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Matting fur

LauraD

Well-known member
Does anyone know of a product that will help reduce knotting and matting in the fur behind the ears or on the leg feathers? I am having a time trying to keep the mats away after every time Riley plays with other dogs or scratches/licks his feathering. :sl*p: There's gotta be a "magic" spray or something?? h*lp
 
I use a metal comb, medium then finer tooth, pinching the hair, near to the dog, between finger and thumb, so the tug doesn't reach the skin, as that hair is never pulled tight.

Hard to explain, but if you grip a piece of your own hair, between thumb and finger, then tug with the other hand, you dont feel anything.
 
Thanks Barbara, i do know what you mean. I have been doing the fine metal comb thing. Believe me NO ONE knows more about tangly, knotting hair than i do, i've got it on my own head! :D
I was just wondering if there was something that would prevent knots, like the many products i use on my own hair. Didn't think i should use them on Riley though as they are pretty heavy and made for people.
 
I would love to find out too ... Lucky doesn't mat yet (puppy fur!) but I'm sure he will and I'd love to be prepared.

I'd be cautious about people products too because people don't typically lick our hair ... dogs may lick their fur, so I'm sure whatever we use has to both 1) work and 2) be non-toxic for puppies.

I hope someone will chime in with some advice so Riley can have smooth silky hair. :)
 
Dudley does'nt get that many mats, I use Pet Silk Products from www.tiabellas.com I have only tried the Clean Scent and it smells wonderful.

I also have a furminator and a Coat King Mars Comb it does a amazing job for getting out knots.

Dudley used to get a lot around his bottom, not anymore. :D :D :D :D :D
 
I use a little rinse off conditioner behind the ears where they can't lick. And every time I brush/comb them, I use a grooming spray first, and very generously on the areas that are more prone to matting. The spray I use isn't anything special; just something from the local chain pet supply store..."miracle coat" or something like that.

on edit: I think the grooming sprays are referred to as "finishing sprays." Roxanne has several on her Tia Bella's site (link from previous post). The silk spray and mat gel specifically mention they're mat detanglers.
 
Merlin used to get the odd one or two but now he has his own personal puppy ear hair puller my poor boys gets loads cos of those nasty puppy teeth!

I had to cut 3 out of one ear last night! Any ideas on stopping matting (other than removing Oakleys teeth!) would be appreciated - thanks for starting the thread on this Laura ;)
 
Some dogs definitely are more prone to matts than others. Also it depends enormously on the type of activity the dog does. If I have Jaspar outy on a two hour walk through grass, for example, he gets matts from the activity. If he is mostly going for walks on pavement and playing in the house or on flat lawn, he gets few.

I've never found a fine comb works for me -- it just seems to pull! I've clearly got the wrong technique. :lol: I sometimes use a matt cutter which really helps on larger matts. Otherwise I usually work at the matt with a pin brush; I especially like a really tiny one that came as part of a cat litter box package (hence a small cat brush is recommended!). The pin area is only about 1"x2". I also just got a bottle of The Stuff conditioner recommended by Aaron and you can spritz this on a matt and it helps work it out.

The best approach is definitely to groom regularly, even daily, so that matts do not get a chance to start to really clump together as a small one is easy to get rid of but a small one forms a large matt very quickly. Good advice that I don't follow enough! :)

Warning: if you get annoyed and cut out a large matt so all the hair is equally very short that area is going to matt even worse as it grows -- it matts constantly as it is now all the same length and kind of felts together.
 
Eighti n One's Perfect Coat grooming spray is supposed to detangle, but I use it for the lovely smell. It lingers for days and is especially good if the dogs get a little damp; as though they brushed past honeysuckle in the rain.--So if it doesn't work, it's still nice to use.

It becsme harder to get over here when pets at Home stopped stocking it, so in had to get mine from Crufts, but it's actually made in the States.

www.eightinonepet.com
 
Tip: If you have to cut the matts then cut a v shape into the middle of it - that way you can pull the majority of tangle out without huting your fur baby and as Karlin has pinted out the hair wont be all the same length so will grow back better and have less chance of matting because it wont be the same legth as if you cut across it! ;)
 
I use John Paul Pet Instant detangling spray. It is a great product. I use it after baths when I brush out their ears, then also in between baths to freshen the stinky boys up. I know I rant and rave about all of these products, but they are just so wonderful. I haven't had to snip out any dredlocks since I started using it on Wesley (even though he has Cody chomping on those beautiful ears constantly). It seems like it makes his hair extra silky and less likely to knot. It smells great too!!

http://www.amazon.com/John-Paul-Ins...pd_bbs_sr_4/102-8442810-8437748?ie=UTF8&s=hpc

I don't know about the John Paul toys, they look a bit flimsy. But the brushes are excellent as well.
 
oh matting fur is a NIGHTMARE at my place!!!!!!!!!!!!! my two can get one in a matter of 2 days..its so annoying!

