Clip the fuzzy butts!

Yes, if this gets to be a repeated performance, a little clip around the activity area wont' hurt anything. Be extra careful, however, for very young males who aren't neutered, to avoid the jewels. ;-)

I had a Maine Coon that had the same thing happen. One Christmas I came home in the evening about 8:00pm after the family festivities and walked into the house to a HORRIBLE smell and mess. Toby had dragged his butt around on the carpet trying to get the clumps off. I tried using a wash rag, baby wipes, etc., trying to clean it, tried to bathe him in the tub, clip off the fur, etc., trying to clean him. This didn't work so I had to, at 9:00pm, take him to the emergency vet to have him bathed and clipped. It was a very $$ bath and haircut but I couldn't let it go until the morning. Driving to the vet wasn't pleasant either. Had him in the carrier but he smelled so bad, that at 26 degrees outside, I'm driving on the freeway, heat blasting, all the windows wide open. I couldn't breath otherwise. I'm sure the vet staff was laughing hysterically while they cleaned him up.

It was very expensive, not counting having to have my carpets professionally cleaned.

I learned my lesson the expensive way - from that point on I kept his butt shaved. He was an indoor cat so the other neighbor cats wouldn't see him and tease him about it anyway. ;>)

And yeah, when we got home, he hopped right up on the bed, snuggled up to me, and proceeded to purr and go to sleep.

LOL, sephia! That sounds like our $800 "hairball" with our last old cat (she hadn't pooped in a couple of days, then threw up some, so I thought she was "blocked" and made a trip to the ER with her). A lot of money and a little lactulose later, she pooped and threw up a massive hairball.

Anyway, I can't imagine it being THAT bad (well, maybe I can). Especially if you don't have anyone to help you hold the squirming poopy critter while you try and clean.

I guess we'll have to shave....but he has such a cute butt! Would it be better to use an electric trimmer or plain ol' scissors?

Thanks again everyone!

Yeah, tracey, it WAS that bad! LOL!! I was trying to clean him up by myself, and at 20 lbs, he was having none of it! He had it smeared all over his hind end, and trying to wipe / bathe him by myself just tangled his fur and made it worse.

Toby had a cute furry butt too but I didn't want to take the chance of it happening again. I ended up taking him to the groomer every couple of months to have his butt shaved. And fortunately he didn't mind having it done. His groomer, Eliza, could do it herself and he would just stand there patiently while she shaved him. To make up for the indignity of shaving his butt, she would send him home with a manly bandana. Trying to clip him with scissors left his fur uneven. He looked much cuter with a designer shave!

One of my girls is arthritic and a little chubby and can't clean herself. She also happens to have medium length hair. I brush her every day and wipe her butt with cleansing wipes for people. She likes it. She didn't like it at first, but she realizes now why I do it and she runs into the office in the morning and waits for me to come and clean her up and brush her.

Ah, the things we do for our fur-babies!

So, are cleansing wipes for people okay to use on a kitty? I just can't imagine it'd be good for a kitty who still likes to (and can) lick his butt (chemicals).

Wonder what a feline butt-trim costs? He's such a sweet boy, that I don't want him mad at me for doing something unpleasant to him.

I dread his next BM....hope it's not during the night! I shudder at what all he might "touch" that I might not actually be able to see to clean.

Hmmm, I wonder if you could use one of those battery operated beard trimmers for this? They are small and generally come with blade guards, so you could get the fur even without risking too close a cut. Just a thought...

We had a long haired cat when I was a kid and I remember my mom taking him onto the back porch with a squirt bottle of water occasionally. Me personally, I'd get some old wash cloths and either use just warm water, or warm water and a little smidge of baby shampoo- that should be safe enough if he ingests it.

Good luck, Tracey. Think I'll go hug my DSHs now!

Thanks, quasifish. I've thought of hubby's trimmer, but he gagged at the thought of it being used on Coco's butt. But, what he doesn't know won't hurt him ;-) Well, unless he asks how I trimmed the fur.

