Knowing the type of fur coat that your dog has is important before attempting to do any grooming activities yourself. Below I have listed the most popular types of fur coats.
#1 Smooth Coat
This coat requires the least amount of grooming, but we need to ensure that the dog’s fur coat doesn’t get neglected. The hair lies close to the body and needs to be bathed and brushed regularly. When you brush the dog, use a bristle brush first against the lay of the hair.
#2 Double Coat
This coat is known to have a soft undercoat that provides insulation and a tougher top coat that repels water and shields from dirt. Because of this coat, they need a little bit more grooming than dogs with other types of fur. An example of a dog with this type of coat is a Newfoundland dog.
Some suggestions would be to first, use a slicker or pin brush when starting with the undercoat then brush outward from the skin, and then brush with the lay of the fur on the top coat.
#3 Wire Coat
This coat is popular with a number of terriers, as well as Irish Wolfhounds, have wiry coats that are susceptible to tangles. Wire coats, also known as broken coats, need both a stripping comb and a slicker brush when grooming. A stripping comb to thin the fur by running it lightly along the dog’s back, using a detangler to get out mats, if necessary. Follow up the thinning by brushing the fur out from the skin with the slicker brush. Consider bringing a wiry-coat dog in for professional grooming, as it’s not an easy task to master.
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