Dematting Tool in Action: Brushing Your Dog the Effective and Painless Way

Dog grooming tools are essential to maintain the quality of life for dogs. Does your dog have a coat that requires constant grooming?  We want to help!  Follow along as we talk about the different types of grooming tools for dogs, what they are useful for, and why they are so important in maintaining a dog's overall health and well-being. Dogs look better, smell better, and feel better when they are groomed regularly. Grooming also helps to remove loose hair and keep your dog's coat healthy and shiny. In this post, we will introduce you to the idea of regular de matting of your dog's coat and one of the most important grooming tools in your future grooming toolkit: a dematting comb.

 

The importance of dog hair brushing

Brushing dog hair with a dog dematting tool regularly is very important for many reasons. It helps to remove the excess dead hair from the coat. This way your dog will have a better look & feel, plus you don't have to clean your sofa from dog hair every time your pooch jumps on it. It is crucial to clean every mat and tangle in your dog's coat because these are the hotbed of germs and causing soreness and skin complaints. On the other hand, brushing with a dematting comb helps blood circulation and keeps grease levels down. The build-up of grease in a dog’s coat can block pores and cause sebaceous cysts. Grooming gives you a great opportunity to examine your dog and look for fleas or ticks, blocked anal glands, or dirty ears. Also look at the condition of the eyes, and general overall condition. You have a chance to reveal cuts and other abnormalities and you can take the necessary action and visit your VET.

Pet parents often ask: "Do mats hurt dogs?" Mats itself won’t hurt the dog but if they build-up excess dirt or insects inside they can irritate the skin and the skin underneath can become sore and sensitive. And if you wonder: using a de matting comb in the right way definitely eliminates the chance of hurting your dog during the grooming session. 

 

Understanding the difference between different dog hair types

The dog's coat is its natural defense against the external environment, and the health of a dog's coat reflects its health. The dog's coat requires special care and attention. To protect it from damage, you should know the type of hair your dog has.

The type of hair your dog has is dependent on the breed. For example, the wire fox terrier has a double coat, while the dalmatian has a single hair coat. On the other hand, some dogs have a combination of single and double coats.

What hair types do the dog groomers differentiate?

 

Short dog hair

The outer coat of these species is short, hardly 1-2 cm, but it is dense and strong. Under the even outercoat, there is a fluffy undercoat.

Famous breeds with short hair: Short-Haired Dachshund, Short-Haired Hungarian and German Retriever, Dalmata, Dobermann, English Bulldog, Rottweiler, Basset Hound, Transylvanian Hound.

 

Smooth dog hair

Many people mix up short hair and smooth hair, but the two are not identical. The hair of the smooth-haired Fox-Terrier is different from the hair short-haired one by having an outer coat that is somewhat longer. It may even reach the length of 3-4 cm and it is not so dense and it is far softer and finer.

 

Wiry dog hair

Wirehair Hungarian or German Retriever, Airedale Terrier, Welsh Terrier, and the Wirehair Fox Terrier have harder outercoats, which may be said to be similar to touching a wire brush and they have an undercoat.

 

Stringy hair

Stringy-Haired Dachshunds, Norfolk or Norwich Terriers, Westies, Schnauzers, but even the Irish Wolf Dogs are really bearded champions. Under the hard outer coat, there is an undercoat. The stringy hair ripens more gradually, and this gives it an individual character.

 

Long dog hair

Poodles, Maltese Silk Dogs, for example, have only outer coats, they do not have an undercoat. However, there are such long-haired species as well (Tibetan Terrier, Shih-Tzu), in the case of which there is also an undercoat under the long outer coat.

 

Half-length hair

We used to call the hair of the Long-Haired Collie, of the Kuvasz, or of the Bolognese “half-length hair”, and in their case, there is an undercoat under the moderately long outer coat.

 

Double hair

Yes, there are really these kinds of dogs, primarily the northern types, like the Malamute, the Akita, the Spitz types, and the Chow-Chow. They have furs of this kind, that is, there are multiple undercoats between their outer coat.

 

Flag-like hair

They used to call this hair type also as mixed hair since the different body parts of the dogs have different types of hair. Usually, the fur is shorter on the head and the back, while on the legs, ears, and abdomen there is a continuously growing, long fur. This kind of hair may be observed in the case of the Spaniels, the Setters, the Golden Retrievers, and the Long-Haired Dachshund.

 

Bald dogs

They have to be also mentioned when we talk about hair types, since the Chinese, the Peruvian and the Mexican dogs are not fully hairless, usually, on their heads and legs, there may be some hair. Moreover, the Chinese Crest Dog has a hairy variant as well: the Powderpuff.

