Groom a Longhaired Cat

Keep the cat’s skin from drying out. When a cat’s skin gets dry, particularly in the winter months, it can have a terrible effect on its coat--causing dandruff, clumping and matting. Your vet can recommend one of many easily applied and inexpensive products that can clean this up and keep it from returning.

Brush your cat regularly. Although there are some testy felines that don’t enjoy it, most cats love being brushed--particularly longhairs. Consistent brushing not only brightens up your cat’s appearance it also helps eliminate some of the loose hair that would otherwise be falling out all around your clean house.

Use the correct brush/comb. They may look like torture devices, but hard, metal combs are the best tools to work through knots and pull out the older underneath fur that causes most problems. Some of the 2-sided comb/brushes are also effective and give you another side to smooth the coat out with after the hard work is done underneath.

Brush against the grain first. Knots and matting start underneath the top layers of fur, where hairs lay close to the skin and become entwined together as they grow. Almost all tough areas should be combed out against the grain of the hair before being brushed back in the normal pattern to stop knots from ever taking hold.

Separate knots by hand, not with the comb. When you come across one of these, find the very bottom of the knot, closest to the pet’ s skin and slowly pull the hairs that make up the knot apart, pulling out the loose hair as you go. This may have to be done several times on larger problems, but can usually be accomplished with minimal discomfort to your cat.

Finish with a full body brush going with the grain to give your pet the smooth, luxurious coat it was meant to have.