Basic Tool Requirements (Medium to Long Coats)
Regardless of what double-coated dog (or cat) breed you own, there are some essential tools which must be owned. This article details the essential tools (and products) required to maintain the coat on your medium or long-coated pet.
1. Comb/s
2. Slicker Brush/es
3. Grooming Spray
1. Comb
Without question, our Regular Tooth Comb is one essential tool required for your toolbox and this far-surpasses anything else available on the market. These are what we use in the salon, and we can guarantee their quality - they will last a lifetime. (unless of course you let them get chewed)
We also recommend to have a Fine-Tooth Comb too. This is to be used on the fur which is shorter (such as legs, feet, around the face etc) and it can also be of great assistance when de-matting.
If you have a larger breed with a long coat (such as a Keeshond, Rough Collie, Samoyed, etc), we would strongly recommend adding a Spinning Tooth Rake too. This rake is sourced from the USA and we have found it to be an incredible help to get through those thicker coats. Even though the teeth are of a similar width to the Regular Tooth Comb, the teeth are much more blunt, than those of the Regular Tooth Comb, and for this reason, we actually recommend to have both combs.
If budget does not permit for the Spinning Tooth Rake, a cheaper alternative would be the Extra Wide Wooden Handle Comb. This is just as effective as the rake, but the handle is quite different and may not be suited to those with wrist issues.
2. Slicker Brush
We use and recommend two options here, and the deciding factor is really down to you as this can be quite a personal decision... We recommend to firstly review our article on slicker brushes to get an understanding of what they do, when they are used, and how to select the most appropriate one for use.
- Twin-flex slicker (available in two sizes). This is a "two in one" option which combines both a soft pad for de-shedding and a firm pad for basic de-matting.
- If you have a longer, or denser coat, we would recommend that you opt for a fixed-pad slicker brush as this will give you some extra efficiencies while grooming. If there is budget to purchase both a soft pad slicker and a firm pad slicker, this would be optimal, but you can easily get away with just the soft slicker brush.
3. Grooming Spray
Hands down, we recommend Plush Puppy OMG Grooming Spray. This is essential and to be used for each time you brush your dog to help in preventing breakage.
Set yourself a future reminder that once this bottle starts to get low, you can purchase a bottle of concentrate which is more cost effective, and a nice way of being kind to our planet ❤
If you have any feedback on this article, we would love to hear from you!
Please email feedback to: hello@spitzgroom.com.au