Sylvester Is Getting Matted Again Despite My Combing Him!

[les26]

I have been combing Sylvester with a comb discussed on here awhile ago, thin teeth on one half and wider ones on the other half, and he is still starting to develop mats again! I am so upset, I don't want him to get matted like he was last Winter and then we had to catch him and get him shaved in April, he did not respond well to that and neither did I! My wife said that some long haired cats will still get matted despite combing, that we'll have to work on him when he isn't upset and nervous and today he is because we had visitors and that freaked him out for some reason, but we'll have to try to get him and comb these out but he only tolerates it for so long if at all, then gets upset and runs and avoids me for awhile and I hate that, I really hate that....I wish I could let him know that I am only doing it so we don't have to go through that again, and I'm sure they are no fun and can pull on his skin.

Ugh......I thought I could avoid this.....

 

[Margret]

If the mats aren't too close to skin yet, cut out just the mat, with scissors, preferably not the kind of scissors with a really sharp point. If they are too close to skin, try cutting through the mat, removing the top part of it, before combing him. It helps immensely.

Although you don't want the scissors to have a sharp point, you do want them to be sharp scissors, or you'll have no chance. Just be sure you cut only hair, not skin.

Margret

 

[posiepurrs]

I don't recommend using scissors - try a mat splitter. If you do use scissors, place the comb under the mat between the mat and the body. The comb should prevent the skin from being pulled up and cut (a cats skin is very loose). He is probably matting because his fur is dirty. My cats (Persians) will mat if not bathed. Truthfully, if you can get him used to bathing, it should take care of the matting - or take him to a groomer for a bath. With my cats, the ones who get regular baths, I only have to comb occasionally, but I check every day for mats starting. Right now due to my work schedule, I am in the process of shaving some of mine down since I don't have time for bathing them. I will be glad to retire next year so I can leave the coats long!

 

[di and bob]

I agree with the above, cut half way through the mat and try to pull it apart, that works well. I often just cut the mat, I have a small sharp scissors just like I use on my own hair. The Furminator for cats works the best I have ever used, it can pull a little bit but really gets the hair and mats out, especially when they are cut half way first. I have tried MANY others, dematters, etc, and none worked as well. It is a little pricey, but I got mine on sell at a farm store, Orschelns.

 

[posiepurrs]

The Furminator website suggests removing mats before using. This is a quote directly from the site:
"If your pet does have mats and tangles, it's best to brush your pet to remove them before using the deShedding tool. Using the tool on matted or tangled fur can bend or break the teeth." The furminator is a deshedding tool designed to thin the coat so there is less fur to mat. I would think that using it on a matted coat could be painful for the animal. This is just speculation, however.

 

[les26]

He is probably matting because his fur is dirty.

Wait a minute! I have seen him twice in the last week or so ROLLING AROUND IN THE LITTER BOX and thinking "what the heck is he doing?" He did have that poop stuck to his rear end and fur last week and I thought maybe he was trying to remove that somehow, but that is gone now, and a few days ago I saw him rolling around in it again and just thought he was crazy lol! MAYBE this is part of the problem?????

ADDITION: I did talk about this last year when he was so matted and said we have a wood stove but have a steamer on top for humidity, and the issue seems to start in this season when we are burning, I wonder if that plays in too? I do give him GNC fish oil chews to keep his skin and coat nice and they are, it's just the fur that is matting!

 

[weebeasties]

I have never tried this, but someone recommended it. Putting a tiny drop of olive oil on the mat and then rub it in well. Repeat the next day. On third day the mat should comb out easily. Has anyone tried this? Is olive oil safe? Would the olive oil damage my furniture or would the hair absorb it all? If anyone has tried it please let me know.

 

[les26]

I have never tried this, but someone recommended it. Putting a tiny drop of olive oil on the mat and then rub it in well. Repeat the next day. On third day the mat should comb out easily. Has anyone tried this? Is olive oil safe? Would the olive oil damage my furniture or would the hair absorb it all? If anyone has tried it please let me know.

We tried coconut oil which is supposed to do the same thing, we probably didn't do it properly and got so-so results, plus he didn't like us putting him on him so we didn't do the proper thing lol!

 

[les26]

I just talked to the vet that was there in April when he was shaved down and groomed, and she said that some cats need to come in more than once a year for a "touch up" and trim, not all the way down again but trimmed and a comb out, so that is another thing to think about and they also can prescribe him some medicine to dope him up a bit so he isn't so wild catching him and transporting him there. She also suggested checking with a groomer as they have some detangler spray that we could try to make it easier to comb them out. And also thought he might get more used to going, I doubt it!! We'll see!

