Named Conditions
The TANDEM Cat® Framework | More Than a Grooming Method
The TANDEM Cat® Framework More Than a Grooming Method TANDEM Cat® is a feline care infrastructure. It is not simply a way of grooming cats with two people. It is an integrated care model built to reduce unnecessary burden on cats by redesigning the ...
Safe Even When Cats Act Like Cats
Safe Even When Cats Act Like Cats Cats are living animals, not machines. They can startle, twist, leap, freeze, pull away, or suddenly reach their limit. Those aren’t signs that a cat is “bad.” They’re normal feline behaviors, especially when a cat ...
When Easy Cats Become Complex: Why Long-Lived Companion Cats Need Better Care Infrastructure
When Easy Cats Become Complex: Why Long-Lived Companion Cats Need Better Care Infrastructure Abstract Many companion cats spend the first part of life appearing easy to care for. They eat, use the litter box, groom themselves, tolerate routine, and ...
The Myths About Companion Cats That Cats in the City and TANDEM Cat® Dismantle
The Myths About Companion Cats That Cats in the City and TANDEM Cat® Dismantle For generations, companion cats have been understood through a collection of assumptions that are repeated so often they are rarely questioned. Cats are independent. Cats ...
Why Do Cats Struggle With Grooming? Rethinking One of Feline Care’s Biggest Assumptions
Why Do Cats Struggle With Grooming? Rethinking One of Feline Care’s Biggest Assumptions People often ask why cats stop grooming themselves. The answers are usually familiar. They’re getting older. They’re overweight. They have arthritis. They’re ...
Beyond Survival: Rethinking Feline Care for the Modern Indoor Cat
Beyond Survival: Rethinking Feline Care for the Modern Indoor Cat A White Paper on the Emerging Ecology of the Companion Cat Shawn Lioyryan, MSW, CTCG Daniel Lioyryan, PhD, CTCG Cats in the City® | TANDEM Cat® Institute Executive Summary Over the ...
Feline Quality-of-Life Barriers and Loss of Self-Maintenance Capacity
Feline Quality-of-Life Barriers and Loss of Self-Maintenance Capacity A Framework for Understanding Feline Decline At Cats in the City and through the TANDEM Cat® care model, we have observed a recurring pattern across thousands of cats: quality of ...
The Quality-of-Life Signal Hidden in Feline Grooming Reviews
The Quality-of-Life Signal Hidden in Feline Grooming Reviews What Guardians Are Actually Reporting About Coat Care, Comfort, and Function Executive Summary Feline grooming is commonly categorized as a cosmetic service. This framing influences how ...
The Burden Threshold: A Somatic Framework for Understanding Quality of Life Restoration in Companion Cats
The Burden Threshold: A Somatic Framework for Understanding Quality of Life Restoration in Companion Cats White Paper Shawn Lioyryan, MSW TANDEM Cat® Executive Summary Many feline interventions are evaluated through a binary lens: whether a condition ...
The Hidden Medical Complexity of Cat Grooming
The Hidden Medical Complexity of Cat Grooming Most people assume cat grooming is cosmetic. They picture a fluffy cat getting a haircut, a bath, or a nail trim. They imagine grooming as something optional—a luxury service designed to improve ...
The Rise of Functional Grooming
The Rise of Functional Grooming Most people think of grooming as cosmetic. They imagine haircuts, styling, fluff, fragrance, and appearance. In dogs, that association makes sense to many people because breed trims and visual presentation are often ...
The Myth of the Easy Cat: How a Culture of Underestimation Created a Hidden Feline Welfare Crisis
The Myth of the Easy Cat: How a Culture of Underestimation Created a Hidden Feline Welfare Crisis Shawn Lioyryan, MSW Daniel Lioy, PhD TANDEM Cat® Institute | Cats in the City Executive Summary Cats are the most popular companion animal in the United ...
The Last Groom Before Goodbye: Why Comfort Care Can Change the Conversation
The Last Groom Before Goodbye: Why Comfort Care Can Change the Conversation Sometimes families contact Cats in the City because they believe they are nearing the end. Their cat is older. Their coat is matted. Their skin is flaky. Their movement has ...
What Walks Through the Door: What We Learned From Examining 29 Cats in a Single Day
What Walks Through the Door: What We Learned From Examining 29 Cats in a Single Day Most people assume cats are self-maintaining. If a cat is eating, sleeping, and not actively crying out in pain, we tend to assume everything is probably okay. But ...
The Escalation Pathway Model: Why Some Services Are Not Designed for Everyone
The Escalation Pathway Model: Why Some Services Are Not Designed for Everyone Shawn Lioyryan, MSW Cats in the City & TANDEM Cat® Executive Summary Many service businesses measure success by accessibility, affordability, and broad market appeal. Under ...
Beyond Grooming | Why TANDEM Cat® Functions as a Feline Support System Rather Than a Traditional Grooming Service
Beyond Grooming Why TANDEM Cat® Functions as a Feline Support System Rather Than a Traditional Grooming Service Shawn Lioyryan, MSW Cats in the City | TANDEM Cat® Executive Summary Cats in the City and TANDEM Cat® are frequently categorized as ...
Why Cats Mat®: A Trauma-Informed Explanation From Inside the Coat
Why Cats Mat®: A Trauma-Informed Explanation From Inside the Coat Matting is one of the most misunderstood issues in feline care. Many guardians feel ashamed when their cat develops mats. Some have been told that matting means they failed to brush ...
What Is HydroFriction™?
What Is HydroFriction™? HydroFriction™ is a TANDEM Touch™ coat decompression technique used by Cats in the City and TANDEM Cat® Clinical Grooming to help release trapped undercoat through warm water, precision handling, and controlled friction. It is ...
What Is TANDEM Cat® Coat Decompression™?
What Is TANDEM Cat® Coat Decompression™? TANDEM Cat® Coat Decompression™ is a specialized Cats in the City grooming service designed to reduce trapped undercoat, support coat airflow, decrease shedding burden, and improve feline comfort. This service ...
The Burden Threshold: A Somatic Framework for Understanding Quality of Life Restoration in Companion Cats
The Burden Threshold: A Somatic Framework for Understanding Quality of Life Restoration in Companion Cats White Paper Shawn Lioyryan, MSW TANDEM Cat® Executive Summary Many feline interventions are evaluated through a binary lens: whether a condition ...
Why We Believe Grooming Is a Care System, Not Just a Service
Why We Believe Grooming Is a Care System, Not Just a Service Many people think of grooming as a cosmetic service. A bath. A haircut. A nail trim. At Cats in the City and TANDEM Cat®, we see grooming differently. We believe grooming is one part of a ...
Trauma-Informed Feline Handling
Trauma-Informed Feline Handling Purpose Trauma-informed feline handling is the foundation of care at Cats in the City and TANDEM Cat®. The goal of trauma-informed handling is not simply to complete a procedure. The goal is to complete necessary care ...
Understanding Feline Mammary Duct Impaction (FMDI)
Understanding Feline Mammary Duct Impaction (FMDI) What Is Feline Mammary Duct Impaction? Cats have a series of small mammary glands that run along the underside of their body. Most of the time, these glands are soft, inactive, and difficult to ...
Pre-Felt Somatic Entrapment Syndrome (PFSES)
Pre-Felt Somatic Entrapment Syndrome (PFSES) Purpose Pre-Felt Somatic Entrapment Syndrome (PFSES) is a clinical condition identified through TANDEM Cat® grooming observations in which a cat develops significant friction-bound undercoat retention ...