Cat\'s matted fur

[Lionheart]

I have a lovely rescue cat but he is long-haired and requires daily grooming. Fortunately he LOVES being groomed and will even roll over onto his back so that I can \"do\" his stomach. But he is NOT keen on my working near his tail or his bottom. And now I find a really big lump of matted fur just above his tail on his back. It is really BIG and my attempts so far to cut it off with a pair of nail scissors have not been successful. I don\'t want to take him to the Vet if I can avoid it - he is absolutely paranoid about being put in his carry basket and being taken from the house - but I would love to know if anyone knows the best way to remove matted hair without too much trauma - either for the cat or me!

[China Doll]

I used to have a rather large long haired cat who did not like having his fur combed at all... We had to wear rose cutting gloves, feed him ham at the same time and it took two of us he was that vicious (but very loving and placid at all other times... In the end I gave up, brought a pair of hair scissors and just gave him a hair cut every couple of days instead. Much quicker, less violent and less traumatic to all concerned.

[Lionheart]

Thank you, China Doll. Your suggestion is worth considering. I'll see how things progress.

[pastafreak]

Is there any chance you could shave it off...very gently???
I once had a long-haired madame who was also fairly violent when it came to being groomed. I finally had to take her to the vets to have all the matted bits removed via shaving.

[Lionheart]

Thank you, pastafreak. I now think that the only solution is to take him to the Vet and I have made an appointment for next Tuesday. There is no way he would let me shave him and he is just going to have to grin and bear it. He'll be glad when it's over - but not more than I will!