Should I Have Dematted My Neglected Sisters Cat? | AITA

One neglected cat, one messy mat situation, and a sister who thinks scissors would fix everything, eventually turns into a full family blow-up. The OP stepped in after noticing the cat’s back was packed with mats, and instead of waiting for the “later” plan, they bought a dematter and handled it themselves.

Here’s what makes it complicated, though: the sister claims she “picked out” the cat but does not feed or care for him, she told OP not to demat him and said she would use scissors, then days passed with no action. OP dematted the cat quickly, admits it pulled some hair and caused some pain, then left the cat alone with catnip and bird-window entertainment. The sister flipped out anyway, screaming that OP was an animal abuser, insisting the mats were basically just dreadlocks and not a big deal.

Now the real question is whether OP was trying to save a suffering cat, or crossing a line that should have been handled differently.

Original Post

First I want to say is that I don't really consider it her cat she just picked it out but she doesn't feed it or do anything like that. I recently noticed the cat was very matted on his back.

I let her know about it last month but nothing was done about it. I ended up buying a dematter for him and dematting him. It wasn't fun for him and yes I was pulling his hair.

She asked me not to do it because she was going to just use scissors on his hair. I waited a couple of days for her to do it and she didn't.

So I just dematted him. I tried to do it as fast as I could and yes I was pulling his hair but I got rid of all the matts.

I gave him a bunch of fresh catnip after and he watched birds out the window. And I left him alone.

I let her know I removed the matts. She asked if it pulled his hair and hurt and I said yes some.

She started flipping out on me and wouldn't leave me alone. She told me to never do that again and I said actually I'm going to do what I want.

Don't neglect your cat you do nothing for it I'm gonna do what I want. She started screaming about how I was an animal abuser.

She said it's not like the matts were going to kill him and that it's just like having dreadlocks and it wasn't a big deal that he had them.

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This also feels like the fight over inheritance, where someone wonders whether to keep it or give it to needy nieces and nephews.

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OP noticed the cat’s back was “very matted,” told his sister about it last month, and still got nothing done until the OP took matters into their own hands.

After the sister begged OP not to demat it and promised scissors, days went by with no scissors, no feeding, and no care, just more neglect.

The moment OP started dematting, the sister asked if it hurt and then went from worried to furious when OP admitted it pulled hair and yes, it hurt.

Now the sister is calling OP an animal abuser over a cat she doesn’t feed, while OP insists they removed the mats and the cat even enjoyed catnip and watching birds afterward.

What do you think about this situation? Let us know in the comments.

He might be right about the mats, but he definitely picked the wrong fight with his sister.

Wait, it gets crazier, like the waitress who kept making the same dumb joke and got an unexpected “tip”.