Matted Fur Remedies

Re: Baby Oil for Matted Fur

I have a mean Maine coon who will not tolerate brushing. Every year he gets several large mats underneath on his belly and under his legs.

In the past, I have sedated him and had him shaved but the last time he came out of sedation, he wasn't the same for a long time. THE MOST IMPORTANT PART OF THIS METHOD IS TO USE A DROPPER AND PUT ONE DROP ON THE MAT AND ONE DROP ABOVE THE MAT.

The mats will loosen up in a couple of days and you can just gently pull them off or they'll fall off on their own.

Please do not use more than a couple of drops and please please do not cover your cats with olive oil or baby oil.. this is extremely dangerous as their livers cannot process these oils.

I want to try baby oil on my cat's mats, do I just rub it into the mats?

Brenda, yes you do, but only use a small amount in each tangle, better still get a can of olive oil or coconut oil and spray each tangle then comb the latter. A lot less messy.

Hi Brenda.

Two of my kitties are long- haired, though only one has the problem of matting. I brush her every day without fail, but sometimes she still develops them, especially at the base of the tail. I use coconut oil rather than mineral oil (which is the basis of baby oil). Coconut oil is a very healthy oil for animals (I give it to my dogs every day). Your kitty will inevitably lick at whatever oil you use, so this is a win-win. I just dip my fingertips in the oil and massage it into the mat. Later in the day the knot brushes right out without any discomfort to the kitty at all. All the best.

What about lanolin? I would think it being a natural animal product (mainly from sheep, I think) it would be safe and effective? I'm sure it would make his coat nice and shiny, but I'm wondering if it would help the mats in his fur any. :)

Hello, what do I use on the red sensitive skin after knots fall off or get combed out?

I have always used baby oil on matted pets fur including horses manes' the secret is to apply a small amount and work it through with your fingers then comb

Maybe coconut oil would work better? My cats love it. (They are always trying to stick their paws in my coffee when I use it. ) This would cause your cat to groom himself to help relieve some of the mats. I would think that mineral oil would be hard to wash out (if the cat lets you) and would not be healthy for him to ingest.

My older long haired Ragdoll cat developed lots of mats too. I found a way to easily shave them out... She loves water from the sink. As soon as I go near a sink, she's there. So I turn on a stream of water and as she drinks, I shave out some mats. I'm keeping the shaver right at the sink... And will keep doing this till they're all gone. Then I'm going to keep the brush handy and brush her daily while she's occupied with the water to prevent mats. She didn't like brushing either, which led to the mat problem. Just be sure to use a shaver and not a scissor as its easy to cut your cat if you use a scissor.

Very dangerous to use an electric shaver on someone drinking water and/or partially wet! You don't want your Beloved Cat and yourself getting electrocuted!

I was wondering about the electricity and water together. That was the first thing I thought about was electrocution. I wouldn't shave my cat with an electric shaver near water. Dangerous for human and cat. DUH Moment!

There are rechargeable battery operated shavers.....no electricity.

I imagine the lady with the ragdoll cat that drinks water at the sink uses a CORDLESS razor or shaver.

I was so happy to find this information. I have been so upset and worried about my 16 year old cat. He is not grooming himself anymore, and has long hair, so a lot of matting. I could not keep up with the matts even with brushing all of the time. He has a rather large one on his lower back by his tail and very close to his skin. I have been worried sick about it because I know it has to be painful. I tried the mineral oil on him last night... I see one matt might be loosening up a little bit. The big one has not yet, so I applied more today. We will see!!

Our 15 year old white short haired cat also began getting matted a month or so ago. Reading about the hazards of mineral oil for cats I have determined that rubbing mineral oil (baby oil-unscented) into our cat's fur is not dangerous at all. The concern about mineral oil is that it is a light/odorless/tasteless liquid that when placed in front of a cat's mouth/nose he may enhale the liquid into his lungs because he cannot smell or taste it. Basically the cat doesn't realize anything is there until he's inhaled the liquid. When the oil is rubbed into the cat's fur, the cat cannot [in essence] drown in the liquid if he licks it off his fur.

I'm a reasonably intelligent person, but it took me a little while to unravel the concerns that were being expressed and realize there are no "dangerous fumes" or anything that the cat would inhale if the mineral oil is rubbed into his coat.

