Q: How to remove knots in fur of long-haired cat
M S Kelly
On Mon, 12 Jan 1998, Mark Tigwell wrote:
> Can anyone give us some advice about how we might best remove the large
> tangle of knots that appear in our cat's fur at this time of year (summer in
> Australia)? Brushing doesn't seem to help. Would shampooing help?
>
Personally, I'd go for shaving at least the belly and armpits, where it
isn't so obvious. My grandparents had a retired persian showcat
[amazingly overbred, but I disgress] who got at full body shave every
summer. The cat would be cooler and the big trouble spots would be short
and wouldn't mat.
HTH
Meghan
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Steve Crisp
Mark Tigwell wrote:
>
> Can anyone give us some advice about how we might best remove the large
> tangle of knots that appear in our cat's fur at this time of year (summer in
> Australia)? Brushing doesn't seem to help. Would shampooing help?
Lest we incite flames...
You know those buzzing clippers that are used to cut people hair? The
ones with the different sized combs that you can interchange to vary the
hair length? They work well.
My wife and I got one of them for me and we decided to try to cut out
the little hair clumps on the cats one day. After a bit of screaming on
their part over the buzzing noise, they pretty well adapted to it. (At
least they don't require sedation as they do every time we bring them to
the vet. Hell, Mystery has to be knocked out completely just to clip her
nails other wise you draw back a bloody stump where your hand used to
be.) Takes those hairy knots and shaves them right off. And since the
cutters never touch the real cat stuff, you don't have to worry about
impaling them as you would if using scissors.
Of course, there is then the spectre of using the clippers on me after
the cat ordeal...
Steve Crisp
Hermital
On Mon 1/12/98 10:01 +1100 Mark Tigwell wrote:
>
> Can anyone give us some advice about how we might best remove the large
> tangle of knots that appear in our cat's fur at this time of year (summer in
> Australia)? Brushing doesn't seem to help.
G'day, Mark:
My experience confirms that brushing or attempting to brush an outside
cat with long hair doesn't get it done. I comb my longhaired cat every
day (if and when he comes home). For knots and burrs, etc., I carefully
cut them out with scissors. And, yes, one must be careful to cut the
hair as far away from skin as possible each time.
> Would shampooing help?
I don't think so, but as with everything else about cats, give it a try.
If it helps your cat and the cat tolerates it, do it as necessary. 8^)
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Puddysmomm
DONT wash it!!!!When hair dries it shrinks making the knots tighter and
making them impossible to get out later !!....I do this for a living!!!
Hermital wrote in message <34B997...@livingston.net>...
Mark Tigwell
Can anyone give us some advice about how we might best remove the large
tangle of knots that appear in our cat's fur at this time of year (summer in
Thank you anyone,
Mark and Ingrid Tigwell
ti...@zip.com.au
Bowen Mountain NSW Australia
Charlene2
>Can anyone give us some advice about how we might best remove the large<BR>
>tangle of knots that appear in our cat's fur at this time of year (summer
>Australia)? Brushing doesn't seem to help. Would shampooing help?<BR>
Shampooing MAY help - even try w/a little detangler (children's type like
Johnson & Johnson). If the knots get too tight, you may want to look into
having the cat shaved or trimmed by your vet or animal technician. I have a
cat who has a problem with matting and remedied the situation by having him
shaved. The only caveat to this is that he needs to be sedated when they do a
trim, which is potentially dangerous.
Good Luck!
Ron Russell
In article <69bj6b$48t$1...@the-fly.zip.com.au>, Mark Tigwell
<ti...@zip.com.au> writes
>Can anyone give us some advice about how we might best remove the large
>
simple and quick. It involves no unusual equipment and, most
importantly, does not frighten the cat. I use a stitch ripper/seam
unpicker available in any sewing shop. Cost about £1.oo (U.K.). The
size and shape of a small pencil with a small covered sharp end which is
the ideal shape to insert into a knot and then gently cut through it.
Two or three times does a small knot, a few more for a big one. Can be
done with puss on your knee. With a bit of practice even underneath can
be done sight unseen - saves trying to fight them upside down! I always
use my free hand to hold and protect the skin from accidental tugging.
It also has the advantage that you don't leave the cat with unsightly
bald patches.
The other thing I would emphasise to anyone is that it must be done
regularly!!! You wouldn't leave your own hair for half the week would
you? A small knot is easier, less painfull and less time consuming to
deal with than a big one. If combed regularly enough there won't even
be wee knots.
Sorry to be so longwinded but I've seen a few shaved rescue persians and
they really are a sad sight.
Kate.
