All dogs need to be brushed. Whether you have a poodle with 2 inches of fur, or a jack russell with more attitude than fur. Long coated breeds need to be brushed to make sure they are not getting knotted, short coated breeds need to be brushed to ensure dead coat is being removed.

TOPICS COVERED

• Brushing Frequency

• How to brush
  - Long Coats
  -Short Coats
  - Cats

• What is matting & why is it so bad?
  - How to groom a matted pet
  - How to prevent matting

Brushing Frequency

One of the most common phrases I hear when I tell a client their pet is matted is “But I only brushed them yesterday!’. Yes, the only time you brushed them was yesterday.
Groomers are like dentists, we always know how often you’ve been brushing.
How often your pet will need brushing depends on hair type, hair length & the time of year.

Short coated cats & dogs can get away with a brush once a week, perhaps twice a week in Spring when they’re shedding their winter coat.

The longer your pets hair is, the more often you need to brush. Up to an inch of hair should be brushed 2-4 days. Over an inch of hair needs to be brushed every 1-2 days.
Sometimes extra brushing will be required.
- If your pet is partial to a swim, they need to be brushed after each session as swimming causes hair to tangle like crazy (ask any human with long hair what its like after taking a dip). Same goes if they get particularly muddy.
- Some breeds will require extra brushing in spring/early Summer as they shed their winter coat.
- Extra combing in Spring/Summer is also advisable in order to check for & remove grass seeds & burrs

Each pets brushing needs will vary so ask your groomer about how often your pet specifically will need to be brushed.

How to Brush

LONG COATED DOGS

The most common mistake I see in regards to brushing is technique. A lot of pet parents will use a brush to just go over the outer layer of hair to make it look nice. Meanwhile, knots & mats are hiding underneath closer to the skin & growing larger & larger by the day. Then, when they come to me they’re shocked to hear their pets matted because “they brush everyday”.
The best technique for brushing long coats is line brushing, as demonstrated in the video below

The second most common mistake I see is only brushing the easy areas, like the back & sides whilst neglecting the rest of the body.

Brushing your PET is like brushing your teeth; You’ve gotta brush what you wanna keep.

Below is a guide of the areas that need to be brushed most to least often. In addition to the below diagram, if you dog wears a collar, harness, halti or clothes (jumpers/jackets, etc), the areas under those items also become top priority. Anything that sits on top of the coat creates friction, friction causes knots, knots turn into mats. I often have dogs come in that are matted in the exact shape/pattern as their collar or harness.

SHORT COATED DOGS

Don’t think you get out of brushing just because your dog has a short coat. Short coated breeds are often high shedding. Sometimes, especially around spring/summer when they lose their winter coat, dead coat will get stuck & is not able to fall out on its own. This is what’s called a compacted coat. Compacted coat can affect the way your dog can regulate its temperature amongst other downsides.
See the video below on the best way to brush & deshed your short coated breed.

CATS

Although cats are known for self-grooming, unfortunately those raspy tongues do not take the place of a brush. That means it’s up to us humans to look after our cats brushing needs.
See the below video for cat brushing tips & tricks.

What Is Matting & Why is it so Bad?

Matting is when a coat becomes tangled beyond a few knots. The hair knits together so tightly it damages the hair & is a long & painful process to untangle. It’s comparable to a dreadlock but in dogs & cats it usually sits flatter against the skin. If you’ve ever seen a video of someone detangling dreadlocks; now imagine trying to do that over your whole body.

So why is matting so bad?
1.    Matting pulls on the skin every time your dog/cat moves. Imagine wearing a comfy woolen jumper, that’s what a healthy coat feels like. Now imagine that jumper has been sewn to your skin at a hundred different places. Every time you move, your skin stretches and pulls at the stitches causing you pain. That’s what a matted coat feels like.
2.    Matted coats do not dry like healthy coats. They stay wet for much longer, trapping moisture against the skin for long periods of time. This creates the perfect breeding ground for bacterial and fungal infections to grow on the skin, often going unnoticed because the matting hides the sight and smell.
3.    Matted coats can conceal injuries to the skin and make it harder to find lumps, bumps, injuries, grass seeds/burrs or ticks. Matting also restricts blood flow and air flow to the skin making any minor injuries heal a lot slower if at all.

Matting is more risky to remove than your average haircut. As the matting pulls on the skin, the risk of nicking the skin is higher so extra time & care has to be taken when removing matting. This is why most groomers charge a matting fee to compensate for the extra time & care.

As said above, matting restricts blood flow which can cause issues particularly with matted ears. The blood vessels in the ear are so delicate, often when the matting is removed, blood rushes back into the vessels, overwhelming them causing an aural haematoma. This is when the blood vessels burst causing blood to pool under the skin & swell. It is also quite itchy for the dog when the blood returns which makes them shake their head or scratch at their ears . Head shaking & scratching increases the risk of a haematoma & can even cause the ear to burst & bleed at the tips. Aural haematomas do require vet attention and, if severe enough, surgery so prevention is absolutely necessary,

HOW TO GROOM A MATTED DOG

When it comes to matting, the majority of groomers (including us) go by the motto is ‘Humanity over Vanity”. Brushing out matting is a long, painful process, one your dog cannot consent to. Even if they could, they probably wouldn’t. Therefore the only humane option is to remove any matted areas.
Matting generally sits close to the skin & must be entirely removed which means clipping under the matting. This results in a short haircut on a matted dog. Depending on where the matting is & how extensive it is, some areas may be able to be kept a little longer but must be judged on a case by case basis.

HOW TO PREVENT MATTING

Luckily, it’s easy to prevent matting & comes down to three words;

Brush. Your. Pet.

Additionally, keep your pet on a regular grooming schedule as advised by your groomer and choosing a haircut that you are realistically going to be able to maintain will help.
Everyone loves a long shaggy dog, but if you cannot commit to half an hour of brushing everyday & fortnightly grooming appointments, then that style is not best suited to you & your dog.
Your groomer is more than happy to discuss the best hairstyle for you & your pets needs.