Old cat - matted fur

[Hihosilver123]

My boy has developed quite thick fur on his hind quarters, which is getting matted. I suspect he’s not grooming properly. Does anyone have any tips, other than daily brushing (which he hates!).

Snip it out.
If he won't let you comb him regularly then he's just going to have to look a bit punk in his senior years.

You need these:

https://amzn.eu/d/gRrLC81

Do a little bit at a time, very gently so as not to catch his skin. These clippers are very quiet. Also, he may benefit from pain medication for arthritis if he isn't grooming properly.

I second snipping it off! No harm giving him flea and tick spot on solution also if he goes outdoors

@Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr you are brave! I wouldn't get anywhere near my cat with those! I use vet curved ended scissors

He’s short haired so hard to snip. Not sure he’d be impressed with clippers. I think there’d be growling and hissing 😾

I would call your vet surgery and see if they offer a demat service which might be just a nurse managing to gently get it out or it could be doing some clipping.

My cat is 16 and long haired. He’s never been the best at grooming himself and he occasionally tolerates some combing. He’s great at biting though 😥

it’s taken years of patience to get him to this stage as even one comb through would result in bites and scratches.

it takes 2 of us, and he wears a cone of shame. We also clip his claws as he can be surprising quick for an elderly cat.

ive tried using a dematting tool, but have to then brush or comb through anyway otherwise it just mats again. He hates this option.

i usually carefully cut the mats out with nail scissors, which he also hates, but is slightly more tolerant of.

he def feels and walks better once I’ve cuts out the mats and given him a bit of a comb. It takes ages though as can only do a couple of minutes at a time. It has to be done slowly and carefully too so that he doesn’t try to take a swipe or bite from my hand.

I'm a vet an successfully use these little quiet ones on most animals.

Well that's me told! 😆

He surprisingly let me give him a good brush last night, whilst eating his favourite food 😸 I got loads of fur on the brush which was very satisfying!

My old cat had this problem and the best thing we found was to rub the base of each mat gently between thumb and finger until it just falls off.
It was actually DD that just started doing it for her. It takes time and your cat might not let you, but it doesn't hurt them and is effective.

That's good! Hopefully he will continue to tolerate it and you'll be able to brush him little and often so that he doesn't get matted.

It's like children, sometimes you have to do something they don't like for their own good, and they have to deal with it. Brushing, snipping, clippers: he may not like it, but he doesn't like matted fur either. It has to be done.

Yes, agree. His claws are quite sharp though!

My old boy was the same. I bought a grooming brush for small dogs, fro a pet shop. It has bladed teeth (won't hurt the cat). It cost about £12 and worked wonders without pulling on the fur.

Maxpower Planet Dog Brush, available on Amazon.

I've always groomed my long haired boy since he was a little kitten so he's used to me brushing him now but I only ever do 5 minutes at a time every day. I sit him on my lap, stroke him until he is purring then use a knit comb to slide through his hair. I pick an area eg. one of his hind legs and focus on that, all the while stroking his head and telling he is a wonderful gorgeous boy. 😻

Cats need so much attention and affirmation don’t they!