Grooming at home is less about skill than about routine. Ten minutes twice a week beats an hour once a month, and your pet will fight you far less. Four tools cover most of it.
1. The slicker brush
Fine bent wires that lift loose undercoat out of a long or double coat. Work in small sections, brush in the direction the hair grows, and keep the pressure light. If the skin goes pink you are pressing too hard. This is the tool that stops mats forming in the first place.
2. The comb
The comb finds what the brush misses. Run it through after brushing, especially behind the ears, under the collar, in the armpits and along the trousers at the back legs. If the comb snags, there is a mat starting. Hold the hair at the base with your other hand and tease it apart with the comb tips rather than pulling from the end, which hurts and teaches your pet to hide when the brush comes out.
3. The hair remover
This one is for you rather than the pet. A roller lifts hair off clothes and car seats in seconds, and a self cleaning brush handles the sofa. Keep one by the door and one in the car, and the fur stops being an argument.
4. Nail clippers or a grinder
Nails are long when you hear them clicking on a hard floor. Clip a small amount at a time, staying clear of the pink quick inside the nail, which is easier to see on pale nails and invisible on dark ones. When in doubt take less. A grinder takes the edge off slowly and suits dogs that flinch at the snap of a clipper.
Make it boring
Groom after a walk, when energy is low. Start with the areas your pet likes being touched and finish with the tricky ones. Stop before they ask you to. A short session that ends well is worth more than a thorough one that ends badly, because the next session starts from what they remember.
When to call a professional
Tight mats against the skin, matted areas around the back end, or any sign of sore skin belong with a groomer or a vet. Cutting a mat out with scissors is how most home grooming injuries happen, since skin lifts into the mat and you cannot see where one ends and the other begins.
The tools above live in Pets Grooming, and the rollers and hair removers sit in Pets Rollers.