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My senior cat has painful matted fur. Should I shave or see a vet?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Cat | American Shorthair | Female | spayed | 10 lbs

My 16-year-old cat has stopped grooming herself and now has several small lumps of matted hair on her back, which I'm not able to brush out without seemingly hurting her. Should I get her shaved? Thank you!

3 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS

Veterinarian

Published on March 14th, 2024

Thank you for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach with your question about Lily. Poor girl! Yes I would get those matts shaved out, they will be painful to her. I'd also recommend having her seen by a vet. She's stopped grooming herself for a reason, and it could be it's painful for her to groom. Arthritis is common in senior cats. A chronic illness, such as diabetes and kidney disease, could sap a cat's energy and lead them to not grooming. Both of those are common in senior cats. I recommend having her seen by a vet this week, and getting her a geriatric blood panel and urinalysis. I hope this helps!

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    Answered By Mara Howard, DVM

    Veterinarian

    Published on July 28th, 2017

    I'm sorry to hear that Nugget is having issues. There can be an underlying medical issue that could be contributing to her changes in grooming habits (illness, diabetes, etc.). On occasion, some mats can become so large that they are too difficult/painful to untangle and need to be shaved off and let the hair regrow naturally. I would recommend Nugget be evaluated by her regular veterinarian to determine if there is an underlying medical issue contributing to her grooming changes and have her fur shaved/de tangled if necessary.

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    Answered By Jessica Keay, DVM

    Veterinarian

    Published on July 28th, 2017

    I am sorry to hear about Zing-zing. It is likely she has stopped grooming due to her disease and declining health. Unfortunately once the large matts develop in the fur they are painful to be brushed so your kitty isn't going to want to let you brush them out. The best thing to do in that situation is to get your kitty's matted fur shaved off. A good groomer (some vet's offices have a groomer that works out of their office) can trim the matted areas out and also clip the rest of the hair shorter to help prevent future matting.

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