grooming my westie

[comfort80]

does anyone have any suggestions as to how i can keep my westie from matting, other than to shave him clean? it seems the mroe i brush, the more he mats. he has a really thick coat, the top layer brushes nice, but the under coat mats right close to the skin. the only way i can get the mats out is to brush in chunks from the bottom up THE WRONG WAY, he absolutely positively hates this. hes good for one side, but the minute i flip around to do the other side, i lose him...and there is no way this dog will let me get the mats out of his belly, butt or his back legs. he goes to the groomer tomorrow, she's going to give him a puppy cut to get him used to the clippers, and that will help for now, but two weeks from now it will be the same deal, and he's only supposed to go in every six weeks. the last time he was in was on may 20th and wasnt supposed to be back til june 1st, but theres no possible way we could have gone that long. how did i manage to get the westie with the thickest hair i've ever seen, and it grows like i feed him miracle grow!

[Moo]

I always brush Kirby from back to front. Actually, I always scratch a dog from back to front, they seem to like it better that way. And it works better for dead hair removal. I don't even use a brush on his though, I use a metal comb to do all the grooming... and a small pair of scissors.

But sorry, I have no basis of experience to help you with here. Kirby has no undercoat.

[hisfirst]

Joy has an undercoat, and it is a real pain. She matts badly too, and I try to brush her daily, and usually when she has finished playing and is collapsed on the couch with me. Then I sneak the comb out and brush like crazy. I bought some matt spray at petsmart on Tuesday, but haven't gotten a chance to see how it works yet.

[comfort80]

matt spray, hmmmm... i'm going to petsmart tonight..

[BabyElephant]

hubby's auntie has a Westie and she just brushes him every day without fail and he never seems to get mats. It's probably a case of him getting used to being groomed as well. A quick brush every day will make all the difference.

[Blaze]

I agree with the others. Brush him at least once a day and get him used to it. Luckily for me Lilly loves getting brushed, bathed, groomed etc. I think it's because from the day I got her I brushed her several times a day and made it into an enjoyable game for her. She know rolls over so that I can brush her stomach and then she comes and sits on the chair so I can brush the rest of her body. What kind of brush do you use? I find slicker brushes work great on Lil along with metal comb and soft brush for when her coat is short. Detanglers also work well to romove knots without hurting the dog and when you bath him try and get him dry ASAP. I brush Lilly's fur while using the hair dryer to get her extra soft. I also use a conditioner and take her to the groomers ever 5-7 weeks. I'd also keep his coat at a good length (not too long). Ask your groomer for other tips I'm sure she'll know some good ones!

[Blaze]

Also I find Bio-Groom Silk Creme works well on Lilly's coat.