Although cats are very skilled and diligent when it comes to keeping themselves clean, that doesn’t mean they don’t need help in grooming. Particularly if you have only one cat. As cats are to some extent social animals, this means they would get no help in this from other cats.
Moreover, if you own a cat, you have already engaged in prepping it for grooming by the simple act of petting!
That means that your cat is already accustomed to your touch. It would take some time to familiarize your cat with all the cat grooming tools to avoid all sorts of hassle, but this is not the case with a grooming glove!
That’s why grooming gloves are so great. They simply augment your hand instead of introducing strange new objects that might scare your cat. However, there are some things to take into consideration when buying cat grooming gloves.
Cat Grooming Glove Buying Guide
Most people don’t even realize that a pet grooming glove is an option that exists on the pet accessories market. Sure, they may have seen it in action before, but only when dealing with large animals like horses.
In the last couple of years, grooming gloves are becoming an increasingly appealing alternative for both cats and dogs.
Pet grooming gloves will come in several forms, fitting different brushing results:
- Mitt-style gloves, like you would find in your kitchen. This is a matter of preference, but needless to say, with mitt-style gloves you lose a lot of dexterity and grip compared to traditional 5-finger gloves.
- Material – Make sure that the gloves are made out of BPA-free material. Additionally, a pet grooming glove, be it mitt or traditional, should be flexible. Usually, a polyester mesh grooming gloves will serve you well, as they are durable and allow your skin to breathe.
- Comfort level – Probably the most important factor when you buy a pet grooming glove. After all, you will hardly want to use an ill-fitting glove. To deal with this issue, some gloves come in preset sizes, while some come with an adjustable strap at the wrist, secured by a Velcro strap.
- Easy to clean – this feature is closely connected to the type of material. A good cat grooming glove could be used both wet and dry, is easy to clean, and is quick to dry off.
- Nub type – All pet grooming gloves are multi-purpose, but some will have elevated nubs on fingers to reach your cat’s skin. All nubs must be rounded and soft so as to offer the greatest comfort level while brushing.
- Single or paired 5-finger style gloves. Do you prefer using one hand or both hands?
Whichever style you pick, you can count on grooming gloves to do a thorough job at deshedding and unknotting hair, especially if you have long-haired cats.
Benefits of Using a Cat Grooming Glove
First, why is it necessary to even engage in regular grooming of your kitty?
Foremost, it is to prevent their coat from matting. Regular brushing accomplishes this with these important actions
- Brushing all the way to the skin removes dead hair.
- Brushing reduces the formation of hairballs.
- Brushing evenly distributes natural skin oils that keep your cat’s coat clean and healthy.
- Brushing make your cat look pretty.
As most cats are skittish and untrusting by nature, using cat grooming gloves that seamlessly form around your hand gets rid of the problem of approaching your cat with a strange object.
Compared to traditional deshedding brushes, grooming gloves have many advantages:
- Allow for frequent grooming because you can use them whenever you want to pet your kitty.
- Grooming gloves offer a significantly higher degree of dexterity.
- They keep your hands clean because they are completely enveloped inside the gloves. This is not the case with traditional brushes where you are likely to get dirt and cat hair under your fingernails.
- Grooming gloves are multi-purpose; not just suitable for brushing but also for giving your cat relaxing massages.
The best thing about a cat grooming mitt or glove, is that if you have ever stroked a cat, you already know how to use them!
Almost all grooming gloves are composed of a soft silicon material, or soft rubberized studs. Which means that any loose hair can easily be peeled off. Something that cannot be said for regular brushes.
On top of that, they are more suitable for kittens and for brushing in the sensitive face area.
Without further ado, here are some of the best cat grooming gloves and mitts on the market.
Best overall cat grooming gloves
As you can see, all of the tips are elongated, and the ones on the fingers even more so. This makes them perfect for long-haired cats.
They really go deep all the way to the skin, making themselves a powerful deshedding tool. Definitely the best cat deshedding glove AND the best dog grooming gloves from all models we reviewed.
H HANDSON gloves come in five sizes, starting from Junior to X-large.
Needless to say, they are very sturdy and well-built for both dry and wet usage.
If you don’t mind the price tag, H HANDSONs are the best overall pick for long-haired cats, alongside every other pet you may have.
Best deshedding gloves for short haired cats
- Come as a pair of gloves instead of just a single glove, although you can purchase them as single only.