 

Felt hair

The Puli, the Komondor is the king of felt-haired dogs, however, the Bergamo Shepherd Dog and the Water Hunting Dogs maybe also proud of such characteristic furs. In the case of these dogs between the strong outer coats, there is a lot of undercoat hairs. When the fluffy undercoat hairs are falling out, they form mops with the hairs of the outer coat, and together with them, they form the braids.

 

What breeds require to groom with a de matting comb?

Not all dog breeds require the same type of grooming. Before getting a dog, ask yourself what kind of dog you want. Do you want a dog that requires a lot of grooming? Do you have the time and money for all of the dog's needs? And do you have a doggy-sitter for when you're out of the house? We will summarise below the type of grooming the most well-known dog species to require.

 

Minimal grooming dogs

American Staffordshire Terrier, English Bulldog, Basset Hound, Beagle, Boxer, Chihuahua, Dalmata, Dobermann, French Bulldog, Foxhounds, Labrador, Pug Dog, German Dog, Pointer, Rottweiler, Short-haired Greyhounds, Short-haired Dachshund, Smooth-Haired Fox Terrier, Bloodhounds, Weimar Retriever, Whippet

Required grooming tools:

a bristle brush, rubber gloves, chamois rag, stainless steel nail clipping scissors

The fact that a given species is included in the group that requires minimal grooming does not mean that the dog does not have to be inspected each day. In their case, it is sufficient to groom them for a short while each week once or twice, to caress the fur with rubber gloves, and naturally to check routinely their ears, eyes, anus, and nails. Naturally, in the shedding time, greater attention has to be paid to the shorter furs as well.

 

Regular grooming dogs

Airedale Terrier, American and English Cocker Spaniel, Wiry-Haired Fox Terrier, Wiry-Haired Hungarian and German Retrievers, Norwich Terrier, Golden Retriever, Schnauzer, Stringy-Haired and Long-Haired Dachshunds, Poodle, Westie

Required grooming tools:

a bristle brush, wire brush, soft wire brush, comb, rubber gloves, stainless steel scissors, stainless steel thinning scissors, trimming knife, shaving machine, stainless steel nail clipping scissors

The species that demand periodical grooming demand regular grooming the same way, that is, the fur has to be caressed with rubber gloves and the eyes, ears, the surroundings of the anus and the nails have to be checked. At the same time, every 4-8 weeks they have to be cut or trimmed, to allow them to have an orderly fur.

 

Daily or very frequent grooming

Afghan Hound, Akita, Bernese Shepherd, Border Collie, Chow-Chow, Maltese Silky Dog, Russian Wolfhound, Pekingese Dog, Spitz Species, Samoyed, Setters, Shih-Tzu, Tibetan Terrier, Newfoundlander, Yorkshire Terrier

Required grooming tools:

wire brush, bristle brush, soft wire brush, comb, stainless steel undercoat rake, scissors, thinning scissors, saving machine, nail clipping scissors, hairdryer

Combing, brushing done daily or several times a week is an indispensable task in the case of dogs that require every day or very frequent grooming since the dead undercoat hairs have to be removed. This is the only way we may prevent shagging, sticking together, which – if the owner does not pay attention to it – may lead to losing the hair, since one may free the dog of it already only with scissors. The plants, bugs collected in the course of a walk may easily hide in the long-haired fur. Checking the ears, eyes, anus, and nails the hairs have to be also done in the course of daily grooming. 

 

How do you get matted hair off a dog without cutting it?

The solution is using a proper dog dematting tool. The dematting has to be always done in the direction the hairs are growing in such a manner that the hairs have to be brushed from their stems towards their ends. If we press down the skin and we use the entire surface of the dematting tool, the skin will not be damaged, and the operation will not cause any pain for the dog. We may use for dematting in addition to the dematting rake a traditional comb as well, for final control: to establish whether we worked well in the course of dematting and whether the de matting comb slides smoothly or not. The dematting of the hairs has to be always done before bathing. This has a practical reason: if we bathe shaggy hairs, not only the dirt, but even the remaining shampoo will stay within the tangles, therefore removal of the dirt will become even more difficult. While in the case of smooth-haired and short-haired dogs there is no need for a thorough dematting operation, it is sufficient to caress them with rubber gloves to remove the dead hairs, in the case of the stringy and wiry dogs the above-mentioned dematting tool may be needed, which is indispensable in the case of half-long and long-haired dogs. Important notice: it is forbidden to groom the braid-haired dogs with de matting comb or brush. Their hair has to be “arranged” always by hand.

 

How do I stop my dog's hair from matting?

Mats are natural to forms in the fur, so it is kind of inevitable to happen. But if you regularly brush your dog with a dematting tool you can keep matting under control and limit as much as possible. However, if your pup needs a proper dematting just follow these steps. 

