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Grooming

ashleighelizabeth

Well-known member
We have always groomed Sonny ourself as far as giving him baths, brushing him, brushing his teeth and cleaning his ears. However it is getting harder as he gets older because of all of his hair! I never thought I would take him to a groomer, I always figured that I would want to do it all myself, but he is getting matted and some spots are hard to brush out. Does anyone have any grooming tips or excellent products they would recommend, like special brushes they use? We have a slicker brush (which Sonny hates), a comb and the furminator.
 
might sound obvious but my humble answer would be a spray leave in conditioner after a bath & any matts you need to get out hold tight with one hand, at skin level(top) to take the tension off Sonnys skin & fur then start at the ends(bottom) with wide tooth comb & gently take each "loop" of the matt down to the ends,one at a time only then move up to next "loop" etc sooo much easier than starting a the top above the main knot,which is what most people tend to do!

hope that helps a bit:)
 
Yeah fine a gentle leave in conditioner and always work mats or knots from the bottom up....I least that want I was told by a hair dresser years ago for my daughter.....didn't help that she was a brat about it either :)

Fletcher is still young however, I have already gotten in the habit of brushing him everynight because I want to avoid the mats as we go. I would love to think I will always be able to manage grooming him on my own but if it ever gets to the point where you are now I would take him to a groomer BUT I would be very strict with this groomer about how she/he clipped or cut him.


Melissa
 
I have a good dog comb (not expensive, either) that works best on Sophie for getting out the matted hair. I start untangling it at the outer end of the mat and slowly work my way in toward the body. I've never had any luck with a slicker brush for busting up matted hair. If the mats are too difficult, I use fingernail scissors (the type with rounded tips at the ends) and cut it out.
 
I think slickers are too sharp against the skin. I use a pin brush (it has little metal nubs at the end, slickers are usually needle-like).
 
We've always used the furminator with our dogs. I see you do too :)
It doesn't seem to pull like some other combs or brushes we've used in the past.
Wrigley doesn't seem to mind it all all when I go to brush him after his bath.
I also have always used baby shampoo w/ our dogs. It's gentle & it really does make their fur shine. We used it w/ our golden retreiver for years. It seemed to help w/ any dry skin issues as well.
Far as the matts...just a dab of conditioner on those particular areas..and the furminator glided thru fairly easily.
 
Another trick is to gently slice the matt in half with a pair of scissors. Dog won't even feel it. Makes it easier to tug it out with fingers or comb.

A good spray on coat conditioner front the pet store is invaluable. I like to spray it onto Tess all over before grooming her. Helps get everything tidy and shiny, and it smells good.

Be careful with the furminator. It has a razor in it and can strip the coat. Use it sparingly, not every time you groom and not over and over. I like to use it mostly behind the ears, where matts are most likely to form.

If you are able to groom your dog every day or every other day, you probably won't need to visit a professional groomer. However it is really nice to go when dogs are shedding heavily, because they can remove most of what will otherwise float around your living room for you... :rolleyes:
 
Thanks everyone. I will be investing in a leave in conditioner for Sonny ASAP! Also thanks for all of the tips about working out the mats!
 
Hi

Being a poor humble man can you pls recommend a good leave in spray conditioner .I have been using White on White and putting it on after their
nightly brush and comb through to sort out any snags they have or detrious they may have collected in their long coats .I then spray them with White on
White or similar then brush it through with a boar bristle Mason and Pearson brush . They do have a professional groom every 8-10 weeks ,so is my little
regime right .?
 
As a lazy groomer, and as I'm not showing Aled, I just snip out the matts with scissors before they get too big. His coat is so thick it doesn't show. As a neutered male, his coat gets a bit long and cottony along his flanks, so I use trimming scissors on it every few months to tidy it up, also on the hair on his feet when it gets too long. Otherwise, a pin brush and a comb and nail clippers are the sum total of my grooming equipment - told youI was lazy! But neither Oliver or Aled look too bad on this regime. And even if I took hours over grooming them, a walk in muddy woods would immediately undo all my good work, so I'd rather spend the time on the walk rather than the brushing!

Kate, Oliver and Aled
 
Oliver has quite a light coat.
I stopped using the furminator as I thought it was causing an odd look to his back fur.
I use a simple comb with elastic band wrapped into the teeth. This pulls out loose old hair only.
I use a pin brush to clear out mats. But if he gets a bad one I just cut it out. Generally not often but if he does always behind the ear so you can't tell.
I keep his feet really short and use thinning scissors on his bum fluff! Lol
And his chest ruff.
We go for long muddy walks so I keep him in what I like to call a sport cut! Lol. Means a quick rinse down in the Belfast sink and he is clean. If his feet get too long I have to soap them nearly everyday!

He has been professionally groomed twice (hand stripped and trimmed) and they did an amazing job under his belly and round his bits. This is something I can't seem to do myself. But I am going to give it a go. Think I need a pair of clippers. :S

M&O
 
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