does it hurt if you cut off cat's whiskers?

Answer 1

G'day Yes,

Thanks for the question.

No it doesn't as they don't contain nerves but the whisker is important to the cat.. The whisker is officially called a vibrissae.

Vibrissae (singular: vibrissa) are hairs, usually specialized for tactile sensation, that grow around the nostrils or other parts of the face in many mammals. In addition to the facial area, they can also be found on the wrists of the forelegs of cats. They are usually thicker and stiffer than other types of hair. The term is also used in reference to the stiff feathers near the mouths of some birds.

Vibrissae consist of inert material and contain no nerves. What makes vibrissae different from other hairs is that they are implanted in a special follicle sealed by a capsule of blood, called a blood sinus. Touching a vibrissa causes it to bend and the blood in the sinus is pushed to one side or the other. The blood amplifies the movement and allows the nerves at the base to detect extremely small deflections. In some mammals, the follicles of vibrissae are surrounded by a highly developed sheath of muscle tissue which can be used to move the whiskers. Whiskers can grow extremely long; the whiskers of a chinchilla can be up to a third of its body length.

Vibrissae offer an advantage to animals that do not always have sight to rely on to navigate, or to find food, or when the usefulness of non-tactile senses is limited. Some animals, such as house mice, can detect air movements with their vibrissae. A large part of the brain of many mammals is devoted to processing the nerve impulses from vibrissae because it is important to their survival. Mammals use a great deal of energy to keep the follicles housing their whiskers warm and ready to use.

Cats use their whiskers in navigating so your cat will have difficulty without them. Indeed, it will not be safe to go outside until they frow back.

I have attached some sources for your reference.

Regards

Answer 2

Whiskers should never be cut or trimmed!

Whiskers help the cat feel his way around. Whiskers are so sensitive that they can detect the slightest directional change in a breeze. At night, for example, this helps a cat slink its way through a room and not bump into anything. How? The air currents in the room change depending on where pieces of furniture are located. As the cat walks through the room and approaches the couch, he'll know which direction to turn based on the change in air current around the couch.
In addition to having sensory properties, a cat's whiskers are also a good indicator of his mood. When a cat is angry or feels defensive, the whiskers will be pulled back. Otherwise, when the cat is happy, curious or content, the whiskers will be more relaxed and pushed forward.

But the whisker's primary use is to help a cat judge whether or not he'll fit through an opening. A cat's whiskers are roughly as wide as his body -- sort of a natural ruler. The whisker tips are sensitive to pressure. You'll probably see a cat stick his head in and out of an opening before he puts his body in. He's judging the width of the opening, and is determining if he can fit into it. An interesting note: cats don't have a true collar bone, like humans. This allows them to turn and twist their way through very narrow openings.

Why would you want to cut them?

Answer 3

Do not cut the cat's whiskers. The whiskers are what tells a cat that its body can fit through an area. By the way Why would you want to cut them any way?

Answer 4

Please do not do that.

There is an old belief that a cat uses its whiskers to determine whether it can squeeze through a small hole or opening. According to this notion, the whiskers are exactly the same width as the animal's body and if they touch the sides of the hole the cat will not attempt to enter. Although not strictly true, there is a grain of truth in the belief. The large facial hairs, known scientifically as vibrissce, serve as feelers or organs of touch and they contribute materially to the cat's ability to move about in the dark. These hairs themselves, of course, are not sensitive, but the roots are provided with sensitive nerve-endings.

The most perfect organs of touch are the vibrissce, or whiskers of the cat, which act as long levers in communicating impulses to the nerve fibers that terminate in clusters about the dermal sacs in which they are inserted.

These cat-whiskers are merely specialized forms of such hairs as those which cover the bodies of most mammals, and which remain upon the human skin imbedded in minute sacs. Facial hairs of this type are particularly well developed, both in number and size, in those predatory species which hunt chiefly in jungles and other thick undergrowth.

In the vegetable-eating bears the whiskers are few in number, small in size and apparently without any function. There may be a relationship between a cat's whiskers and its sense of sight. A naturalist found that cats with their whiskers cut short were unable to judge distances accurately.

In experiments cats without whiskers would repeatedly miss their prey when springing for it. The investigator concluded that the facial hairs aid the animal to fix its eyes on its prey and that it is undoubtedly injurious to remove the whiskers from a cat which must hunt for a living.

Answer 5

Just have the heart for your cat.. God made whiskers because it serves something for the cat. According to what I heard, cats whiskers are some kind of antennae just like that of the feelers of the ants... Go and cut the whiskers but if the cat goes away, don't ever wonder why it won't go back...

Answer 6

No, it does not hurt to cut off a cats whiskers and they do not need them to balance (I've cut my cats whiskers off once because I heard this myth). A cats whiskers help it know whether or not they can fit into a spot or not. For example, if your cat is going to stick it's head into a pringles can, they'll try sticking their head in. But chances are they won't fit because their body is too big, thus the whiskers told them they couldn't. They are really sensative hairs.

Answer 7

it truly is conceivable. even as i'm not particular if reducing the whiskers might want to genuinely reason any prompt soreness for the cat (I doubt it), cats want their whiskers. The whiskers enable them to experience if an starting is too small for them to get in and out of. you spot, if the cat can go by ability of without hitting his whiskers then he's conscious it truly is secure for him to proceed. even if, if a cat had no whiskers he might want to don't have any way of gaging this and can want to very actual get stuck someplace. So, reducing a cat's whiskers off does have the flair to damage the cat.

Answer 8

I'm not sure if it does although it's not a good idea anyway, the whiskers are what balance the cat. If they don't have them they won't be able to do things like jumping etc.

Answer 9

Never, Never do that!!!! Did you just want to know if it hurts or are you really considering cutting off a cat's whiskers? If it the latter, DON'T!!!!!!!!!!!

Answer 10

It will not hurt the cat but it can cause a problem.. There whiskers are like feelers.. if you cut them off they will grow back in time but they will be off balance for quite awhile.. It's one thing for them to loose one normally from shedding but it can really mess them up by cutting them off...