Matted Hair

My cats both have clumps of matted hair on their rumps, above their tails. I can't get a brush through it and can't get it pulled apart with my fingers. What do I do as I have read not to cut them out but they are collecting alot of dirt.

You really should take them to the groomer for care and attention. Those mats can cause a myriad of problems including health issues. I recently had to take one of mine in and get him lion shaved. Before this, when he was rescued, he was just a bundle of mats and I tried everything I could to remove them myself. He rarely even came near us for pets and stuff. Now, he won't get off our laps! It makes a remarkable difference in their attitude and health.

The cats don't mind me trying to untangle the mats (they each have one matted spot, actually the same spot on both cats) but the are terrified of getting in the carrier and going to the vets so that is an extremely traumitizing event for them so if possible would like to fix the problem at home.

I'm wondering if a hair conditioner worked into the spot would help but don't want to use something that the cats will lick and make themselves sick. Any ideas?

Leo has a very dense coat for a short-hair, and he got 3 nasty mats on his back.He was really grouchy for a couple days and snapped at me for rubbing a spot he usully liked. I found them then. There was no combing them out and not gettting shredded. I took very sharp cuticle scissors and trimmed the mats out in small sections. He was back to his usual sweet self almost immediately. I guess they had been pulling and it hurt. Poor baby!