No laughing matter!

 " But I brushed her last night, there's no way she was matted!"

A sentence I can guarantee every dog groomer has heard at least once in their career, and let me tell you they are sick of hearing it. But the fact of the matter is Karen, even if you did brush her last night, mats don't happen over night. 

So what is matting?

Matting occurs when dead hair knots and tangles around itself and the live hair resulting in large tightly wound clumps of fur, if not brushed out regularly and correctly it can become very painful for the dog. When the fur is matted the air can't get down to the dogs skin properly which can result in bacterial growth causing infections, skin allergies etc.  In some severe cases its can result in the loss of circulation to the area of the body that is matted, ears in particular can be affected badly if they become matted, for example a dog with particularly matted ears goes to the groomers, once the groomer releases the ears of the mats the blood can come rushing back causing hematomas, causing the ear to balloon up and fill with blood ( its not a pretty sight). Furthermore if you have a dog who's fur requires daily brushing and regularly scheduled visits to the groomers, its actually considered a welfare issue and neglect if you allow your dog to get severely matted. 

How to correctly brush your dog:

You'll need a slicker brush and a fine tooth comb. Start in sections, example a back leg. with the slicker brush right down to the skin but be careful of not brushing the same spot for too long you could hurt your dogs skin or give him brush burn, then go in with your comb, if you can't get the comb through the fur easily go back in with the slicker. repeat this all over your dog if not everyday then at least every second day. if this seems like too much work then maybe a single coated dog might be more suited to you.

* Disclaimer* Your dog should be on a regular grooming schedule at least every six weeks as well as your daily brushing.

Some dogs that are susceptible to matting if their coats aren't properly maintained are:

• Poodles
• shih Tzu
• Old English sheepdogs   
• Bichon Frise
• Poodle mixes ( golden doodle, cockapoo, cavapoo etc)

What to do / not do if your dog is matted.

Do: 

• Get your dog booked in with a groomer asap.
• keep your dog on a regular grooming schedule ( every 6 weeksis ideal)
• brush your dog DAILY, yes daily. 
• introduce your dog to the grooming process, as early as possible, groomers will accept all puppies once they've had their 12 week shots. 

Don't:

• leave getting your dog to a groomers to the last minute, most groomers are booked up 3-4 weeks in advance (sometimes longer) meaning your dg who already has a months worth of matting will have to endure another month before getting seen by a groomer.
• wash your dog if he is already matted, washing a matted dog will only make the matts tighten even more causing your dog even more discomfort.

• Be surprised if the groomer charges you a matting fee for grooming your matted dog, grooming a dog that is severely matted takes a lot of time and patience, we need to be extra careful as there is a higher risk of nicking the dogs skin with the clippers if he is matted, as said before its also very painful for the dog so we are trying to be extra gentle, giving the dog regular breaks so as not to stress him too much.
• complain about the price if grooming in general.
• try and cut the matts out yourself, that's just asking for trouble.
• complain that the groomer "skinned" your dog. 

A matted dog is a very uncomfortable dog, a groomed dog is a happy dog. Don't be that owner and please get your dog groomed (regularly)!