Dogs and cats often have coats that are the envy of their owners. But when they start to shed, the owners can’t turn around with a brush in hand. But is this wonderful natural material to be thrown away or can something be done with animal hair?
What about dog and cat hair?
Have you ever thought that you could certainly do something with animal hair? Maybe you also make fun of pets or even household members and jokingly suggest that you can knit a winter sweater out of their curly hair? It’s not as silly as it might seem.
Also, the author of this post from The Handsome Gardener YouTube channel tells you what you can do with cat hair or even human hair.
Source: Youtube
Your pet’s hair can also be useful
Yes, that’s right. Although fluff and hair decompose slowly and in ideal conditions for 1 to 2 years, we do not normally put them in the compost, but there is no reason why we cannot. Especially in our country, where we usually let the compost mature for 3 to 4 years, the composting of these residues should not pose any problem to the decomposition processes. If you want to use the compost already after a year, then hair and fluff are not suitable.
Cat and other fur can help keep pests away from your home. The hairs are used against martens, but also against mice. Place the combed fur in the attic or in the garage, where you often encounter martens or mice that retreat to the warmth in the winter.
What else can you do with fur? If you do not suffer from allergies, it is certainly possible to use animal fur as a filling for pillows, toys or small products. If you degrease the coat well with soap, you will achieve felting. This kind of felt can also be an interesting material that can be used in all kinds of ways.
You don’t have handy fingers and you don’t want to save clumps of hair to make something out of? Even after handfuls, you can use such fur and actually return it to nature. The fur serves, for example, birds, who use it to improve their dwellings. In early spring, in addition to a feeder with oats, you can also offer the birds tufts of fur in a thin net so that they can easily pull it out.
Sweaters made of cat and dog fur
If you have a beautiful fur at home, you may have already thought that it is actually a pity to have those combed hairs from a cat or a dog. It is quite a pleasant material, often also very soft and warm. This idea is not strange, and you are not the first to think of such a thing.
Already 5000 years ago, the original American peoples had a special breed of dog. In Czech, we transcribe the name of the extinct breed as Indian woolly dog, however Americans refer to the breed as Salish or Comox or Clallam dog. The white fur of this relatively small but long-haired animal became an important material for the Salish people, who were just famous for weaving and knitting yarn made from dog fur. However, with the arrival of Europeans, other animals came to America and that was the end of the wave dog.
However, the Indians of the Naga tribe also know dog wool and our ancestors also got to know it. It reappeared during the war, when the public was encouraged to collect hair for the purpose of making military clothing. Even in Austria-Hungary, which also included the Czech lands, the public was encouraged to collect fur, for example in Vienna in 1918. And it was similar with cats. Cat hair spinning was known in Europe in the Middle Ages, and later also in some parts of Siberia.
Following the example of the Salish, you too can use fur in the same way. Brushed animal hair, both cat and dog, can be tamed using a sophisticated technique. Since this is not a common knowledge and activity, you can entrust it to a company that specializes in this kind of work, or you can hand in the coat here. Exceptionally, these companies, or rather passionate private individuals, also buy fur.
Sources: uncannyanimals.com.au, thekindpet.com
