What to do about matting

[Lynne of Fountain Falls]

A family I sold a puppy to left a message on my phone that his dog was so matted that he had to take her to a groomer to get the matts out.  The groomer said all she could do was shave the dog.  I have four goldendoodles that belong to my adult children and we have not run into the matting problem.  Maybe a little behind the ears or armpits but nothing like what  he described. I read an article in a recent magazine that said that shaving a double coated dog could forever harm to coat.  Have any of you had experience with that?  Since he had already had the dog shaved I could not advise him to look at the grooming group on this sight.  I have heard that the furrminator is a good tool but I have not used it.  My advice was to brush the dog daily so the matts never get started. 

So, have any of you had experience with damage to a coat after shaving?

Have any of you used the furminator brush and what did you think?

Do any of you have any other advise about how to keep the dog from matting.?

Thanks Lynne

[F, Calla & Luca]

Shaving a dog will not ruin the coat as far as I know. The Furminator is not recommended in the Grooming Group. The best way to keep dogs from matting is to do line brushing and combing all of which is explained in the group and for which you can conduct searches. I often just cut mats out. It's easier on me and the dogs and doesn't show with all that hair.

[GBK]

I shave both my dogs, coats have never changed in thickness or texture.  The coat change from puppy to adult can cause many dogs to matt overnight it seems.  Maybe this is the case with that puppy?  It will be good for them to start brushing while his hair is short, good advise :)

[Ginny Nightingale]

I have heard the furminator does not help with matting, just shedding--I would get a mat comb--the kind that have razor sharp edges that face away from the dogs skin and cut the mat as you pull the blades thru. A lot of people equate brushing with combing and never get to the skin--I groom doodles and many people come to me and tell me the dog has been brushed and is mat free-HA! The dogs are usually full of mats. BUT, that said, some coat types do not mat much at all and others stick like glue. If the dogs get wet without being combed out beforehand, that can cause big problems too. 

There should be no permanent effect on the coat --is this maybe the puppy to adult transition stage? If so, lots of people have to shave and then it is easier after that.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

A non-shedding coat is going to matt if it is not kept thoroughly brushed out and combed down to the skin, and when it matts badly enough, it needs to be shaved, period. There is nothing else you can do that will not be very painful for the dog. I don't care if it's a Goldendoodle, a Poodle, a Wheaten terrier, or whatever: If it has a non-shedding coat, it will matt.

Shaving a coat does not ruin it, at least not on purebred poodles. Over the years, there were times when I'm ashamed to say I did not keep up with my poodles' coats and had to have them shaved. They grew back exactly as they were from the start.

The original Furminator (it is not a brush) was designed for shedding dogs, and the label warns that it is never to be used on a non-shedding coat. However, there is a new Furminator which is desinged for non-shedding coats. I have not used it and don't know how it works, but it would be important to be sure you had the right one, and in any case, it won't help if a dog has gotten badly matted.

You are right, the only way to avoid bad matts is to keep the coat brushed and combed. The combing to the skin is essential.

[Amber (with Maggie)]

I have been clipping my dog (now 2 years old) down since she was 6 months old. While I prefer her coat long, she does matt and if I cut them out (which I either do that or use the dematter with the razors pointing out, but that tends to leave the coat uneven and looking a bit damaged on my dog). I clip her down when it gets hot (down to about an inch or a little less). She loves it because she is cooler. (I leave her face and tail a bit longer). The only place that was ever "shaved" was her belly when she was fixed. It grew back normal, and even a bit softer to the feel than her other area's of the coat. She is a multigen, ALD with fleece (I think it's fleece...I get confused).

 

When the matting gets too bad...mostly because stickers attach to her when we go on hikes...I use a dematting spray for horse tails. I spray it on all over her body and then let it dry. Once it is dry she combs through as easily cutting key lime pie :)

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

We kept on top of mats by brush/combing Ned about every other day while he was going through the coat change.  We used products (Cowboy Magic and The Original Horse Mane and Tail DeTangler).  We use a LesPouchs brush and a steel comb.  It is a LOT of work. I would consider Ned's coat very high maintenance,  Nowadays we can brush him once a week and get his mats/tangles out, however it takes us at least an hour.

[Lynne of Fountain Falls]

Thanks everybody.  I got a lot of good information here.  One big thing is I forgot about this dog being the age that it very likely "blew its coat".  She was wearing a t-shirt because of an injury on her chest that she kept licking.  Between wearing the tshirt and blowing her coat at the same time you can imagine what a mess she was.  Poor girl.  She has been shaved now and looks much happier.

Thanks everyone.

[Jennifer and Luci]

When my Luci was fixed, she'd never been trimmed (only brushed daily) and wore a donut around her neck and a t'shirt of my daughters to keep her away from the incision.  Needless to say, after that she was shaved as she was a mess.  That was the only time we've had a problem with matts (she was also blowing her coat at the same time), she's had a beautiful coat since.