Help! I thought I was being so careful

**Paiges** · 12-23-2005, 10:56 PM

I'm wondering if anyone can help me. I was cutting out mats in my mom's cat's fur and I cut her skin!

I feel so awful. I have cut her mats out before and never had a problem but this time I got too close. It did not bleed and I put Neosporin on it. Any other advice? It's the holiday weekend so a vet trip probably can't happen until Monday...unless I go to the emergency vets.

Thanks for your help, I appreciate it!!

**slick** · 12-23-2005, 11:18 PM

Welcome to Pet Talk Paiges. In my mind, this is not serious enough to see a vet unless it becomes badly infected. I have a Persian and that did happen to me once and all I did was wash it a couple of times a day with warm water. It healed very quickly with no problems.

Does the kitty like brushings? Combing or bushing the kitty daily will prevent mats from forming and you don't have to worry about cutting them out. Groomers will caution against using scissors for this very reason.

...I caution you because Pet Talk is very addictive...

**smokey the elder** · 12-24-2005, 07:00 AM

It'll heal like any cut; just watch that it doesn't get infected. There is a grooming tool called a mat breaker which may help.

**Paiges** · 12-24-2005, 09:17 AM

She does like to be brushed, unfortunately my mom never brushes her! I think she has allergies or something b/c this happens about once a year. My mom did take her to the vet at one point and they said they would have to put her under and shave her which was quite costly. Also she is about 18 years old!

Thank you for your responses! I worried about her all night. I'm going to go over and check on her today and see how it looks. I really hope it doesn't get infected. I guess I'll have to make a point of going over to my mom's house more often and brush her myself!

Thanks again for your help.

**Paiges** · 12-24-2005, 09:19 AM

Oh, I found the matbreaker tool at petsmart.com and it looks great! I'm going to go over today and see if they have it in stock at our local store. Thanks for the tip.

**RedHedd** · 12-24-2005, 10:35 AM

The mat breaker is a life saver, but you have to be careful with it too as it has VERY SHARP blades as well, but they're protected and angled for safe use. My two matt occasionally and the matt breaker gets them out very easily. It's one tool I'm glad I invested in - they're not cheap, but very worth it.

**slick** · 12-24-2005, 12:03 PM

Wow...18 yrs old. That's wonderful and I'm sure kitty has had a wonderful and loving home. Just another word of caution....a cat's skin at 18 is very thin so make sure there is minimal pulling of the hair as it can hurt. My Speckles who has just passed over the RB hated to be brushed but I tried anyway. As she got older, she didn't hesitate to tell me "ouch". Good luck and please keep us updated.