Thread: Coat matting
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Old September 4th 13, 05:56 PM posted to rec.pets.cats.health+behav
Mack A. Damia
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Default Coat matting

On Wed, 04 Sep 2013 11:30:58 -0500, reilloc wrote:

On 9/4/2013 9:47 AM, buglady wrote:
On 9/4/2013 9:48 AM, reilloc wrote:
So, I'm wanting to, maybe,
sedate him a little--or a lot, if that's what it takes, since he's
clawed furrows through my arms before--so I can cut this matting out,
brush him and start fresh.

Any suggestions as to how to approach this?


........There's lots of nonstandard things you could try. Bach Flower
Essences (try Rescue Remedy), valerian, homeopathy, Feliway, add some
extra B vitamins to cat food.

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/pic/article.cfm?aid=730

I wouldn't try catnip as a distraction if your cat is one of those who
goes bonkers on it and gets aggressive.

There's actually Thundershirts for cats, though I don't know if they
work or not.

Valerian - supposed to be anxiety reducing but some cats go gaga over it
which won't be what you want:
http://www.catniptoys.com/pages/Valerian-FAQ.html

Homeopathy: Homeopet Anxiety Relief (this works on a storm phobic dog
of mine)

A compliation of natural remedies:
http://cats.about.com/od/stressanxie...alRemedies.htm

And there's this clothespin technique called Clipnosis! Trick would be
to find clips that aren't too strong so they would hold but not hurt:
http://vet.osu.edu/cvm/clipnosis-tec...ffice-and-home


There's conventional vet drugs which would knock your cat out. Some of
them have nasty side effects. Consult with your vet about these. Might
be worth it to knock him out ONCE to take care of mats, then institute
some kind of calming aid and commence with training.

..........Once you get the mats out you need to try training this cat,
if the fear is not a metabolic response to something wrong in the body.
It will take a lot of time. Touch cat - treat - rinse and repeat. Use
treats the cat really likes and ONLY gets when this training is going
on. Talk softly to cat throughout. Cats also do respond to clicker
training.

Good luck!

buglady
take out the dog before replying


Thanks. I think I'll study the clipnosis sites and maybe Homeopet.
Regarding training this cat, I love this cat and he loves me--as much as
he's able to love anything. He's been this skittish since birth while
the others in his litter weren't. I contend it's a personality quirk and
that's just the way he is. I don't really know that I'd want him any
other way.


Is there a special treat he loves? Try to associate the grooming with
the special treat - start off slowly and speak softly to him.

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