Shanti the Lion

So as you all know, Mira and I are the co-owners of two cats, Lexie and Shanti. Shanti is a long haired feline, so the summer is a tough time for all involved. Not only does he shed like crazy, leaving big balls of black hair all over the place, he also gets terribly uncomfortable. Once the heatwave began, he spent most of his time hiding under the couch. Mira and I had long joked about getting him a lion cut, but just recently we started to seriously consider it. We spoke with the owner of a little local pet shop/grooming facility a few blocks away, on Grand Ave. and she talked us through the process and explained how much it costs ($75) and how often it needs to be done (in our case, once a year, since we'd let it grow out for winter). Now, some of you might be wondering what exactly is a "lion cut." It's a haircut typically given to long-haired cats, where all the fur is shaved off, leaving only the hair around the head, the feet and the tip of the tail, giving the cat a "mane". It looks pretty funny and adorable. To make a long story short, we decided to go ahead and do it.

Shanti had his appointment on Friday while I was at work, so Mira took him. We were worried that he wouldn't sit through this procedure without being sedated, but apparently it went alright. It took two people, but he got through it. We also worried that he would be traumatized. I read lots of people online talking about their cats being "embarrassed" and "upset" and "traumatized" following a lion-cut. Personally I think those people were just projecting their own feelings. I mean come on. Shanti was his usual loving, adorable self immediately after. He seemed a little uncomfortable the first night, because he was getting used to the feeling of not having tons of hair anymore. Often when he'd go to sit down, he'd jump back up in surprise. The only other problem, which we had already foreseen, was that Lexie got a little freaked out upon seeing him. She seems to have gotten over it already.

How does he look? Adorable! I couldn't stop laughing when I first saw him, but he really does look cute. And he feels like velvet. They didn't actually shave all his hair off, they left the soft undercoat. So in the end, we are very happy with the decision that we made, and he seems to be quite happy as well!

Here are some photos provided for your enjoyment: