not only on the cat's muzzle whiskers, but also on the chin, above the eyebrows, on the cheeks, on the tips of the ears and even on the back side of the front paws. We will talk about the mustache on the muzzle of the purr, of which there are no less than 12 pairs.

It happens so that a cat's whiskers break off and fall out. Why does this happen?

The causes of brittleness and loss of whiskers in a cat

1. Kitten growth. As a kitten grows, not only her teeth and fur change, but her whiskers change as well. The change in mustache is not characteristic of all kittens, but depends on the individual characteristics of their metabolism.

Nothing you can do here, you will have to wait until new whiskers grow out instead of the old mustache!

2. Improper nutrition. If the diet is not chosen correctly, then there is no balance between amino acids, proteins (which should be animal), vitamins and minerals. This imbalance can affect not only your moustache, but your whole body.

3. Fungus. It is almost impossible to cope with the problem on your own. It is obligatory to take the cat to the veterinarian, because you can not joke with the health of the pet.

4. Worms. Parasites take away those useful substances that the cat needs, on top of poisoning the animal's body with toxins of waste products.

Even if the cat doesn't go outside it is necessary at least once in six months to treat it against worms (there are pills, suspension and drops on the withers).

5. Children's antics. Children are children, they are prone to pranks and experiments to learn the world for themselves. Sometimes a little girl can trim a cat's whiskers with mom's manicure scissors, playing "hairdresser.

And the cat is left without a mustache, as without paws. So you need to explain to the kids in advance that you can't do that, and the cat can get sad.

WHY DOES A CAT'S WHISKERS BREAK?

What to do if your cat's whiskers break? Should you sound the alarm or just watch her condition for a while? Today we'll tell you what to do if this happens.

Cats have special kinds of hair, called vibrissae, in addition to their normal hair. They are longer and thicker than normal hair and are arranged in a more complex way, since they are special sensory organs. Many nerve endings are hidden under them. Vibrissae are set in motion by the contraction of the striated muscles. They are located above the upper lip, on the chin, in the cheeks and above the eyes, on the tail and on the ankles. Those vibrissae that are on the upper lip are called whiskers.

The whiskers of cats are an important organ responsible for touch, they also play an essential role in coordination of movements and help with the orientation of the body in space. It is with the help of whiskers that cats are able to catch minimal air currents reflected from surrounding objects. This helps them correctly locate their prey's position and easily avoid collisions with objects, even in total darkness.

Why does a cat's whiskers break?

Sometimes cats have broken whiskers. This can be caused by disease or mechanical trauma. Thus, there are cases where the mother cat bites off the whiskers of her kittens. It is believed that she does this to reduce their activity and to prevent them from leaving the "nest" too early. Also, kittens, like adult cats, may accidentally bite each other's whiskers while playing.

If the cat's whiskers are breaking, examine the cat carefully. Whiskers can break off due to various skin conditions. If the cat has an itchy skin, it may scratch or lick the sore spot for a long time. If her head is itchy, she is likely to scrub vigorously: licking her paw and rubbing her muzzle, which can lead to the breakage of her moustache. Severe itching often follows animals and parasitic diseases, atopic dermatitis and food allergies.

The causative agent of shingles (dermatophytosis) also causes damage to the integrity of the hair shaft. And the disease is dangerous not only for the pet, but also for the owners. So if you have any skin lesions (such as focal alopecia) you should see a veterinarian immediately.

Make an appointment at the clinic so that your pet can get a more accurate diagnosis and the right treatment.