She hates the brush! How to get her to give me more than 2 strokes??

[Luna Labradoodle]

Hello - We are freshly new doodle owners of a 4 month old labradoodle.  We LOVE the shaggy dog look and LOVE her soft coat that we can run our fingers through but she hates the brush and she has mats under her arms and around her rear end that I've been trying to get at for days.  I've tried different brushes and I've tried brushing the places first that don't really need it (the brush goes right through) and she still hates it.  What can I do to help her tolerate it so I can keep her shaggy coat healthy & adorable?

[Jen & Ember]

Ember was similar when she first came home to me. I ended up getting a bully stick and she only got it when she got brushed. She can ignore me brushing her when she has the bully stick. I worked up to it over time (a couple strokes here, good job, lots of praise, let's go play.... to a few minutes of brushing, etc). I do worry that she will always need a bully stick to get brushed...but maybe that's not the end of the world?

I had read on here about people having some great success with certain brushes, which I'm hoping other people will chime in about! 

[BG and Gavin]

What type of brush are you using?  Gavin has always been most tolerant of a steel comb with rotating teeth.  Second most tolerant of a pin brush and not at all fond of a slicker brush.  Jen's advice of using the bully stick is great.  Also I waited till the end of the night when he was sacked out on the floor and had less energy to protest.  He has gradually gotten used to it and is very tolerant of brushing, although it for sure is not his favorite activity.

[Barb @ Gemstone Labradoodles]

Co-operation for grooming starts in basic training. Really your dog is not saying "I hate the brush" but rather, I am in control of my body and I don't give you permission to do that.

Try doing some basic clicker training for things like come, sit, stay and stand. Dogs at 4 months already know how to do all those things. You just want them to do them when you say. Clicker training can really assist in this communication. Dogs at 4 months are ready to learn to do these things on command if it is fun. Clicker training is all positive. If they don't do the skill....no click and treat. If they do, then they get the reward. After you have the basic stand, then you can start putting your dog on a table to teach stand. From there you do a lot of handling and click and reward. From there you do a brush stroke. If your dog holds still, then click, reward and end session. In a few training sessions you should get a lot more co-operation.

Good Luck!

[Amy, Cubbie & Ollie]

Hi, we had similar problems with Cubbie.  He would get down right mean when it came to brushing.  We tried giving him treats during brushing but that only worked while he was chewing on the treats; as soon as the treats were done he would go back to trying to bite.  We tried taking him to a trainer who got tough with him but that only made things worse.  He has only now started to get better.  I have always made him stand there to be groomed until I decided that he was finished even if he was being a complete and utter brat so maybe I just finally wore him down...lol.  He will be three in 2 months so his age might be helping now too.  He is still won't stand still very long but I can groom him completely on my own.  Come to think of it, he started getting better with the whole grooming process once I started grooming him at home.  Try setting up a special spot where you do your grooming so that she knows that you mean business there.  I give Cubbie treats when he is on the grooming table and that has helped.  I have special treats that he only gets when he is on the grooming table.