Long hair with mats

[Delbelleber]

I have a lovely long hair cat. She is so fluffy and unfortunately her under belly has become quite badly matted.
The mats seem really close to her skin so I don't know how I can get them out without risking cutting her.
I tried contacting a cat groomer (very hard to find) to do the job and they didn't get back to me!
Has anyone any tips on dealing with these pelted mats so close to the skin?

It would certainly be best to wait until groomers reopen, whenever that might be. It really needs shaving.

However, if she is very compliant you might be able to do something if you are very careful. It's not necessary to cut the mats close to the skin. If you cut the mat about half way down, so still quite some distance from the skin, then they seems to work themselves out over time. You can also gently prise them apart a bit. But you must be very careful and not go anywhere at all near any skin.

She's had the mats since way before covid and I just can't find any cat groomers out there.
She is a really chilled cat so I will likely be able to cut the mats partially way down. Ive been putting it off because I thought of have to go closer to the skin.

Thanks for the advice

I read somewhere that putting olive oil between the mat and skin helped them to slide off. I did try, but its incredibly difficult to get olive oil there - maybe if she's chilled you could have a go??

I'm not sure what you mean, I'd have to look in to that a bit more.

There are a few cat groomers around. Unfortunately mine is closed. Magic ended up in the vet, so I got them to give her a hygiene trim and de Matt her. I tried getting some clippers on line, but the decent ones were all sold out!

Get a furminator and brush the area over and over! This has worked for my long haired cats and dogs.

Hold the mats between your fingers and gently snip into them with scissors (and sharpen the blades - it's easier to get a safe cut if it works first time). You'll be protecting her skin by having your fingers there.

It's better to have small bits of mats than to try and hack an entire lump out in one, as they will be far easier to remove on another day - some will be able to be teased out by hand, the rest will need to be snipped as they loosen from being cut.

Don't use a Furminator, as it will catch and drag on the mats.

Yes, you can't use a Furminator on mats. It can help to stop mats forming but you definitely can't use one in this situation.

Furminators are rubbish for long haired cats. As they only take the top coat off. Get a dog rake.

My cat is matted all over. She's very fierce and won't let a groomer go near her. So a couple of times now she's had to go to the vet to be shaved! Most vets near me seem to provide this service.

My cat is so aggressive they have to put her to sleep!

If you're feeling brave you could get some clippers and shave her yourself, but I'm not sure how safe or easy this is.

Op we usually take our boy to the vets for a vanity trim and generally the bits he hates us doing. We tried groomers but found the vets much more thorough.

You can get de-matting combs. My cat got matts and knots towards the end and it was the only thing that helped.

This sort of thing:

www.amazon.co.uk/Pecute-Grooming-Dematting-Comb-Tool/dp/B01KM4S2BW

Well I tried and wasn't very successful. I got the biggest one off but not fully and I got a little bit of another one. That's all she would tolerate. She used to love being groomed and brushed but not so much anymore!

Oh, there's a lot of distraction - tons and tons of 'ohhh, that feels soooo gooood' brushing of head/chin/cheeks/back to a very short flip and snip, back to chin and cheeks.

But mine, who was positively dreadlocked when I got her, now never has a single tangle unless she's been ill, and then lets me (reluctantly) bath, blow dry or clipper her fluffy arse down, instead of whirring like a dynamo as warning and then screaming at me before hiding under the bed for a week.

You don't need to get it off fully - the rest will work its way out. And a little bit every day is probably the way to go.

Got a few more mats out today. I gave all the pets a flea and tick treatment about 3 days ago then yesterday noticed this cat had an orange bug eating in to her face.
Seen as she has such long fur I don't think the spot on treatment is all that effective and the horrible thing was still there today so I decided to give her a flea bath and found another one in her ear which came off during the bath and a small tick on her neck. Yuk yuk yuk. Managed to get a few mats out after the bath. And put another spot on treatment on her.
Who knew a long haired cat was this much work.
My short haired cat had a tick on his face which came off the day after his spot on.
They both pretty much live outside btw it's their choice and I wouldn't stop them going out so I know they will pick these things up.

What do you use to groom her with?.

Long hairs are a lot of work but it’s a few minutes every day.

I’d never have another, we’ve had 4 of the buggers and they all hated grooming. My Bengal loved his zoom groom and furminator sessions, he even rolled over so I could do his belly.

I've got a few different pet brushes. When she was a kitten she loved being brushed but not so much anymore. She's not got the time for it, especially the mats. She gets abit annoyed about that but she's not viscous.
That horrible bug is still in her face this morning.

Took me years to find the best solution for my long haired cats matts.
This year has been the worst ever for mats under her belly. So I was desperate and ended up getting the same trimmer they use at the vets. It's an Aeaculup Exacta GT415 Trimmer. Total game changer and wish I'd got this years ago.

Can't recommend it enough for helping keep long haired cats free of tangles. Especially those who don't like being brushed and handled. I just do a wee bit each day. Fabulous results.