my cat has Matt's?

Question

my cat gets horribale matts and the give her scabs is there anyting i can do to help

Answer 1

This may sound ridiculous and I don't know what your financial standing is, but is there any way you can get her to a groomer every 6 weeks? The groomer can remove mats and trim her up to help maintain the coat.

If not, then you will need to do this grooming yourself at home. I am assuming she is a long haired cat and most of the longhairs have cotton-y undercoats. The cat should be COMBED out (with a steel tooth comb) at least once a aweek. This will ensure that you are removing as much of the loose and dead coat as you can to prevent matting. If there is a mat, don't freak out. Cats hair doesn't tangle quite like a dogs. The hair won't untangle so don't even bother trying to untangle the mat. It is best to just get the comb under the mat and lift the mat right out of the coat. This will result in the hair that is in the follicle that is tangled in the mat to be pulled out as well. It really is relatively easy and will not harm the cat. Trust me. I am a trained professional pet stylist and have done this since early on in my training. Most cats feel relatively little discomfort during the dematting process. If she has a lot of mats, it might be best to get her shaved by a groomer because not only will it take you a while but she will quickly loose patience. To shave her down will be quick and easy. You can start fresh when the new coat comes in.

As for the scabbing, what is going on under those mats is just disqusting! The dander build up under the mats makes the cat's skin itchy. She is scratching under and through the mats to relieve the itch and cutting herself. I have seen some pretty aweful things under mats - like maggots, bot fly larvae, fungus and rain rot (wet skin sloughing off). Whichever method of grooming you choose, remember that getting the mats removed is no where near as uncomfortable and painful as leaving them in!

Answer 2

Hi, my cat is a long hair and has the same problems, she disliked me combing her belly and cried when I tried to remove the matting. So what I did was I bought a small personal trimmer and carefully shaved the hair that was attached to the matting, this was painless for her and extremely quick to do. It is easier if you have some help to hold the cat on her back while your doing it if not you could wrap her up so that her front paws are out of the way. Just e gentle. I have had no major matting since just the odd small bit which is easy to remove with a comb.

Answer 3

First take the cat to a groomer to see if they can deal with it. Sometimes when matts are really bad, the cat needs to be sedated at the vets because to shave the matts off takes such a long time and can be painful - matts pull on the skin, which may be why her skin is scabby. I see cats quite regularly for 'sedate and groom's, rabbits too, and very occasionally dogs.

When you get this sorted out, at the groomer or the vets, comb kitty daily if she'll let you to prevent matts.

Chalice

Answer 4

Groom her daily, to prevent mats from occurring in the first place. The fact that they're already there, you may need to take her to a groomer to get the mats shaved off, if they're too close to the skin to trim off at home.

Answer 5

About the only thing you can do is brush her daily. If the mats are really bad you might want to consider taking her to a vet or a groomer. They can shave the mats off.