When’s the last time you groomed your dog?
If it’s been a while, your dog’s coat may have developed tangled and matted areas. This can create lots of problems for pet owners. As well as looking unsightly, it can lead to skin irritation and infection, and is difficult to deal with.
However, to remove matted dog hair, you don’t have to have your dog groomed professionally.
In this post, we’ll tell you how to deal with it yourself.
Fix Matted Dog Hair With These 6 Easy Tips
Here’s how to turn your dog’s coat from a matted mess to something sleek and shiny.
1. Have The Right Tools
Before you get started, you’ll need to arm yourself with the right tools first.
This means making a trip to your local pet store and buying yourself some equipment. You’ll need more than just a normal bristle brush and shampoo to get the job done.
You’ll also need a slicker brush. These rectangular brushes remove dead hair, mats and tangles easily. For more difficult areas, you can use a grooming comb to untangle especially matted fur.
Some areas won’t be possible to brush or comb out. For these, you should contact a professional groomer to assist as using scissors can be dangerous and can lead to injuries.
Of course, you’ll also need to purchase some detangling shampoo for dogs. This will make the hair much easier to work with.
2. Located Matted Areas
To get started, brush your dog’s coat, feeling for areas that are matted or tangled.
These can often be found under the ears, at the back of the legs, under the belly and below the neck. Once you’ve identified the problem areas, you can get to work.
3. Apply Detangling Shampoo
Grab your detangling shampoo and apply it to the matted areas.
You can do this by gently massaging, taking care not to catch or pull any hair. This way, you can keep your dog calm and comfortable. Let the shampoo sit for a few minutes so that it can work into the fur.
4. Use Your Fingers
Before using any brushes, first attempt to detangle matted areas by hand.
Use your fingers to slowly and gently ease the hair apart, tackling small sections at a time. This will make it easier for you when you start using your brushes.
5. Start Brushing
Use your grooming comb and slicker brush to try and remove as much matted hair as possible, running it through the problem areas several times.
Some areas may start to come apart immediately, while others may require long periods of repeated brushing. Be patient and stick at it.
6. Have A Professional Groomer Cut Out The Worst Areas
When fur is particularly matted, there’s nothing you can do to save it. There may be some areas that you just can’t detangle.
In these situations, a professional pet groomer, like those at Lucky Dawg, is the best option. We can assist in professionally removing matted hair as trying to cut it out yourself with scissors can be dangerous and result in possible cuts and injuries.
Groom Your Dog The Right Way
Every dog is different, and the way you should carry out your grooming regime will depend on your pet’s personality, as well as their breed and any health problems they may have.
Get it right, and you can remove matted dog hair quickly and easily, and keep your dog’s coat in great condition.
For more information, see our post on grooming tips for different coat types.
If you are at a point you want to leave it to the professionals, contact us today for either our in-house grooming services or our mobile grooming option!