Best Grooming Tools?

[Chris & Boys]

My 8 month old GD has recently started to mat. His coat is increasingly difficult to bush and combing he no longer tolerates. He has a silky coat, that before I cut was shaggy, but now looks like it is growing in curly and it is roughly 2" long. I cannot imagine trying to groom him if I let him get shaggy again since it is getting so difficult to get a brush through him, even though I love that look.
When I try to brush him with a pin brush, the backing that the pins are in alway comes apart from the brush handle, and renders itself useless. I have gotten cheap brushes, and mid range brushes and am afraid to get the CC brushes and find that they will do the same thing. And it is not in my budget to get a Les Pooches brush right now. My slicker brush does not get down to his skin. His coat is so thick it is extremely hard to get a comb through it and use the combs mainly for the de-matting.

My questions are:
Do the CC brushes come apart when brushing through very thick coats?
Can you use a slicker on very thick coats or do they just get through the surface?
Is it worth the money to get the staggered tooth CC comb? Or is it just as hard to use?
Does anyone know of a good spray-on detangler?

Thanks!

[Denise, Winnie, and AngelAbby]

Another one of my favorite things is a rake... it gets down to the skin and really attacks the mats. I work them slowly tho - Abby doesn't mind getting brushed out for the most part so I don't want to pull and have her hate being brushed out. It's a fact of life for her so it's easier if she enjoys it.
Today I'm going to work on areas and then clip them as I get them mat free. I am cutting her short for summer also because we go to the lake lots and she loves the water - can't keep her out of it!
I have a comb like that - not the CC one, but a cheap one. I think it is too aggressive on the mats myself. It will find every mat on the dog. This is the comb I use last after I "think" I have found all the mats. It finds more for me. :-( But I do like my CC brush. I have the LesPooch brush also and use it only when she has a mat problem. It does get the mats but you have to work it. (I don't have the patience for that)
Also - you had once asked me about the water fountain for the dogs... well, I have decided to keep mine for my cats only. I am forever washing Abby's water dish because of junk on the bottom of the bowl. The fountain is NOT fun to take apart and wash. I do it about once a month for the cats, but if Abby were in there I would be doing it a couple times a week. So I decided against letting Abby use it.
Let me know if you find something that works good for Fozzy's coat - I can use all the help I can get too!!

[Chris & Boys]

So, maybe I should get the CC brush for daily brushing, and then when I can afford it, get the Les Pooches? I have a metal comb, but the teeth are very close together, where did you get the wide-tooth comb? I am going to Fleet Farm to see if they have the detangler spray, to help make combing easier, I'll let you know how that works. I am thinking the end of this month gettng him cut pretty short. I got him cut just a couple of months ago, but if he is going to start blowing out his puppy coat, I want to make it as easy as possible! I'll keep you posted.

BTW, the boys will be done with ball the end of the month, we should try to get together before summer is over!

[Denise, Winnie, and AngelAbby]

Anytime is good for me - just say when and we can figure out the specifics...

[Denise, Winnie, and AngelAbby]

I have Cowboy Magic stuff - I got it at a Tack store up here in StFrancis. The Cowby Magic shampoo and conditioner is nice - I have the detangler too, and it is greasy - but I just put some on my fingers and work it in the mat. It does pretty good that way. I also have Best Shot products which work nice too but had to order those on line because I couldn't find anyone who carries that locally.
My comb is a split metal comb - half the tines are close and the other half are farther apart. I might have gotten it at Walmart - I know that's where I got the rake (which I love by the way)
I'm working an Abby yet - when I'm done I will post a picture. She will be pretty short this time...

[Chris & Boys]

Let me know how short you went. I am going to take Fozzy in next week I think. I don't want it too short. But it grew so fast last time,I don't want it too long either! Maybe I can take her picture to the groomer

[Denise, Winnie, and AngelAbby]

BTW - Alayna saw the pic of Fozzy here on this page - he has changed a lot since we saw him last... she said "WOW, he looks like Abby" - and he does!! Looks like the exact same coat too.

[Chris & Boys]

I know!!! It is so funny, but when Fozzy first got cut it was weird to look at him, because he looked so different. but as his fur grew back, to me, he looked just like Abby did this spring. Yes, he is getting very curly just like her! And he used to be so shaggy! His body is a little darker than her though, but we will see when he blows out his puppy coat.......

[Sharon, Boo & Cricket]

Chris Christensen sells some wide tooth combs. I have their #002 “All Coarse” Buttercomb, which works well. They also sell a Buttercomb with even wider spaced teeth, it’s called the #004 “Poodle Comb” Buttercomb. (I haven’t tried the Poodle Comb though, or their staggered tooth comb.) I like their combs because the tips are rounded and polished so they're not scratchy on the skin.

To answer your earlier questions, the CC brushes won’t come apart, they’re well-made. And you CAN use a slicker brush on a very thick coat, you just need to do the “line brushing” technique to make sure you get down to the skin. (http://www.youtube.com/user/AnnandSully#play/uploads/12/szIij_zknNs)

Hope that helps! :)

[Sue, Murphy and Bella ()*o*()]

I could use some advise on comb attachments. I have a blue plastic Andis set that goes from 1/4" to 1 1/4" they are numbered 0, A,B,C,D,E,F. I find that they just push the hair down flat and I cant seem to get the hair cut. Even with brushing or combng in the opposite direction.. What else can I do and are there better combs that grab the hair? I have a #10 Blade that came with the clippers and don;t really understand the difference in blade #'s. maybe I need a blade for fine fleece like hair.
Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

[03pilqobzlvp7]

Duff has a dense fleecey coat also and I've found that we need to take a moment here and there while grooming to pull the comb off and blow out or brush out the hair that gets suck inside and possibly put some more oil on it. This helps ENORMOUSLY. However, we also have the problem of the hair getting pushed over when cutting shorter than 3/4". The shorter you go, the easier it is trim that fluff. If you don't want to go that short, you may have to invest in a more powerful set.

[Sue, Murphy and Bella ()*o*()]

Gosh, this is a pretty powerful clipper....and at >$100.00 I don't see me buying another one anytime soon. I will try taking the comb off and brushng the hair off, but there usually isn;t much hair cuz it's just laying down and not getiing cut off. I will keep at it and find the magic combination. thanks for your reply.

[03pilqobzlvp7]

hmm, if it's a descent clipper, it's probably just the combination of the length and that it is so soft (as opposed to coarse). You can always hold clumps at a time, but that method takes FOREVER.