mats

[wolfsoul]

do mats ever fall off by themselves? Sara has a mat beside her genital area (not the best place). she reluctantly lets me look at her tummy on occasion (to check for fleas, skin problems etc.) but she is deathly afraid of scissors (she knows what they mean *sigh*) and so i would probably have to pin her down and still be ripped to shreds...does anyone know an alternative?

[marysmerrycats]

the only alternative I know of, is to take the kitty to a groomers, and let them handle it, LOL. my Charlie is a long hair, and he gets litter stuck to him when he needs to be shaved in that area. I tried once to cut the fur...I won't try that again! I hate to put him in the carrier and take him to "strangers", because he gets scared of them, but he doesn't let me do it, also I take him to get his claws cut and the same with Louise when it is time for her claws to be trimmed, they fight me too much.(and speaking of this, those two have an appt at petsmart tomorrow)

[jenluckenbach]

Mats will only get bigger and worse. The only time I have ever seen a mat "fall off by itself" is when it is SO bad that it tears away from the skin (something that you DO NOT want to happen). If you cannot comb it out, please take her to a groomer to have it done before it grows to a big matted mess. And NEVER and I repeat NEVER use a scissor on a cat. They are way to easy to cut.

[wolfsoul]

i know u said not to use scissors, but taking her to a groomer is not an option..one time i took her to get photographed at the petshop beside me and she freaked...first she did her horrible loud siamese-sounding meow...then before i knew it, she leaped from my arms and headed for the door....the door had just closed so she freaked and everyone wound up chasing her around the store...when one of the employees finally caught her, he had deep scratch marks all over his arms....i wont risk that again, ecspecially since sara can barely stand being touched by my mom...im the only one she will let flip her over, and so i think i could try and find one of those special mat cutters i guess....i just hope they arent too expensive...has anyone here ever used one?

[jenluckenbach]

I won't lecture but I've been a professional cat/dog groomer for 18 + years and even I would not use that on a cat. If you can't get it out with a comb or a brush a clipper with a short blade will be your best bet. A trip to the emergency vet due to a laceration will be much more traumatic that a trip to the groomer. I say no more

[wolfsoul]

i have scissors that r sharp but have really small blades...my mom doesnt want me to get her groomed cuz it costs forty dollars....she has quite long fur and the mat is small and starts at the top of her hair, not at the root, so it should be fairly easy if my mom makes sure she has no free paws lol...what kind of clippers were you talking about?

[Christiansmommy]

Can you maybe find a vet that has a groomer on the premises? The vet that i used to take my last cat to, had a groomer in the same office, so if the cat was scared, or unable to be shaved w/o the help of a seditive, there were vets on the premises to assist.

Or maybe your vet could just do it for you...just a thought.

Robyn

[wolfsoul]

Originally posted by Christiansmommy
Can you maybe find a vet that has a groomer on the premises? The vet that i used to take my last cat to, had a groomer in the same office, so if the cat was scared, or unable to be shaved w/o the help of a seditive, there were vets on the premises to assist.

Or maybe your vet could just do it for you...just a thought.

Robyn

i could try and get my mom to let me do that..she doesnt want to spend money, but i think it would be great i could even find a vet who will do it for me...that way she could get a checkup too i cant ask now though...my moms out till midnight yay! lol