Cat Seriously Matted. Can I Shave Her At Home?

[EveAndHerThieves]

I'll bet she feels a whole lot better, good for you!!

I hope so! She's busy being nervous and avoiding me. Everyone is avoiding looking at her. Poor dear. Fingers crossed her coat comes back before the temp drops!

 

[Furballsmom]

hang in there she'll forgive you

 

[catwithmycoffee]

Ugh, I feel for you and Spoon! Two of my boys will get matted if I don't keep up on brushing them. Harry is a bit pudgy and can't get to his haunches easily, and Sam is our senior boy. Not only do I have to stay on top of grooming them but have to bathe them on average every 5 weeks or so.

Sometimes you just have to bite the bullet and shave 'em down completely. Yes, looks horrible, but it will grow back. I also discovered that fleas tend to favor hiding under matted areas (at least on Sam, they did). At least after the deed is done, Spoon should feel better. And Spoon's well being is the important thing.

 

[Furballsmom]

It's been awhile, how are things?

 

[EveAndHerThieves]

It's been awhile, how are things?

Well, shaving did NOT go well. It looked like she lost a fight with a muppet. After a few weeks it evened out and she looked horribly funny. Her new fur is coming in... And I kinda want to shave the rest of her as well now. It's coming in SO SOFT and silky. Her front is horribly rumpled and matted, and her back is so silky smooth. It looks amazing. I'm hoping it doesn't rumple when it fully grows out.

Aside from the actual shaving (which she handled like a champ) she didn't complain much. So far it hasn't matted back up yet. I may shave my other cats come summer. Just because it's easier to deal with. They're not so great at taking care of their long fur sometimes.

 

[Furballsmom]

Lol, good for you! All good otherwise?

 

[EveAndHerThieves]

Lol, good for you! All good otherwise?

All good cat-wise, for once! They're just stressed. Every. Single. Winter. they freak out and can't cope with being indoors. It stresses out the humans. They're all pacing around and eating a lot. Just very anxious and on edge. I let their food dish go empty since they're way over eating. They freaked out and hopped up on the counters. I keep threatening that if they want to stress, I'll borrow the neighbor's dog and give them something to REALLY stress about! Seven cats being suddenly indoor and learning to share space again is very difficult.

Sadly with the cat health being good the human health is not. Since they're all stable I'm off to deal with a dying husband. Happy one year anniversary to us? *Sigh*

 

[Furballsmom]

I'm off to deal with a dying husband.

What??!! Oh my gosh I'm so sorry!!!

 

[EveAndHerThieves]

What??!! Oh my gosh I'm so sorry!!!

Brain tumor. It's not operable and is already covering a fair amount. It's an incurable form of cancer. We've been long distance ten years. Finally figured it out. I was filing immigration paperwork Monday. Saturday he Emails me with the news. So I'm headed there to be with him. I've been with him since I was 15, and he's visited twice a year ever since. Sooo... yup. First Clyde, then Spoon, then my cockatiel, then my finches. Ran out of animals, went onto humans. Super frustrating and horrible. But that's life, right?

 

[Furballsmom]

Gracious sakes, my thoughts and prayers are with you, him and all!!

 

[Leomc123]

MC who passed away this year had fur that was like fine cotton wool or visose which got matted very easily, I bought a shaver but the noise scared her so i just used some good sharp scissors , but for a very close shave i think a shaver is a good idea if it shave well. Some brands the blades get stuck into the fur especially the really wooly fine furs. I was lucky with her matts they were in a few sections of her fur. With her back legs i used scissors to trim the hairs.

Your kitty looks horrible now , but she feels more comfortable now that the matt is gone, the hair will grow back before you notice it. I dont think spoon cares what she looks like

 

[posiepurrs]

I regularly shave some of my cats who give me trouble grooming, like my psycho cat, Maggie. With her the goal is to rid her of mats not win a beauty contest. She always looks like a drunken Edward Scissorhands got hold of her. Some I never shave (since I show them). The trick is to make sure that the skin is taut or you can nick them. Of course with Maggie, I'm the one who loses blood, just a matter of how much! She looks ridiculous for a time since I do it in stages over several weeks. I know I am going to get blasted for saying this since 90% of people seem to think cats don't need bathing BUT long haired cats are different! The coat mats because it is oily and dirty and the cat can not clean to the skin. Grooming is so much easier with a clean cat too. Never use a furminator on a matted coat. It is a deshedding tool used to remove lose hair. I have an Andis Ultra Edge Special Edition clipper with a #10 blade (I never use the combs that come with it). The cat looks like it has peach fuzz hair when I am done, but it grows back. The rate of growth seems in my cats anyway to depend on the time of year I shave them. For instance. if it is the time of year they are putting on winter coat, it seems to grow out faster.

 

[basscat]

I hope so! She's busy being nervous and avoiding me. Everyone is avoiding looking at her. Poor dear. Fingers crossed her coat comes back before the temp drops!

It takes us about 7 days to shave our long hair cat. Little bit each evening and stop just before I start leaking blood. When finished, what fur it left looks horrible. BUT, she's happier. In less than a month, she starts looking prettier than ever.