First time long-haired cat owner advice needed!

[Danieljames56]

Hi all!
Just adopted my first long-haired cat, and honestly, it’s a bit overwhelming 😅
From grooming to behavior and general care, there’s a lot to learn. I did go through a helpful beginner's guide that answered some questions, but would love real-world advice.
Any dos/don’ts I should know early on? Mistakes you wish you avoided?
Much appreciated!

Behaviour shouldn’t really be any different unless a specific breed. Grooming little and often. Use hairball paste, to prevent hairballs. Maybe get some cheap trimmers to neaten up behind lol - prevention better than cure.

Impossible to advise without a picture.

Picture and breed would be helpful.

We need to know how long haired is your long haired cat. 😼

Assuming it's a normal mog then you just need to brush them reasonably regularly and watch out for matted fur.
Otherwise treat as any other cat

Groom every single day, even if it's for a couple of seconds each time. Make sure you can handle it around the rear end (diarrhoea is easier to deal with if the fluffy arse is clipped regularly), always get your fingers in between the adorable little toepads and get familiar with the point where the blood supply to the claws ends and the bit that can be clipped starts.

Also, check the type of coat - it's easy to just brush the outer coat and miss dense matting forming in the undercoat - a tangle teezer brush is useful because it feels nice, along with a Furminator especially for long hair.

Haha fair point 😸
I’m pretty sure she’s a Maine Coon mix — very thick fur, long tufts on the ears, and that lion-like ruff around the neck. I’ll try to upload a pic soon!
In the meantime, I found a really helpful Maine Coon grooming guide that matches her coat type exactly. It’s got tips for managing shedding, brushing schedules, and even product suggestions.
Definitely made things easier for me as a first-time long-haired cat owner.

We have a ragdoll, he needs no grooming at all and behaviour wise is just a bit of a twat.

Our last long hair was a Maine Coone and he did need grooming and hairballs trimming but behaviour wise was like any other cat.

So breed is relevant I think

We have a long haired moggy who gets really matted. I take him to the vet to be clippered every so often as he hates being brushed. But he is beautiful 😊

This one isn't a Maine Coon - but he's very hairy and if unbrushed leaves the carpets knee deep in black fur.

Brush daily if you can, even just a few minutes makes a huge difference with mats. A wide-tooth comb works better than a standard brush for the undercoat. Also keep an eye on their back end — longer fur there can get messy quickly if not trimmed. Mine also benefits from a little grooming spray to stop static. It’s a bit of work at first but once you get into a routine it becomes second nature.

I give mine a brush from time to time. Any knots come off with clippers (guard on) and his rear end is clipped too. I give him a summer haircut too - not paying a groomer.

If he gets a bad stomach, the only way to get it clean is to hold an angry cat under a tap to rinse it off - prepare for claws and operate at speed.

Don't forget to comb under arm pits. That's where my boy occasionally gets a little knot I trim off. If a cat has been groomed from being a little kitten it will be used to being brushed and ears cleaned etc if not it will be harder. My cat just stands and lets me brush him or clean his ears or trim between his paws because I've always done it. Harder if you are trying to introduce to an older cat who has not experienced it before.

I have a long haired cat. She has no teeth(was a rescue with a poor start in life). So she struggles with grooming. She hates being brushed. She gets a lot of matted hair. So we have to use clippers on a regular basis to remove them all