- The surface is peppered with soft silicone studs that are easy to clean. To be precise, 255 silicone tips on each glove! The density of these gentle nubs is also great for bathing your cat and applying the shampoo.
- Unless you have unusually fat fingers, the Delomo’s adjustable velcro strap makes them suitable for hands of all sizes.
- They are comfortable due to the mesh material, which is just enough to keep the dirt off your hands, but not enough to make your hands overly sweaty.
- Machine washable.
If you want premium budget pet grooming gloves, this Delomo Glove is definitely the right choice.
Best Grooming Gloves for Long haired cats
Retaining all the qualities of the Delomo grooming gloves, but with one extra feature that makes them slightly more expensive.
Fingers area has elongated studs compared to the palm area. This makes them more efficient as deshedding gloves, and makes them an especially good fit for long-haired cats. Otherwise, they hold their own against Delomo gloves in every other area:
- Can be used wet or dry.
- Come as a pair of gloves.
- Velcro strap for securing the fit for all hand sizes.
If you have a long-haired cat and would like to use both hands when washing and brushing your cat, Pat Your Pet grooming gloves make it difficult to pass them by.
Best Budget Cat Grooming Gloves
Although it doesn’t have specialized longer tips on fingers, for your brushing and washing needs, Doopa Pet Grooming Glove is an excellent best-budget choice.
- Evenly distributed 180 soft silicon tips.
- Breathable 3D mesh.
- Suitable for brushing and bathing.
- Silicone non-stick material makes it easy to peel off loose hair.
Most importantly, you get a pair of quality pet grooming gloves for only about 6 bucks. People lose that much in change!
Cat Grooming Mitt
It is hard to pick a mitt-style glove over the finger-style, due to the loss of dexterity and flexibility. However, if there is one mitt-style glove to pick, it would be this one from Pet Thunder.
Once you experience it in action, you may even prefer it over the traditional 5-finger gloves. It owes this surprising quality due to the fact that almost no hair can escape on the side of the glove.
The nubs are all short and of equal height across the surface, so they are most suitable for short-haired cats.
Of course, you can use them on long-haired cats, but with less success than other alternatives we have so far mentioned.
You can use it for both brushing and bathing, and the marker of true quality comes in the form of a life-long guarantee!
But hold on, wait until you see the price tag; lowest of them all!
No wonder it has accrued so many overwhelmingly positive reviews. For almost nothing, you get the best cat grooming mitt on the market!
FAQs
When to start grooming your cat?
If possible, from as early age as you can. This will imprint the habit of grooming and bathing, without causing stress and anxiety later on.
How often should you groom your cat?
With a grooming glove, you are all set to brush your cat whenever you want. However, when it comes to bathing, the rule of thumb is as follows:
No more than once every 2 months.
Keep in mind that bathing too often can remove the coat’s natural oils, which can cause skin dryness and flakiness. More importantly, cats naturally groom themselves by licking. In fact, they spent quite a lot of time doing that.
When you see it is time for bathing, use your freshly bought grooming glove to evenly apply an hypoallergenic shampoo that is specially produced and marketed for cats and dogs. You should never apply a shampoo that you use for yourself.
How to use a grooming glove? How to groom a cat with a glove?
Outside of the most obvious action to take – donning the glove – the process is quite simple.
First, make sure your kitty is already in a relaxed state and amenable to touching. Then, start stroking it gently while gradually increasing the frequency and intensity of strokes.
Don’t worry, your cat will always let you know in no uncertain terms when you overdo it!
Occasionally, turn the cat hair removing glove over to see if it is time to ditch all the hair before another session starts.
Cat grooming glove vs cat grooming brush
Are grooming gloves really superior to traditional brushes?
The short answer is: Yes, they really are.
If you pick any one from the cat grooming glove reviews here, you will not regret it. And neither will your kitty. Grooming gloves are easier to clean, they serve multi-purpose for brushing, massaging, and bathing, they are far more flexible, and they do a far more thorough job due to this flexibility.
Conclusion
Relatively new arrivals in the pet accessories market, grooming gloves have already achieved a roaring success. The practicality and versatility has been tested and proven.
Not only do they better allow you to interact with your pet, without causing stress, but they accomplish a more complete grooming session. Regular brushing keeps matts from appearing and usually helps avoid using cat clippers for removing mats.
Furthermore, they protect your own hands from accidental scratches and bites, not to mention all the removed hair and dirt.
All you have to decide is your budget, and which grooming style do you prefer – with mitts, with a single glove, or with a pair. All of the five options detailed here will serve you well.