I did use an old washcloth that I cut into fourths and wet with warm water, but I'm afraid I'd eventually run out of them. It's kind of gross to wash the poop out (can you tell I've never changed a poopy diaper?). Moistened cloths definitely work better than dry toilet paper. So far so good, though---no more clingons (which I've since learned they're called). I didn't sleep well last night because I was keeping an ear/eye (and nose) out for Coco pooping. Evidently it all came out okay. However, I know I do need to shave a poo path so I'd better do it sooner rather than later.

I didn't want a long-haired cat, but we fell in love with him and we had the pick of the litter. He's a dandy and a keeper, even with the poo problem.

Thanks!

Best to keep it trimmed. I put some yummy treats on the floor and while he is eating I hold up his tail with one hand and trim with the other.

I use regular hair clipping scissors.

I have 2 Ragdolls as well, so I know of the type of fur you are talking about. My boy cat never has issues there, he is less fluffy. Girl cat, otoh, sigh. It can be plain gross. One time I came home from a weekend away to find butt poop prints all over the house (every where she sat she left evidence behind). I don't trim the fur - she barely lets me near her with a comb. I take her into the bathroom with the shower hose and hose her butt off. She screams bloody murder and shoots daggers at me, but she gets over it.

I have a maine coon. He has occasional problems with this, but not too often. But when he does I can instantly tell because he stinks!

And giving a bath is horrible because then you have to comb them or they get big matts. What a mess.

We don't shave his butt, but I do keep the area directly around and beneath his evacuation point clipped to a shorter length.

Also, I have found that when I am very regular with his food, he has less issues. I feed the same dry food every day and the same brand of soft fod every day...when I switch up the soft food for variety sometimes he has problems, so I avoid doing that now.

Well, I tried the yummy treats, but the instant I lifted his tail, any thought of his eating went away. I used an electric trimmer, but didn't get much shaved--only the longer strands. I'd flinch every time he did, and his fur is so silky soft that it just got pushed around, not shaved. I know it'd help if I took off the "length guard" and used bare trimmer, but I'm so afraid of hurting him. So, I checked at Petsmart to see if they have a cat groomer, which they do. I might take him in for at least his first butt trim and then maybe I can keep it up after that (I can hope).

If he ever needs a bath, I'll have to remember to use the shower or tub hand-held sprayer (never had one before till our new house we just moved into). That might make spot-treatment much easier!

I'm still working on a regular food for them. Both kittens had soft stool with the female bordering on diarrhea all the time. Second trip to the vet (and 2nd med later), he said maybe the food was too rich for her, so I've had to move down the chain a bit (from the higher-end dry foods), and that's when Coco's problem started. His poo went to more firm, but stickier, "pellets" while Ellie's has stayed soft. Funnily (and thankfully), the soft hasn't posed a problem with their butt hair. We're still trying to find a canned food they'll eat. I've wasted well over $100 in the last 2 months, but I might've finally hit on one. Fingers crossed.

Going to a groomer can be a very good option!

I use scissors to cut my maine coons butt hairs down to a more manageable length. But I have my partner to help me - he holds kitty down very firmly while I trim the hairs so I won't accidentally stab kitty with scissors.

And yes, sometimes the really dry pooh is the problem. That's my kitty's problem - if it gets too dry, he has trouble fully expelling it...then he scoots...and that's all she wrote!

I suggest the use of scissors that have rounded points--just to be safe, esp'ly if you have a jumpy cat. I've had this problem, but it really is a diet issue--if you can get the food issue straigtened out, there shouldn't be a poop problem. FYI--I wouldn't dream of going near a cat butt with a pair of clippers. But I've been really lucky in that my cats pretty much let me do what I need to do to them.

We had a Red Persian who had the same problem...Every 5-6 weeks we'd take him to the groomers and I always asked her to make sure she trimmed, very close around the butt...In between, if he got messy, DH would give him a scrubbing and you would have thought Simba was being tortured....
We had to put Simba to sleep a little over a year ago and I still miss that funny face.....