matting fur

[Butterfly]

I have a beautiful Maine Coon Cat that mats and won't let me near him with a brush or comb. Is there anything I can use to put on the mats to untangle them. I usually take him to the vet to have his rear shaved. I feel like a "bad mom" but I do really try to corner him and brush. His sister loves to be brushed! Go figure! When I adopted them he had about 3 golf sized mats and I had a hard time cutting them off which is dangerous to the cat. HELP Any suggestions would be helpful Thanks

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tk

[treybabe]

Butterfly, I also have a Maine Coon Cat. Male. Sounds like yours is afraid of getting hurt because of the previous experiences. I would take him to a good groomer and let them clip him really good. Be sure it is one who has dealt a lot with mats and who is familiar with Maine Coon Cats. Then when he is clipped and smooth start gradually brushing him with a soft baby brush if he will tolerate that, and gradually in a few weeks, a larger brush. This should keep the mats from forming. He should be pulling some off himself when they are still small,but perhaps he can't reach them. Our Maine Coon was a little timid about the brush--so I tried this. You are right about not cutting a large mat; it can be dangerous. Trick is to prevent them if possible. Our female long-haired calico cat is old and obese and can't reach her back side, so I have to soak her in a tub about once a month to remove anything which is sticking and beginning to mat. The water helps losen up things. I also use a kitty shampoo. Hope some of this helps...It is a struggle.


Originally posted by Butterfly:
I have a beautiful Maine Coon Cat that mats and won't let me near him with a brush or comb. Is there anything I can use to put on the mats to untangle them. I usually take him to the vet to have his rear shaved. I feel like a "bad mom" but I do really try to corner him and brush. His sister loves to be brushed! Go figure! When I adopted them he had about 3 golf sized mats and I had a hard time cutting them off which is dangerous to the cat. HELP Any suggestions would be helpful Thanks

[Pieper's Mom]

Our Maine Coon, Charlie, needs to be groomed every day...some days he likes it, some not. I notice small mats on his tummy every morning, but by nighttime he has apparently groomed them out. If he really needs attention, my Mom and I work on him together...then his mood is not as important. He knows we are trying to help him.

I, too, think your best bet is to have him properly groomed and try to get him to enjoy a brushing...just do it very gently...they may look tough, but are very tender!

One of the ladies at the cat shelter has her Maine Coon shaved like the lion king--keeping his mane and a bob on his tale...my Mom refuses to do that with Charlie, although he seems to be suffering terribly in the 95 degrees we've had each day for weeks...AND our house is cooled...I'd hate to be him if we had no swamp cooler!

We cut Charlie's mats (if we have to) by getting as much out with a comb as we can...then Mom holds him and I put a fine-toothed comb under as much of the mat as I can and with fine, small, sharp scissors, try to cut it away. It works but you really need two people!

Good luck with your kitty...they're a lot of work, but oh-so-special!