2 pregnant stray cats loosing their hair

by Stephanie
(columbus, OH)

well there are 2 stray long haired cats one is pregnant and the other had her kittens already...well both of the cats have huge matted up hair balls on their coats...well i noticed that the hair balls are coming comletely off leaving there skin bald...is this a health problem or just shedding...the stray that has had her kittens already has brought her kittens to my door(yes i have been feeding them through the winter)and i have let her and her kittens into my home...i have them in a box in my living room....please help me with my problem...i feel for the momma and the babies but dont want to put our health in risk either

Answer by Kate
Long hair coats will get matted if not properly groomed regularly, sometimes this is too much for the cat to cope with and needs help from us humans. it is likely that the fur has just become so matted that it has been pulled away either by the cat or after being caught on something. This is very painful for the cat has the skin is very delicate.
Or course if they are feral cats then they may have a parasite infection like ringworm buy this is normally small areas of baldness with raised areas, i would think that this is just matted fur. Really they need to be groomed regularly to prevent the mats from reoccurring.