 

Dematting your dog with a dematting comb step by step:

1. Prepare the appropriate environment de matting your dog. The dog must be calm and relaxed while you work with the dematting tool. Move the dog to a place where you can comfortably reach it and easily walk around it.
2. Examine the coat and look for mats and tangles. If the fur is very matted, don't brush her whole body immediately. Find the base of the mat and see how tight it is from the skin. Break out the mat carefully with the dematting tool and brush it out with the tool one by one. Always comb in the direction of hair growth. Do not rush with your de matting comb! take your time and work slowly at first.
3. Start with the lower density teeth side of the dematting comb for stubborn mats and tangles at the outer edge of the coat and work inward to break apart the mat.
4. Finish with the higher density teeth side for faster results or thinning and deshedding.
5. Try to avoid the tool coming into direct contact with the dog's skin and don't apply extreme pressure with your dematting comb. 

 

Introducing the RUBOLD Fur Perfection Dematting Tool for Dogs

RUBOLD Fur Perfection is the best dematting tool for dematting and undercoat removal. Make fur beautiful and shiny in minutes without mats or tangles! For the first time, your dog will love brushing and everybody will be amazed by your loved pooch!

The Fur Perfection has two sides: one with 17 and one with 9 precision teeth. This special NO SCRATCH & NO PAIN™ design provides gentle and precise dematting and grooming for dogs with sensitive skin. These stainless steel blades are rounded outside (so they don't scratch the skin unlike other pointed edge tools), but sharp inside, so every mats and tangle will be cleaned safe & easy. The extra-wide head ensures that you will finish fast with the best result.

 

How to use this dog dematting comb to get the best possible result?

It's always a good idea to bathe your dog before grooming. This way you can remove every dirt from the coat, plus you can apply some moisture which will make the process a lot easier. Bathing is highly recommended for dogs with a thicker and heavier coat! Move your dog to a quiet place and start the grooming when your doggie is calm and relaxed. Start with the 9 teeth side for stubborn mats and tangles. When working with mats always start from the outside inwards gradually. Take the time to carefully break the mats apart. Brush out every mat and tangle one by one before brushing the full body. When the brush is full of hair, remove and collect the dead hair in a disposable bag. Finish the grooming with the 17 teeth side for faster results or thinning and deshedding. 

 

Can you use a hair conditioner on a dog?

Yes, it is a good idea to use some kind of spray or conditioner when doing your brushing. This will add some moisture to the coat and make the brush run easier and smoother. Remember: you don’t want to soak the fur just apply some moisture to make things easier.

 

My dog doesn't tolerate brushing. What should I do?

If your dog has no patience for brushing, split the job apart & dedicate a 10-minute grooming session every day. After a few days, you can finish the whole body. Always reward your dog after a successful session.

 

On what dog breeds does the Fur Perfection work?

This tool is perfect for all breeds of dogs (and cats), especially on medium and long coats. Our customers are using their Fur Perfection currently on these breeds (not the full list):

Akbash

Akita

American Eskimo

Australian Shepherd

Bichon Frise

Border Collie

Brittany

Cairn Terrier

Caucasian Shepherd

Cavapoo

Chow Chow

Cockapoo

Cocker Spaniel

Corgi

German Shepherd

German Wirehaired Pointer

Golden Retriever

Goldendoodle

The great Pyrenees

Irish Setter

Keeshond

King Charles Spaniel

Labradoodle

Labrador Retriever

Long-haired Dachshund

Maltipoo

Miniature Australian Shepherd

Newfoundland

Old English Sheepdog

Pekingese

Pomeranian

Poodle

Saint Bernard

Schnauzer

Scottish Terrier

Shetland Sheepdog

Shih-Tzu

Siberian Husky

Tibetan Terrier

West Highland Terrier

White Shepherd

Wirehaired Pointing Griffon

Yorkshire Terrier

+ Long-haired cats like Ragdoll cat

 

How often should I use the Fur Perfection on my dog?

Every dog has different grooming needs. If your dog is very active and plays a lot outside, chances are his/her coat can get matted very often. In this case, you can use it every day to remove tangles and prevent matting. Other breeds with different grooming needs and different lifestyles may require brushing once a week. You can decide whether you need to introduce a daily routine or use your de matting comb one in a while.

 

How do you untangle severely matted hair on a dog?

If you try to groom your dog with a mat stuck in its fur, you will very quickly be able to tell that it is not an easy task.  If your dog's fur is tangled, you have to work at a very slow pace to try to remove the knots.  If you are dealing with a severe case of matted fur, it is best to use a de matting comb to loosen the mats before you try to remove them. This way, you can remove the mats in one piece, without having to cut them out of the fur.

 

I need to get rid of mats and tangles. Where can I get this tool?

We have a special offer for you to get this tool on our site. Click here to get your Fur Perfection Dog Dematting Tool!