If your cat will tolerate it, you could use a grooming rake. This is just what it sounds like-- a tool that looks like a rake, with sturdy teeth that break up mats so they can be combed out. Otherwise, have her professionally groomed (either combed out or shaved) and begin brushing and combing her every day, even while the coat is short. . . A really cute look for cats is the "lion cut", where the body is shaved, along with part or all of the leg depending on the style-- you can leave "boots", or go clean-legged, or something in between. The head is trimmed neatly to blend with the style, and the mane is left. I liked a bit of a wedge shape when I did my kitty (who also matted badly and HATED brushing-- the cut was preemptive every summer), but it can be rounded-- head only, or a little longer if you like. The tail can be left full, or cut into a tip plume, your choice. Personally, I LOVE lion cuts! And yes, dogs can get them too... a lot of dogs look darling in a LC!! And BTW, my cat Kepler would strut her stuff afterwards like she knew she was sum'thin' else-- she hated it while she was being groomed, but she was so proud of her new 'do when it was all done.. . Mats form when loose undercoat hair gets trapped in the rest of the coat and isn't completely shed. A cat's hair follicles produce anywhere from 5 to 21 downy hairs (the undercoat) to one "stiff" hair, or guard hair. These are constantly being shed as others are growing in. During shedding season, these hairs are "blown" more quickly and become lodged in the coat, forming mats. Combing and brushing help to remove these loose hairs. (We humans, on the other hand, only produce one hair per follicle, and we only have one type of hair-- no undercoats or awn hairs. Our hair doesn't mat in the same sense as cats and dogs, though it will "dread" and tangle. This isn't the same thing.). . You can minimize matting by combing and brushing your cat every day. My Himalayan LOVES to be combed and brushed every chance she gets! She hops up onto the toilet and won't let anyone use it until we "pay" her with a few brush strokes (or until I pick her up and QUICKLY sit down. She's gotten knocked into the bowl more than once when she's tried to get back up while I was on approach-- I've gotten my butt scratched a time or two as she was scrambling out, too!!