True, mineral oil is useful as a laxative and/or stool softener. Our old feline is also a little "sluggish" so I'm hoping this matted fur remedy will also help his digestive tract as he IS licking and grooming himself now. We did apply mineral oil to his coat two days ago and have noticed good improvement in the [formerly] matted fur. Yesterday I used a medicine dropper to apply the oil closer to the roots of the fur. Our little cat is no longer growling and hissing at us when we rub him anywhere near those mats. He seems to be feeling much better already! I think the oil itself is soothing to his tender skin underneath the mats.

I do agree with some of the other posts; I'm not sure if the fragrance in baby oil is dangerous for cats, but the purer form of plain mineral oil seemed to be a better choice "just in case".

Advice from a farm vet years ago, when my cat first started having some intestinal difficulties, she recommended giving 1/2 to 1 tsp Mineral Oil every day to my then "hunting" cat. He has always been an incessant groomer, as well. Mineral Oil is completely safe for cats. My Elmo has been taking it for over 7yrs now. Now I am going to be taking this site's advice and using it on his mats! He has lost his interest to groom, poor guy.

We have a ragdoll and a Norwegion ginger boy about 8 years old and the last two years he has got matted and this year worse than ever. I found that it was because he is lying in the long grasses and turning and twirling about is matting the fur. He has got quite lazy too. I have had to cut some of the matted bits off but making sure your fingers are holding the mat right close to the skin, then work off the above bits; and if any cutting would be to your self. and then get the top parts off by your means you mention. Oh, for the love of cats! Julie with thanks.

Thanks so much for the baby oil suggestion. Our long haired cat is 19 years old and has stopped grooming and coat covered in mats. We have been trying to cut out but frightened we might hurt her. Think she wouldn't cope with a full coat shaving as recommended on some web sites. Read your postings re baby oil and decided to give it a try. To our amazement it is working and mats are sliding off. Not sure how its working but it is. Be grateful for any advice re what to do now with one very oily cat. Mats are going but coat now covered in oil. Will it eventually wear off or do we need to do something to remove oil? Be grateful for advice.

Thanks

I would suggest bathing him in dish liquid or something similar that cuts grease. They use it on birds that get oil on them from oil tankers that spill in the ocean.

good old blue dish soap bath. I used olive oil on lice for my kids and had to use it to cut the oil. Good luck.

I was so glad to hear from the woman who has a 19 yo cat. Thank you for going into a little more detail about keeping the oil on for several days.
I was doing fair at keeping my 18 yo cat's fur somewhat clump free until recently. Lately it has gotten worse and it breaks my heart because I can tell it is very uncomfortable. After reading the posts. I went to the kitchen and got the Olive oil and a plastic syringe and started putting in on both back sides near his tail and even on his chest! In the last couple weeks even his legs have gotten matted.... :(. I am working on the biggest ones and will attack the little one's after that. I have to tell you that he was not happy that I was putting it on him. Our relationship has temporarily changed from him following me everywhere to me following him. LOL He just keeps looking over his should to see if he can relax before I put more oil on him!!!
I put towels on my couch and since my cat sleeps with me I am a little nervous of getting oil every where.... But it is worth it if it works!
Thank you!

Great thread guys! I used vita oil on my himalayan but it was to thick so now he's a greasy matted static mess. I'll try some oil on the large grouping of smaller matts then wash him down with dish soap. Has anyone used human shampoo and conditioner on your cat?

Colleen, try coconut oil or olive oil in spray can and spray each tangle then comb works well and no mess.

Hey Colleen,

Human shampoo should be fine on your himi as long as you follow up with a final vinegar rinse to restore the balance of the PH on the skin - use 1 part vinegar to 10 parts water. Do keep in mind that when you wash and dry matted fur the mat shrinks when it dries; this could cause tremendous pain for your himi. Please consider cutting the mat out or seeing a groomer if you cannot work the mat out.

Try cornstarch for matted fur.

