Hi! I'm so glad I found this site I have been on it for hours...I just adopted a new persian kitty (about 6 months old) a few days ago. I am new to persians, I do have a 3 year old cat who is happy, super healthy, and all around has turned out very well! Hah but I am a bit of a worrier and am super anxious about Eugene (my persian) he is extremely happy and super sweet but I am not sure how to tell whats normal and what isn't as he is very different from my other cat. I groom him (cleaning his eyes, face, brushing, wiping him pretty much head to toe with a warm baby cloth) all things neither of us seems to mind to much but his eyes still have a bit of the brown staining in the corners and sometimes I feel as if its hard for him to breath, especially in the mornings when he is just waking up..he also seems to have pretty bad breath and gets some type of sticky substance in the area around his whiskers as well as his chest..I cannot keep his chest hair at all the way the rest of his hair it and I'm not sure why! If I had to guess I'd say its probably from when he eats but I just want to make sure its not something I should be looking more into..speaking of food..He seems to only want to eat wet food, I provide him with plenty that he enjoys and I try to mix in dry food with it (I feel him Natural Balance, the same brand I feed my older cat except his is for kittens) in the mornings because I'm worried the wet food doesn't provide enough nutritional value, but how much should I be feeding him? And should I be providing any sort of supplements? I have about 70+ dollars worth of cat treats, both healthy and..the "not so healthy" side and he doesn't appear interested in any of them. And the last issue (for now) that I can think of is he isn't having particularly solid stools, which I think is probably due to the change in food and homes etc but he doesn't cover it up in the litter box and tends to get it all over his tail..I have just been vigilant about keeping an eye on when hes using the litter box then cornering him and cleaning up his tail, but I am not sure how to teach him to cover up his business? He also does the butt scoot on the carpets and I want to make sure he doesn't have an infection or bad irritation? I'm a bit of a worry wart and maybe this is all normal I just want to make sure hes healthy!! I have done some research on all of these things but I thought it would be better just to go to people who have persians of their own! ANY advice at all would be helpful! thank you!

I have been trying to submit a photo but can't figure it out :/

Hi there, and welcome!!

Kittens are pretty messy and goopy and gunky for a while! The loose poos are probably from stress and food change, I would give it a week and see if it gets better. As long as he is still eating and drinking plenty, his body should adjust and he should settle down a bit.

As for the eyes and nose... if you've never had a persian before you've never heard the snore, snorts, and wheezes they sometimes do. It really freaked me out at first. I do recommend that you pick his nose for him daily. I know that sounds gross, but they get boogers and it helps to just gently pick them out with your fingernail. He will most likely welcome it. You also might want to let him hang out in the bathroom while you shower, the steam will loosen up some of those boogers. ... while I am typing this, PUffy is snoring like an old man

Also, with the eyes... one thing that I find really helps is a tsp of salt in a cup of very warm water, and then a washcloth dipped in. GENTLY rub both ways to loosen up the gunk.. Also, kleenex work well to wick up moisture for a quick wipe. His eyes should also calm down as he adjusts to his environment.

As for the dirty/crumbly ruff (chest) and whiskers.... get used to it!! Persians always have wet ruffs if they drink from a normal bowl. As he gets older you can get him a fountain or what is called a "beehive bowl". And kittens just are messy eaters and poopers. HE'll grow out of it!

Excited to see pictures!

Welcome to you and Eugene! Kira knows more about kittens than I do. Her advice is good. I adopted two Persian littermates from a rescue shelter when they were over a year old. They are doll face Persians, so I don't think it is necessary to pick their noses. They do snort and snore a bit, though. My two don't always cover their business either. When I adopted Humphrey, I was told he never makes a practice of covering up, but he does it now and then. I never taught him, but he is a pretty clean kitty. The other one, Bogart, does his best to cover up, but ... well, that's a long story ...

Your Eugene will get sufficient nourishment from the wet catfood. It also insures he will get enough water for his system. Are you feeding him the same food he was eating with his breeder? Or is he a rescue? The change of food and the stress of the move could be affecting his poops. If it does not clear up, then a trip to the vet's may be in order.

To post a picture, open an account on Photobucket or some such website and store your photos there. When you click on a photo in Photobucket, a menu will drop down and you can copy the IMG code and paste it in your message. I hope that kind of makes sense.

Hi and welcome to the wonder, weird Persian world!!!

Like Puffy (Kira) said, snorting, snoring, and assorted nose sounds are normal for smushed faced Persians. Right now, Olivia is in my lap making one snorty nose while breathing in and another while breathing out. It is due to the structural changes in the face. Now, if there is nasal discharge (thin stuff or white/green stuff), that's a kitty cold or sinus infection.

If you are feeding a commercial wet food, yes, Eugene would be getting adequate nutrition. Most people here feed wet food. The first thing I do with a rescue Persian is to get them off kibble and onto wet. There are several reasons. Having the extra water in the food is good for his kidneys and bladder. If you have to put medicine into the cat, it's easier to sneek it into wet food. Nutritionally, even cheaper canned food is better than most dry foods (even from the vet's) because most dried food has fillers. These fillers usually are corn, wheat, and/or rice which cats are not designed to digest. Cats are obligate carnivores and do not digest carbohydrates well at all. While some cats do fine with grains, some cats don't. And some cats eventually develop diabetes from the grains. Many wet foods have a lower percentage of grain than dried food. If he was my cat and didn't want to eat dry food, I'd celebrate!!!

In terms of quantity, basically 3 meals a day and as much as he wants to eat in 20 minutes. At 6 months, he's still growing and developing, so you don't want to short him on anything. The food should have enough of everything, so adding supplements isn't necessary.

As for the soft stools, it could be due to the change in food, or change in house, or even the dry food. Some cats, if they are not used to dry food will get soft stools from eating the dry food because their digestion can't handle it. I have one cat that if I give them 4-6 dry kitty treats (any brand, so it's not an allergy problem) will have soft poop. He can't handle dry food.

And while we are talking about poop... butt scooting may be a sign of worms or anal gland problems or hemerroids (why can't I spell this morning?) or just his attempt to clean that area. Next time you go to the vet, take a fecal sample in.

Welcome to you and Eugene you will love this site I still spend hours on it and you will find the people (Furrkid Moms) are full of great knowledge there are many experts and awesome breeders on this site..... I could go on and on about this topic...... Thank You for adopting a persian and giving Eugene a forever newhome and picture picture picture PLEASE!!!! I love pictures can you tell!!!

Welcome, we have many knowledgable moms and dads here. Take their advice as they have learned by trial and error and use it.

Can't wait to see pics of your baby.

My kitties are seniors and I'm not much help on kittens, but I did want to welcome you and Eugene. This is a wonderful group of people and cats here and we are glad to have you join us!

Welcome to you and your new kitty to the group!!

Purrs,
Joan

Hi and welcome, you have gotten lots of advice so I wont add to that.

Welcome... can't wait to see Eugene.. what color is he???