--
Ron Russell
Priscilla H Ballou
M S Kelly (msk...@puc.edu) wrote:
: On Mon, 12 Jan 1998, Mark Tigwell wrote:
: > Can anyone give us some advice about how we might best remove the large
: > tangle of knots that appear in our cat's fur at this time of year (summer in
: > Australia)? Brushing doesn't seem to help. Would shampooing help?
: isn't so obvious. My grandparents had a retired persian showcat
: [amazingly overbred, but I disgress] who got at full body shave every
: summer. The cat would be cooler and the big trouble spots would be short
: and wouldn't mat.
That tactic worked very well for my Ariel, who had very long very fine fur
which he didn't look after much at all. The last few years of his life he
got an annual shave (sometimes including the tail!), and for a while he'd
look pretty odd (a cat's head on the body of a rat wearing go-go boots!),
but he'd be Mr. Velvet as it grew back in. And he cuddled a *lot* right
after the shave because he was a tad chilly.
Worked for us.
Priscilla
C.S.
>M S Kelly (msk...@puc.edu) wrote:
>: On Mon, 12 Jan 1998, Mark Tigwell wrote:
>: > Can anyone give us some advice about how we might best remove the large
>: > tangle of knots that appear in our cat's fur at this time of year (summer in
>: > Australia)? Brushing doesn't seem to help. Would shampooing help?
<snip for space>
I'm new to this group -- but definitely a cat lover. I currently have
five cats, and a sixth died only a couple months ago (an awful
situation, in which the kidneys failed and I paid a small fortune
trying to keep him alive, all to no avail).
At any rate, all my cats are the ordinary kind, except one. I have a
peki-persian (yes, it's a VERY strange cat, looks like a pekinese
dog in the face!) which was literally dumped on me by relatives. I
have had lots of trouble keeping her hair from tangling, and in spite
of my best efforts, she still has knots occasionally. I usually try to
sneak in a snip with small scissors when she's sitting contentedly on
my lap...but if that doesn't work, I have to wrap her in a towel and
get my husband to hold her while I use the scissors. When she first
arrived, I had to get the Vet to shave her belly. I DO brush her daily
with one of those wide-tooth wire brushes, but she cries and spits and
then, when I let her loose, she immediately attacks one of the other
cats out of misplaced anger! (smile) Of course, I have some serious
scratch marks for my efforts too.
At any rate, I wanted to say thanks for the comments in this thread;
I'd considered having my cat shaved at least in the early summer, but
didn't know if that was a good idea. Now I will certainly consider
getting her shaved at the start of the next summer (I live in the
southeastern US, and our winters can be sort of cold...and the cats
stay on a sunporch with only minimal heating). Interesting thread on
this topic!
Chelsea Christenson
Hermital wrote:
> For knots and burrs, etc., I carefully cut them out with scissors.
> And, yes, one must be careful to cut the hair as far away from skin as
> possible each time.
I usually snip them out, too, since the ones most prone to matting are
also the ones least likely to sit still for careful combing. If you
snip about 1/2 inch away from the skin, the remainder of the mat can't
hold together and should come right out. I like the seam ripper idea
someone else mentioned; I'll have to check that out.
Karyn Winder
>The other thing I would emphasise to anyone is that it must be done
>regularly!!! You wouldn't leave your own hair for half the week would
>you? A small knot is easier, less painfull and less time consuming to
>deal with than a big one. If combed regularly enough there won't even
>be wee knots.
>
small knots and they can easily be combed out. My Persian is usually
thoroughly brushed about once a month, with a regular quick comb
through of small knots. She sheds a lot of hair, and generally
doesn't mat up too badly. However, I was away for 2 weeks and when I
got back she was totally matted - I have no idea what she'd done to
get in that kind of state. I clipped out the knots on her belly with
a small pair of scissors but didn't want to cut her longer hair on top
so I combed it out.
It took hours, and help from a friend in holding her legs so I could
get in the right places. I used a small fine flea comb, and combing
through the knots involves combing through tiny areas of hair and
gradually moving through the coat and eliminating the matted bits.
Using a brush or wide toothed comb doesn't do anything. A fine flea
comb is best for really getting loose hair out of the coat and getting
rid of knots. Unfortunatly most Persians hate this degree of fine
grooming and will squeal their little heads off. I have learnt to
ignore this, and to avoid her sharp teeth and claws. They soon get
tired of throwing such a tantrum and quieten down and let you get on
with it.