 

[Margret]

Wait a minute! I have seen him twice in the last week or so ROLLING AROUND IN THE LITTER BOX and thinking "what the heck is he doing?" He did have that poop stuck to his rear end and fur last week and I thought maybe he was trying to remove that somehow, but that is gone now, and a few days ago I saw him rolling around in it again and just thought he was crazy lol! MAYBE this is part of the problem?????

We have an area rug in the bathroom next to Jasmine's litter box, which does tend to get a bit of litter scattered on it. (It isn't a pile rug, more like a mat.) Jasmine likes to roll on it, and gets litter in her fur, which doesn't last long. I think she's doing it to scratch her back.

I have never tried this, but someone recommended it. Putting a tiny drop of olive oil on the mat and then rub it in well. Repeat the next day. On third day the mat should comb out easily. Has anyone tried this? Is olive oil safe? Would the olive oil damage my furniture or would the hair absorb it all? If anyone has tried it please let me know.

When I was recovering from brain surgery my hair got terribly matted in back, from all the time I was spending in bed and the difficulty I had grooming myself with a broken arm. I called my hairdresser, who suggested working mineral oil into the mat. I couldn't bring myself to do it, so I don't know how well it would have worked. I ended up just cutting the mat off instead.

Margret

 

[les26]

We have an area rug in the bathroom next to Jasmine's litter box, which does tend to get a bit of litter scattered on it. (It isn't a pile rug, more like a mat.) Jasmine likes to roll on it, and gets litter in her fur, which doesn't last long. I think she's doing it to scratch her back.


When I was recovering from brain surgery my hair got terribly matted in back, from all the time I was spending in bed and the difficulty I had grooming myself with a broken arm. I called my hairdresser, who suggested working mineral oil into the mat. I couldn't bring myself to do it, so I don't know how well it would have worked. I ended up just cutting the mat off instead.

Margret

The vet also said that sometimes when he washes himself he actually might be matting it himself, it just happens. And I asked about coconut oil, she said that is a similar idea as the detangler spray but that the oil might make his skin too oily and trap dirt?

 

[Margret]

The vet also said that sometimes when he washes himself he actually might be matting it himself, it just happens. And I asked about coconut oil, she said that is a similar idea as the detangler spray but that the oil might make his skin too oily and trap dirt?

Yes, if, for instance, he cleans against the grain, he could be matting his own fur. As for the oil, if I had used the mineral oil as suggested I would have had to follow it immediately with a full hair-wash, shampooing at least twice. (In fact, that's one of the reasons I didn't do it; I wasn't physically up to washing my hair that thoroughly afterward.) I doubt seriously that Max would go along with that. Try the detangler the groomers use, as long as you've checked the ingredients and know that there's nothing in it that can poison Max when he licks his fur later.

Margret

 

[les26]

Yes, if, for instance, he cleans against the grain, he could be matting his own fur. As for the oil, if I had used the mineral oil as suggested I would have had to follow it immediately with a full hair-wash, shampooing at least twice. (In fact, that's one of the reasons I didn't do it; I wasn't physically up to washing my hair that thoroughly afterward.) I doubt seriously that Max would go along with that. Try the detangler the groomers use, as long as you've checked the ingredients and know that there's nothing in it that can poison Max when he licks his fur later.

Margret

Yes that's the next thing I was going to check out if they are safe! I might just try to put coconut oil on the two mats tonight and let it work in and try to detangle them tomorrow night, too much stresses him out and me too lol!!!

I constantly talk to him and tell him "I'm only trying to help you, I never want to hurt my baby boy"; I wish he could understand, maybe he does to a point....

 

[Margret]

1. It's hard to tell how much cats understand of human speech, and it varies from cat to cat.
2. Like most animals, cats communicate primarily by body language, so your body language will figuratively shout at Max, drowning out your words.
3. Fortunately, cats are also very forgiving people. Max will recover.

Margret

 

[les26]

1. It's hard to tell how much cats understand of human speech, and it varies from cat to cat.
2. Like most animals, cats communicate primarily by body language, so your body language will figuratively shout at Max, drowning out your words.
3. Fortunately, cats are also very forgiving people. Max will recover.

Margret

You are right, they do forgive us if they know that we are not trying to hurt them.

I stopped at the local groomer/pet shop and they had Tropiclean Detangler, I didn't buy it but looked it up and it got pretty good reviews but a few said the smell was bad. The ingredients seem pretty natural so that is good, and you'll always have people say a product is great while a few others say it is bad.

His name is not Max it is Sylvester but I know who you mean!

 

[Margret]

His name is not Max it is Sylvester but I know who you mean!

Ouch! Getting my threads mixed up!

I wonder what kind of bad smell. You might be able to do something with a sprinkle of baking soda and a thorough brushing after using it; baking soda is very good at absorbing odors, noxious or otherwise, but you don't want Sylvester ingesting too much of it.