I use John Paul Pet Instant detangling spray.
ooh very nice...is this 2 prevent the tangling? or to get rid of it? whatever it is the word "instant" makes me want it! i try to brush the knots out..dont work...i try 2 hand pull them out
pinching the hair, near to the dog, between finger and thumb, so the tug doesn't reach the skin, as that hair is never pulled tight.
i usually do it that way but sometimes i get so cuaght up with getting it out that i dont pinch the hair and you should shee how they yelp in pain when i tug..the poor babies...i feel so bad whenever that happens.. but seriously my two get them everywhere!
 
Zack just had behind the ear mats one time, during the summer. I'm not sure why he got them. My theory was that it was because i was flea combing a lot, and as a result, wasn't brushing him like before. He got large thick mats on both sides and i couldn't see any way they could be detangled, but some people on this forum gave me suggestions and hope, or vision, a belief that it could be done and which products to buy, and i got a Four Paws detangling comb, the metal tines are far apart and shaped in an arrow-like formation, it has an easy to grip wooden handle, and i got the 8 in 1 magic coat detangling spray, and it took about an hour on each ear but i didn't have to cut anything, it was hard to believe such a thick tightly woven mat could be detangled, but it happened. If i hadn't seen it with my own eyes i wouldn't have believed it.

He has never gotten a mat since then, yet i can't say what it is that prevents the mats because i haven't been brushing him very often, yet magically, his fur stays pretty neat, and completely unmatted. I just don't know why. He's active, runs and plays every day, goes for walks through bushes and rolling in grass, fairly often gets sticks and leaves stuck in his ear fur, but he doesn't get mats. i don't know why. Other than a silkening spray, i have no ideas about what could help prevent matting.
 
:thnx: for all your suggestions! I think the matting situation is based on the fur texture. The fur behind his ears and on his back leg feathers is very fluffy and cottony. It's very fine and if you brush/comb it, it will fluff up with static instantly. So i think this is why i have to comb out mats almost daily now.
However I did try the 8in1 grooming spray and although i loved the smell, Riley took off running and hid under the table! :shock: I had to coax him out with treats and then he went around rubbing his ears on the furniture and carpet. He apparently HATES the smell. :yuk: :sl*p:
So, i guess i will go around trying different products with perhaps a lighter fragrance or no smell at all? Maybe that will keep Riley happy. :lpy: Ahh what i will do for my doggie! :D
 
I think the matting situation is based on the fur texture. The fur behind his ears and on his back leg feathers is very fluffy and cottony. It's very fine and if you brush/comb it, it will fluff up with static instantly. So i think this is why i have to comb out mats almost daily now
i dont understand?? do you mean that because of the brushing its fluffing up and getting tangled?
 
LauraD said:
However I did try the 8in1 grooming spray and although i loved the smell, Riley took off running and hid under the table! :shock: I had to coax him out with treats and then he went around rubbing his ears on the furniture and carpet. He apparently HATES the smell. :yuk: :sl*p:
So, i guess i will go around trying different products with perhaps a lighter fragrance or no smell at all? Maybe that will keep Riley happy. :lpy: Ahh what i will do for my doggie! :D

When I get out the Eight in One, Teddy and Joly rush into crates, thinking I can't get them. However, when sprayed, they quite like it and go round sniffing eachother.

Crazy Dog apple is a different matter. ''Who's having smellies ?'' starts a queue, minus Joly, who thinks smellies are girlie.
 
Nisha - his fur is different behind the ears and on the back leg feathers. Even when i haven't brushed it yet it is fluffy and cottony in texture, not silky and smooth like the rest of his coat. The fluffy hair seems to hold more static in it and sort of winds up with itself rather easily. So when i brush it, it sticks up with static and really tries to sort of hold together making it really easy to form a mat. Add a little playing or scratching back there and the mat forms almost instantly. So i need a product that i can put on the hair that will prevent this from happening so quickly. Maybe coat that hair with something to prevent static and make the hair silky feeling. I hope that made sense and maybe answered your question. :?
Barbara - Doggies are funny little things aren't they? :lol: At least they keep us entertained!
 
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