Best brush for dogs?

[DominoRules]

What are everyone’s recommendations for brushes/de shedding combs for dogs?

My Springer was always pretty sleek until he turned 2 and has now developed a kind of fuzzy fluffy top coat - he looks a bit like a scruffy guinea pig some days!

I'm not bothered what he looks like but with the weather warming up I’d like to keep him as cool as possible. He does go to a groomer occasionally but she doesn’t really take much off his body…..

For a springer, I like the Mars coat king to defuzz and and a slicker brush to comb through (but one with rounded ends, not the sharp metal type).

I use a furminator de-shedder on two of mine and the grooming rake (but they are not cheap). I have a show cocker - full show coat (i.e. not clipped) and a golden retriever. My third barely needs grooming.

But TBH if you're paying for grooming then the groomer should be clipping the dog to your specification - not as much as she wants to take off the dog!

I've tried lots of different ones and this is the best.

www.bullybillows.com/collections/deshedding-combs

I do also use a small stripping comb for one dog as he has a cotton wool undercoat and I use this first to pull out the cotton wool!

Masterclip | Stripping Knife from Amazon.

Great suggestions thanks, will have a good look

@Devilshands I know I should be firmer with the groomer but she’s so lovely! He can be quite an anxious dog with new people and she’s worked so hard to build a bond with him and now he loves going so I’m never been too particular

Has your dog been neutered? Spaniels are particularly prone to post-neutering fuzz so could be a contributing factor to the fluffy topcoat.

If he's still entire you could see if you're able to handstrip him by gently pulling a very, very small section of hair with your fingers, if it comes away with little resistance then he's likely strippable which would remove the fluff but still leave the silky jacket underneath. It's bloody labour intensive though and your fingers, wrists and elbows won't thank you for it.
Your groomer may offer the service, though alot of us no longer do (plus its expensive as it's so time consuming)

In terms of brushing, a good slicker, a comb and a zoom groom/ rubber brush should all help. I'd advise against a furminator unless you really know what you're doing with it, I've seen so many beautiful coats ruined by those godforsaken brushes.

@PowderPuffGirl he was neutered well over a year ago and it’s only been the last 3/4 months his coat has changed really. It does come away quite easily if I pull a bit but I’m not sure I have the patience for hand stripping 😂

@DominoRules the coat change can take anywhere from a few weeks to a couple of years to show up. It's due to the change in their hormones afterwards so depending on how long it takes for them to settle into their new levels the change can be quicker or slower. It's probable that this is what's caused his coat to fluff up.

Usually the easiest and quickest solution with that kind of coat is to clip it fairly short to remove the crazy hair on top. Especially if you don't fancy buggering your entire arm stripping it out bit by bit😅

If you do decide you'd like him shorter now is the perfect time to mention it to your groomer if you're worried about offending her (though I'm sure she'd be fine if you just said you fancied a change) - just say he's getting hot and you'd like him nice and short for the warmer weather😊

During lock down when people were doing more grooming etc at home, I wrote this... hope it helps you :-) I listed everything first by brush type and then by coat type.

https://www.dfordog.co.uk/blog/the-best-dog-brush-for-your-dog.html

That's what I use on my springer and my Labrador.

We've got the furminator for our Lab and it's amazing and gross how much hair comes out!