Grooming Tools for Your Pet

Grooming your pet can be a chore and a hassle. It's often worth the money and the trip to the groomer to just have them do it. These days with the economy the way it is, you may not have the option to go to the groomer. There are many different products out on the market today to help you with the task of grooming your pet. You really have to choose the tools you use depending on what type of coat you are dealing with. You have to know the different products for long and short coats and what will work on wet and or dry coats. There are different tools for shedding problems and different tools for tangles and mats, it's a matter of you figuring out what you really want to do in grooming your pet. I will give some examples of tools in this article that will help you decide which tools to use.

The first category of grooming tools I will go over will be the brushes. There are hundreds of different types of brushes on the market used for different applications. There are brushes that are for long coats, short coats, removing shedding hair, and those used to get rid of tangles and mats. The four best brushes I have found are the glove brush, the pin brush, the bristle brush and the slicker brush.

The glove brush is basically a glove with specially designed nubs to remove dirt, dust and loose hair off not only your pet but your furniture as well. These glove brushes are advertised to work on long and short coats but I have found that they work best on short coats. These glove brushes are especially nice because they are versatile, they are one size fits all and usually have Velcro strap to minimize slippage when working. The other great thing is that they work on the furniture just as well as your pet. This glove will remove any loose hair or dirt from any upholstered piece of furniture. The only downfall of these products is that you must use it when the coat is dry, you can't use it right after a bath because it creates a huge mess, however it is a great product and I would recommend it for keeping your pet clean and loose hair free.

The next type of brush is the pin brush (which is my favorite), it can be used in almost any application. The pin brush seems to add the most enjoyment from the pets I have groomed, they seem to really like the feeling and it seems to calm them down. The pin brush can be used on all coat types and in a wet or dry application. They are also great for removing mats and tangles. With the many different types of pin brushes out there you can most definitely find one that is comfortable for you to use as well. I have found that the pin brush is ideal for pets with curly or silky hair and for those with sensitive skin. In my experience the pin brush is the best type of brush and most versatile one on the market.

The next type of brush is the bristle brush, and this is a great tool to finish off a dogs coat after other brushes are used. I have never really found any use for a bristle brush because I have never been the one to make my dog look like a show dog after a bath or grooming. To me the bristle brush is a good way to sooth pet but I feel that it doesn't accomplish much more than that. A lot of people swear by them so I am by no means diminishing the bristle brush, I've just never had much use for one.

The last brush I'll mention is the slicker brush, this is what I like to call the "worker brush". What I mean by this is that the slicker brush really gets down and dirty removing mats and tangles in a pets' coat. It can be used for all coat types and works best when the coat is dry. To me this is the best brush in removing tangles and mats. I don't have a lot of experience with the slicker brush but what I have done makes me believe that it's the dogs least favorite brush. Of course when I use one it's usually for one purpose and one purpose only, and that is to remove unwanted mats and clumps of loose hair along with tangles.

Those are my top four brushes and usually the most popular types on the market today. The next type of products I am going to mention are those specifically designed to help prevent shedding and remove mats. The two products I have chosen to include are the mat removing tool and the shedding blades.

The mat removing tools are essential for long coated dogs for removing uncomfortable mats behind the ears, under the legs and behind the collar. My favorite is the undercoat and dematting rake which is essentially two tools in one. One side eliminates mats while the other side thins the under coat of double-coated breeds. The other is the matbreaker which breaks up mats in long haired dogs without shortening the coat of the dog. This is a great tool for dogs with beautiful long coats but issues under the first layer. These mat removing tools can be used normally for long haired breeds only and only when the coat is dry. This is an essential tool to keep your dogs coat looking and feeling healthy.

The next product is the shedding blade, this is a great product for those dogs that shed. This product will catch all that hair before it collects somewhere you don't want it to. The shedding blade works much better than brushes or combs because it has only one purpose and that is to collect the shedding hair. I have one of these products and it works great, I don't know what I would do without it. If your dog sheds, you definitely need to look into a shedding blade.

These are my products that I would recommend for a successful grooming experience at home. Try the different products out and pick which one works best for you and your pet. Really it depends on your pet and what they like, or will put up with, if you make grooming a positive experience for your dog you will find that it will be that much more enjoyable for you as well. The best way to make if enjoyable for both of you is to start with the right tools.