Karyn
Jamie
you could try a your conditioner
In article <69bj6b$48t$1...@the-fly.zip.com.au>, "Mark Tigwell"
<ti...@zip.com.au> wrote:
> Can anyone give us some advice about how we might best remove the large
> tangle of knots that appear in our cat's fur at this time of year (summer in
> Australia)? Brushing doesn't seem to help. Would shampooing help?
>
Priscilla H Ballou
Chelsea Christenson (cchr...@xusx.oracle.com) wrote:
A hint that helped me was: snip down into the mat, not across it. That
often frees the strands up sufficiently to allow it to be combed out
without producing much obvious cut fur.
Priscilla
Steve Crisp
Susan Vaughn wrote:
> As you can see from other postings, certain shampoo chemicals can cause
> irritations and, in certain circumstances, even death to cats, when
> administered inappropriately.
Which chemical compounds specifically are irritants or potentially
lethal to cats? And how do they need to be administered to cause
problems?
Steve Crisp
RFerrie
Mark Tigwell wrote:
>
> Can anyone give us some advice about how we might best remove the large
> tangle of knots that appear in our cat's fur at this time of year (summer in
> Australia)? Brushing doesn't seem to help. Would shampooing help?
>
> Thank you anyone,
> Mark and Ingrid Tigwell
> ti...@zip.com.au
> Bowen Mountain NSW Australia
First, I do not recommend shampooing to remove mats/knots. The water
will only bind them tighter, *and* may cause moisture to be held next to
the skin. This could lead to skin problems.
A persian breeder I used to know used to use baby/talcum powder to
remove knots. Apparently, rubbing the powder into the mats makes the
fur "slippery", and allows a fine-toothed comb to get the tangles out.
After you've powdered, start at the *bottom* of the mat (farthest from
the skin), and comb just a little bit out at a time, rubbing in more
talc as needed. Once you're finished, just brush out the remaining talc.
This may not always work - if your cat has huge, solid mass mats, you
may need to revert to clipping them out. As others have suggested, cut
"vertical" snips into the mat, and see if you can detangle a bit. If you
need to totally cut out the mat, do so *super* carefully and avoid skin
at all costs.
From here on, do groom carefully every day, which will, of course, mean
that there will be fewer nasty mats to deal with.
The breeder did clip her breeding cats very short, as well. It does look
funny, but it helped out a lot.
Renee
Charlene2
I was watching a "home" program today (I think it was on HGTV)...anyway, there
was a woman discussing cat care who said that matting is due to an unclean cat
- oils & dirt forming the mats.
Other than a cat having wiry/coarse fur, can anyone substantiate the claim made
above? I think it's "bunk," but that's just my opinion.
Charlene
Chelsea Christenson
Susan Vaughn wrote:
>
> Just a caution: do *not* try any human or dog shampoos/conditioners
> on your cats without making absolutely sure that the product contains
> no chemicals that might dangerously harm the cat.
My cat care book recommended diluted baby shampoo.
Puddysmomm
Not necessarily...Most of the time when I see a matted cat,its due to the
build up of shedding undercoat(especially in longhairs)that isn't combed or
brushed out.The longer it is allowed to stay there,the larger the mat
becomes.If it gets washed,the tighter it gets as well.
Charlene2 wrote in message
<19980114192...@ladder01.news.aol.com>...
Harley + Barb Tuck
I can't stand to stay out of this thread any longer.
My cat had bad mats in only one area, the base of his tail. I took hold
of the knot with left hand and slowly pulled the outer hairs away from the
mat with my other hand. when I seemed to have only a few hairs left stuck
the mat, I snipped it loose and went on to the next. Maintaining with a
brush was easier afterwards, but at the base of the tail, I kept doing
them by hand.
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Frayah Bartuska
Frayah wrote in this message...
Get a shaver and cut the knots off. Pretty soon skin is going to gro on the
knots and then you will have to put your cat asleep. Just cut of all the
knots and then keep brushing her and she will be fine
Frayah
Jamie wrote in message ...
SassyNan
I have a domestic long hair also,,the tummy hair got all matted and He woulnt
let me near it..I found a pet groomer that shaved his tummy,,just a narrow
strip,the groomer was very gentle but firm with my biter,,and it only cost $8.
Priscilla H Ballou
Frayah Bartuska (fra...@itis.com) wrote:
: Frayah wrote in this message...
: Get a shaver and cut the knots off. Pretty soon skin is going to gro on the
: knots and then you will have to put your cat asleep. Just cut of all the
: knots and then keep brushing her and she will be fine
: Frayah
Excuse me? Are you saying that you believe that the cat's skin will grow
over its mats? And that the cat will need to be euthanized as a result?
This sounds mighty odd to me.
Priscilla