Okay, I checked their website, and this it the product I think you must mean: Tangle Remover | TropiClean Pet Products for Dogs and Cats They give an ingredient list:

Ingredients: Purified water, hydrolyzed plant protein, organic blend of (chamomile extract, kiwi extract, mallow extract, awapuhi extract), proprietary cationic emulsion, fragrance, vitamin E.

Taking them in order:

• Purified water is perfectly safe, of course.
  
• According to Wikipedia (Hydrolyzed protein - Wikipedia), "hydrolyzed protein" is protein that's been broken down into its component amino acids; if done properly this shouldn't be a danger to cats regardless of the source of the protein, especially in very small quantities so that it can't throw the cat's protein balance off.
  
• They don't say what kind of chamomile they use. I seem to recall that there are two varieties of chamomile, one of which is safe for cats and one of which is poisonous to them; @Mamanyt1953, am I right? You may want to contact the company and ask which kind they use.
  
• According to Are Exotic Fruits Safe for Cats? | Catster, Kiwi fruit isn't inherently toxic, but it does contain "an enzyme called actinidain" which is an allergen for some cats.
• According to Mallow Uses, Benefits & Dosage - Drugs.com Herbal Database and MALLOW: Uses, Side Effects, Interactions and Warnings - WebMD there is a dearth of studies about the toxicity of mallow, but it seems to be safe, for humans. I was unable to find it on any of the lists of plants that are toxic to cats. Note: Mallow contains something that resembles mucus; I strongly suspect that this is the active ingredient in the product.
• I've never heard of awapuhi before, but according to Cat Wipes: More Than Just you average baby wipe it's safe. It also seems to be quite a common ingredient in cat wipes.
• There's no telling what's in the "proprietary cationic emulsion" (emphasis mine), but I suspect that we're talking about some kind of soap here. See What are Cationic Surfactants? (with pictures)
• As for the fragrance, I note that they don't tell you what kind of fragrance they're using. Most fragrances contain essential oils, many of which are toxic to cats. If you're contacting the company for information you should probably be asking about this as well.
• Which leaves Vitamin E, which is safe for cats.

Margret

 

[les26]

Well, I read that catnip can be a natural sedative for cats so I gave him some tonight, he got wound up and playful but still hasn't crashed so I don't think that is the answer! We tried to get him to try to work on him but forget it, he KNOWS what we are up to and keeps running away so forget it tonight....

I HATE to have to get some medicine from the vet to sedate him to take him in to get a trim, but I don't know if we have any other choice. I HATE THIS.....

 

[Margret]

Well, I read that catnip can be a natural sedative for cats so I gave him some tonight, he got wound up and playful but still hasn't crashed so I don't think that is the answer! We tried to get him to try to work on him but forget it, he KNOWS what we are up to and keeps running away so forget it tonight....

The reaction to catnip varies greatly between cats. Some simply don't understand what the big deal is. Some just bliss out, which is what you were hoping for. Some get playful and/or hyperactive. And some become quite combative. It sounds like Sylvester is in the playful/hyperactive category.

I HATE to have to get some medicine from the vet to sedate him to take him in to get a trim, but I don't know if we have any other choice. I HATE THIS.....

I've done it, as it's the only way to safely transport Jasmine. If you hate it this much, first try Feliway, but if you've already done so then just go with the tranquilizer. It won't hurt Sylvester and it will reduce the trauma. He won't become addicted to it if you're worried about that; you'd have to give it to him regularly for that to happen.

Margret

 

[les26]

Well I was sitting here working on the computer, stewing at how we failed to accomplish anything with him except him getting leery of me AGAIN, and I heard Deb talking in her "baby talk" voice that she uses with the cats, and she said "good boy Vester!" and proceeded to come into the room and said "I got a little bit out" and I said "how did you do that?" and she said he was laying outside the room like he does and she started to pet him, worked the detangler comb through, loosened it up a bit, he got wild and she gave him some treats and worked a bit more, and while she didn't get it all she did get some and it also lifted the mat up so maybe like she says "a little at a time" we CAN do this without the vet although she thinks we might have to; we are realizing that despite my combing him (which probably is preventing some mats) he is a cat that just might have to get trimmed at times.

Maybe SHE is the key to getting them out, maybe I can comb him but can't do the mats, maybe that is Mommy's job lol!!!

 

[Margret]

Maybe SHE is the key to getting them out, maybe I can comb him but can't do the mats, maybe that is Mommy's job lol!!!

Make absolutely certain that Deb is okay with this assignment before you presume upon it. Just a bit of free marital advice from someone who's been married for over 40 years....

Margret