Hi all, just thought I'd add my ideas. I have 2 long haired cats. The white one has a lovely silky coat which isn't too bad to groom, but the golden has a really ratty coat with a grey undercoat.

I find that just by using my hands I can get a lot of the fur out, especially just pulling apart any matts with my fingers. The cats usually accept this, as you don't have anything in your hands & the feeling is more like them being groomed by another cat. If you just get hold of a section of hair & gently pull it out from the root upward, it takes out a lot of the undercoat, matts etc.

I may well try to find a mitt & see if they like that. I won't touch them with scissors anymore, after I cut into the skin of one of the cats when she moved the wrong way, & it was an expensive trip to the vet to have stitches. Ooops! Owww!

The tummy & tush are seperate problems altogether, & I just have to get my husband in the mood to hold down the pussy while I have a good go :>)!