Talk Big Tuesday - The Furminator

Maybe I’m the odd man out but I don’t get the big deal about the furminator. I’ve used both the brand and the knock offs and honestly not over the moon about them, yet I see all these people treating it like it’s the best thing since the internet. I personally don’t like them and don’t think they’re the golden child of the grooming world.

Sometimes teeth on combs and brushes snap off, they get dropped, or maybe they get snagging on something. But on a lot of other tools you can still use them without fear of hurting the dog. Not so with the furminator, if one of these teeth break off that thing is useless, why? Because they are essentially a 30 blade with a handle, they are sharp and using them with broken teeth can and has cut dogs.

As I mentioned the furminator is basically a 30 blade (one of the shortest blades in grooming used for show type clipping (clean face/feet on poodles), on severely matted coats and under snap on combs) on a handle. It doesn’t just remove the undercoat it cuts the coat and can permanently damage it and the skin when used wrong, heck I’ve seen it used properly and it damage the coat.

I’ve had a few clients and heard about others that use it on their long coated dogs thinking that’s the only tool they need. Wrong, the furmintaor simply does not get through all the layers of the coat on some breeds and all you end up doing is cutting up the top coat and leaving the undercoat to mat, it just doesn’t do a thorough grooming job.

The price for this brush is OUTRAGEOUS for what it can\can’t do and quality.

I can do just as good, no actually a better job at deshedding with other tools like a slicker brush and greyhound comb than the furminator can only dream of. And not as a professional groomer but as an owner. As I said I’ve used both the furminator and knock off versions (which by the way no difference except price) as an owner before I ever became a groomer and didn’t like it, I found I could do better with other tools that were more cost effective and higher quality, later as a groomer I found it to be even more true. A slicker brush, greyhound comb and undercoat rake and high quality shampoo do the job far more effectively and efficiently, I also give a lot of credit to my high velocity dryer, this is a professional tool but anyone can buy one, I’ll never be without one ever.