Cat is wet after grooming, greasy, matted fur

We just adopted a sweet cat (4 yrs old, med-long hair) one week ago and so we dont have much of a history with him. We noticed his fur was a tad greasy and matted but figured he just needed some brushing. After a week and brushing, it's still greasy and matted (it's actually curly on his belly like a maltese!). We only brush him once a day gently. When he grooms himself, he gets REALLY wet. I'm not sure what's going on. Perhaps it's the stress and he's coating himself in his familiar scent. He seems perfectly healthy otherwise and he's not drooling. When we adopted him he came with a certificate saying a vet checked him out and he was healthy but this is just odd. I can't find anything helpful online.

I wouldn't know why his fur would get so wet but if he is matted, the mats should come out, either by shaving or cutting (be very careful not the cut the skin, put a comb between the skin and the mat before cutting) if brushing/combing does not work.

Can you look inside his mouth, are his teeth OK ?

Diet is a big factor when it comes to coat quality, also health issues determine coat quality. First of all, I'd take him to the vet to determine overall health, rule out the nasties, and maybe a blood test to rule out the health issues. Then, you might want to think about changing what you're feeding and/or add some different food to his rotation to help with the fur issues.

You could try taking your cat to a groomer. Maybe he just needs help getting his fur under control? That happened to Midnight when he had to spend awhile wearing a cone collar. His fur just went down hill really quickly. But we took him to a groomer, and his fur is back to normal.

Thanks for the tips everyone. I guess I should clarify a bit. His hair really isn't matted and tangled, it's more greasy so it looks like he has a bit of hair gel in his fur. Brushing fluffs him up but then when he grooms himself again he drenches himself in spit and it's like he put in more fur gel. It's really only on his back and belly, where he can reach easily with his mouth. The fur on his head is lovely. I really think his fur has to do with how he grooms himself. I'm not sure if he's not good at it or if it's a medical issue.

We feed him Blue Buffalo food, about as good as it gets, (well, at least for the past week since we've had him).

A vet visit for a look over is a good idea for any new pet. Also to run any tests that all cats should have done.

It sounds to me that your cat needs a bath. This is probably only a one time thing. You can get a groomer to do it (my choice) or do it yourself. If you do it yourself, be sure to use a cat shampoo and keep your cat warm when wet. Most cats are scared of blow dryers, so I wouldn't try that.

Robin

You probably won't notice an improvement in his coat quality for a while yet. Most likely the coat issue is related to diet and/or health. I'd get him to the vet for a good once over and talk to the vet about your concerns.

Was he recently neutered? He may have been taken away to soon and never really learned the right way to clean himself.

Bruch or comb him? I comb my long hairs and brush the shorthairs.

One of my cats went through a "grease ball" stage. I do know what hers was related to now, but at the time, her vet suggested a bath in plain Dawn dish soap. It gets the greasies out -- and I found it really helpful. It at least made her more comfortable until we could get through the tests to determine underlying causes. You might try that in the meantime.