One of my older long haired kitties has been prone to matting really from the beginning. I have tried multiple combs and brushes along with massaging coconut oil into the base of the mat. Coconut oil is actually good for kitties and a good choice for oiling. Recently, the mats have become more of a problem and I tried a new comb. Wow! Worked great even without the coconut oil and with almost no pulling. I sent one to my son for the "grandkitties" and it was a big hit there too. The head of the comb is rather heavy, so I am careful while using it over bony areas. I bought mine from Amazon for about $30. I hope it is okay to be specific about the item - Go Pets Dematting comb. Maybe it will help your kitty. I also used it on my big old lab/Newfie mix. And he liked it too.

No please don't use any dishwasher or soap just sponge her with water then towel dry. Putting any soap unless special vet soap is toxic and makes Matt's worse.

can baby oil harm cats if swallowed?

um well my cat wont let me put anything on his fur, i brush his fur regularly so it stops more matted fur from coming but he still has his old matted fur, sometimes he lets me cut it out or work it out with my fingers, but very very rarely. What should i do?

What I did because the cat was intolerant of me going anywhere near her Large Matted areas. They were right up to her skin. These are of course painful. I took the bottle and just squeezed a large amount right up against her skin where the matt was. They fell off within 24 hours. The ones that did not fall off, I just put more baby oil on them. Again, right up against the skin. I did not rub it in. I used a plentiful amount. It did no harm to her. 18 years old. She has the some again and I have the baby oil ready. Be patient and apply again heavily maybe. You might not be putting enough on. It works.

I recently adopted a 10 year old Persian from the vet hospital in Jan/2010. She was there as her eye needed to be removed and was abandoned by her previous owners

She is actually a true blue persian..She immigrated to Canada from Doha, Qatar about 6 months ago in very rough shape. The hospital did shave her to remove the matts.

I don't know her grooming history however the previous owners did provide a picture of her taken in 2005 and she had a beautiful coat, I'm assuming that she has been to a groomer before.

Thank you the tip on removing matts. As a new owner of a Persian this infomation really helps and I'm going out right now to by baby oil. Any other tips would be greatly appreciated

Scruffy thanks you as well...

This post is to ask Wendy from Vancouver Canada who brought her Persian From Doha Qatar! Presently being in Qatar, will be returning to Canada next year. I have just got a white Persian- How he has come to us is a real long story! He's abt 9 months old-If you can email me I would like to ask you a few questions about pet service, vets here and as U would know this place is different from all others I need personal opinions and advice.Thanks

Why not try Olive Oil, Paraffin Oil or Castor Oil instead?? All are edible and cannot do any harm to your poor old puss. May also help with going to the toilet. It helps my mum, lol.

I was a bit hesitant putting baby oil on my cat too so I used the Paraffin Oil and they have all dropped off. A miracle. I was too scared to shave the area myself because they are close to the skin and he is a Chinchilla and their fur is the softest finest fur of them all.

Good Luck :)

Castor oil is from the Castor Bean Plant... Very toxic... It causes intense, violent stomach cramping and they used to use it to try and induce labour in pregnant women. Believe me.. It causes excruciating pain. I don't think mineral oil would be good either. Cats are extremely sensitive to some foods and medications that are perfectly safe for other animals. Please don't use anything without checking first with your vet. I imagine olive oil would be safe, as would canola oil... But both could have a laxative effect. Baby oil has fragrances and probably chemicals added. Please, check with your veterinarian first.

I'm planning to use the baby oil treatment for matted hair on one of my cats. His is really big though...like 5 x 3 1/2 inches wide probably, and about 2 1/2 inches tall...do you think it will work on one that big? It's on his back in front of his tail. I've cut and shaved some off, but it's really hard to get anything to work on it because it is all stuck together. I'm afraid if I try to shave it from the bottom, I'll cut his skin...so I'd rather try this.

I have a 19 year old cat. The matts are all over her entire body. Her tummy, chest, hind legs, all over. If I put oil on her I will have to soak her whole body. She won't let me comb her. She is very thin and short haired. She has hyperthyroidism. I just don't know what to do. Help!!!!

Becki, grab a aerosol can with coconut oil or olive oil and spray the knots one at a time, then comb. You will find they will easily come out with not much mess it works well

If you can't comb your cat you will have to cut them out, but if you can use the spray oil and comb. It doesn't hurt the animal much.

Hi...what kind of baby oil are you using as my 15yr is quite matted ...tks