There is nothing nicer than a well-groomed Golden Retriever with a fabulously glistening coat while outdoors having a walk. To truly appreciate a Golden Retriever coat, it’s necessary to understand a Golden’s coat, and how best to take care of it. This includes choosing the 5 best brushes for your Golden Retriever.
The Golden Retriever was bred to swim and retrieve, and has a thick, water -resistant coat. That said, finding the 5 best grooming brushes for your Golden Retriever is an important part of this wonderful breeds daily maintenance.
To keep your Golden Retriever looking his best, you’re going to need to take care of a super soft undercoat that is soft and fluffy, and to also maintain his top coat that is water repellent and oily.
If you are not interested in the tips, and considerations for brushing a golden retriever, feel free to skip ahead to the product reviews.
How to Choose the Right Dog Brush for Your Golden Retriever?
The Golden Retriever, without a doubt, has one of the best temperaments among dog breeds. Easy-to-train, loyal, gentle, and smart, the Golden makes for a terrific working dog and companion. That said, your Golden’s coat is going to need attention. Purchasing the 5 Best high-quality grooming brushes for your Golden Retriever allows for grooming to be more effective and safe.
Many Golden parents mistakenly believe that using one grooming brush will suffice, and they’ll do a great job grooming, when in reality, to properly groom your Golden, you’re going to need an assortment of grooming brushes to give you the best results.
Choosing the 5 best grooming brushes for your Golden means that you will have to consider the following:
- Coat condition depending on whether it’s shedding season, and whether your Golden’s fur is more prone to matting during this time.
- Skin Conditions in Golden’s need to be taken seriously. Skin allergies, lumps, bumps, warts, fatty lipomas, and even hot spots and rashes need a veterinary consult. Be sure to take your Golden’s skin condition in to consideration prior to using certain grooming brushes. Some brushes may be too harsh on their gentle skin.
How to Groom a Golden Retriever Puppy?
Unless your Golden pup is used to being groomed, and is comfortable with the entire process, it’s best to use a collar and leash throughout the first few grooming sessions. Your Golden puppy may be hyperactive or squirmy, and may not initially enjoy being groomed. He or she may have reactive spots when touched, and it’s up to you to encourage grooming by rewarding with high-quality treats and lots of praise.
Brushing Your Golden Retriever
With this breed, it’s important to keep your Golden’s coat in tip top condition 24/7. Brushing is the most important part of coat care, with undercoat brushing just as important as top coat brushing. Undercoats in Golden’s are prone to mats and tangles if not brushed every day, with the neck area (ruff), the ears, arm areas, and backs of the legs being prone to matting if not regularly brushed.
Playing around with other dogs may also contribute to mats behind the ears from play biting. Consider inspecting and grooming your Golden pup after playtime with other dogs. Golden’s are known for shedding. That’s said, maintaining a regular grooming schedule will help reduce shedding to some extent.
Grooming Brushes Are Important for Your Golden
When purchasing grooming brushes for your Golden, it’s best to opt for high-quality grooming brushes. The two main brushes that will be the most important for your Golden will be the pin brush and the slicker brush.
Pin Brush
The pin brush is a grooming brush with rounded ends that is cast in metal instead of plastic for more durability. Plastic caps tend to fall off after being in use for a while. This leaves sharp metal edges that could hurt your Golden’s skin. Plastic edges also tend to catch the coat, and may also hurt your Golden. That said, opt for a higher- quality pin brush with rounded metal edges for a more comfortable and easier grooming experience for your Golden Retriever.
Pin brushes are used to remove debris and dead hair, so it’s best to keep this brush super clean. After using the pin brush, you’ll move on to the slicker brush, but this grooming brush needs to be gently used since it can scratch and damage your Golden’s skin. Using short and gentle strokes is an effective grooming technique with the slicker brush.
Slicker Brush
This is a grooming tool made from thin wire, mounted on to a flexible backing, that is soft. These brushes are great for shedding, and may be square or rectangular in shape. Brush your own arm first to check for pressure levels. In this way you can be sure not to hurt your Golden while brushing him with the slicker brush.
Using an oil-based conditioner spray also helps for an easier grooming experience. Because the Golden has a water-resistant double coat, it may be easier to first comb through any mats with a grooming comb. Before tackling any tangles, use a detangle or conditioner spray-in that might make it easier to work through. When the mat has been worked through with the steel comb, you can once again gently brush through with the slicker brush. This is definitely worth the time and patience, instead of using scissors to cut out the tangles, resulting in a break in the coat. Slicker brushes also are used for removing dead fur, and giving your Golden a great show dog appearance.
Always avoid using the slicker brush on your Golden’s head, ears, and face, and any body part that has a skin issue or sensitivity.
Rotating Pin Comb
This is a great tool for removing mats and tangles from your Golden’s coat. This comb has stainless steel pins that are set in a heavy-duty metal handle for ergonomic comfort. The rotating pin comb makes extra-detangling easy- to do during those difficult times.
Undercoat Rake
This grooming tool looks like a rake, and has rows of metal teeth that are firm. These are good to use on the undercoat to remove old fur and debris. The rake needs to reach deep in to the undercoat for maximum grooming efficacy. Choose a rake that is a suitable length for your Golden’s coat.
Deshedding Grooming Tools
These help by removing tufts of undercoat quickly, and are great for use during shedding.
Rubber Grooming Brushes
Rubber grooming mitts for Golden Retrievers help with massage and circulation to promote skin health. They may also help to remove loose hair. That said, used together with the right grooming tools, rubber grooming mitts are perfect to keep skin healthy.
Reviews: 5 Best Brushes for Your Golden Retriever
1.BEST SLICKER BRUSH
This easy to use high quality dog brush is fantastic for Golden Retrievers. It’s design and ease of use earned it our top pick for slicker brushes. We especially love the push button easy clean feature.
2. BEST BRISTLE BRUSH
Gently removes loose hair, and eliminates tangles, dander, dust, and trapped dirt from your Golden’s topcoat. Comes with Bonus 3 in 1 de-shedder, detangler and regular combing tool.
3. Best Bristle and Pin Brush Combo
This is a good option as a two-in one for pet parents that travel to shows or go away for the weekend, and don’t want to take too many grooming brushes with them.
4. THE BEST UNDERCOAT RAKE
Rotating metal teeth remove loose hair from undercoat and help prevent tangles and mats in dense Golden Retriever fur.
5. BEST DESHEDDING TOOL
Rotating metal teeth remove loose hair from undercoat and help prevent tangles and mats in dense Golden Retriever fur.
Our Final Thoughts
Choosing high-quality grooming brushes for your Golden Retrievers allows for safe and effective grooming. Always use care when grooming your Golden, and brush in the direction that the hair grows. Asking a professional groomer for some grooming tips or your veterinarian can also help you in initially until you get the hang of grooming, and get used to all the grooming brushes. There are also plenty of grooming videos on the web, that will show you the most effective way to groom your Golden Retriever after purchasing the five best brushes for Goldens.
