Understanding how to brush a dog correctly is key to making it an enjoyable, stress-free experience that supports your four-legged friend’s coat and skin health

Katie talks us through –

• How to set up your grooming area 00:17
• Brushing a poodle-type coat to avoid knots and matts, including the best brushes to use – 1:46
• How often you should brush your dog – 6:57
• Brushing a short coat, including the best tools you can use – 7:55
• Brushing a high shedding wiry coat – 12:30

Why you need to brush a dog

Knowing how to brush a dog is an essential part of dogs’ grooming and wellbeing. As well as helping to keep their coat looking great, it releases dead hair, prevents excess shedding, reduces matting and distributes dogs’ natural oils found in their skin for optimum health.

How often to brush a dog

You should brush every dog at least a few times each week, helping to keep their coats and skin as healthy as possible. You can use this as part of a regular grooming technique, taking time to bond with your four-legged friend while checking for things like grass seeds.

You may find that as the weather warms up, they shed more, so you can increase the frequency of dog brushing to remove loose hair. Essentially, you should base it on your dog’s individual requirements, but as a guide, a few times a week is a great starting point.

Before you start brushing your dog

Ensure you have set up correctly

Before you begin learning how to brush a dog, you should set up an environment to keep your dog relaxed and calm while you brush them. Katie reveals how she does this in the video and you can learn more about how to keep your dog calm in this guide.

You should also consider the surface you will brush your dog on, making sure it is at the right height and it is not too slippery. Consider using a rubber car mat to stop dogs slipping around during grooming. Having a backdrop or wall can also help to keep dogs in one place while grooming.

Using the correct dog brushing equipment

In the video, Katie explains the different equipment that you need to use for different types of dog coats. This can include:

• Flexible slicker brush
• Body brushes
• Banded comb, where a rubber band is wrapped through the teeth of a medium spaced comb
• Shine and polish spray for dogs
• Thinning scissors

Remember to make sure all equipment is dog-safe, for example, making sure the teeth on the comb have rounded edges and are not sharp.

How to brush a dog

We would recommend watching the video for a full demonstration on how to brush a dog, as it showcases different types of dog fur, explaining how to brush a shedding dog, how to brush out a matted dog and how to brush a dog with a double coat, as well as offering many other top tips to make it a positive experience.

We will now look at coat maintenance for different types of dog coats.

How to brush a long haired dog

For long haired dogs, begin at the feet, using a flexible slicker brush to get through any tangles and then using a wide toothed comb to go over it to check it is not knotted or matted, before moving onto the next inch or so.

Continue up the leg, then across the body and the head. For any tangled areas of hair that cannot be brushed out, try using thinning scissors to cut out matted areas, without leaving a noticeable chunk of fur missing.

How to brush a dog with a short coat

For a dog with a short coat, begin by combing over the areas they are likely to shed, using a banded comb. In the video, Katie uses a shine and polish spray, putting this on a body brush and going over the dog’s body, all the way down to their feet.

This removes any loose hairs and dandruff. For the head, do the same again, but more gently with a smaller brush.

How to brush a wiry coat dog

You can hand strip or clip wiry dogs. When grooming dogs with a wiry coat, use a banded comb and be aware that a damp coat will make it easy to remove a lot more fur. Remember, only dead hairs will come out.

If you’re wondering how to brush a dog with a double coat, you should use a comb in this way, removing the undercoat to prevent dogs with wiry coats from overheating in summer.

Go over the areas where your dog has a layer of fat and then reduce the pressure for any bony areas, going over them more gently, for example, the elbows. You can then give them a little shine spray and comb through again, before finishing brushing with a polishing brush.

How to support optimum coat health in dogs

Making sure you include brushing your dog as a regular part of their grooming routine is a great way to support their coat and skin health. Katie also notes in the video that it is much easier to get your dog looking spectacular when they are raw fed, supporting coat health.

Learn more about the benefits of a raw dog food diet