That moment I realized I was trimming dog mats all wrong for 7 years

Had a Golden Retriever come in last week with nasty matting behind the ears, and I went at it with my usual dematting rake like always. But the owner actually watched me this time and said 'you know you're supposed to work from the outside in, right?' I felt like an idiot because I've been ripping through mats from the base all this time, making it way harder on me and the dogs. Has anyone else had a client teach you something basic you should've known way sooner?

3 comments

3 Comments

faith_shah8827d agoOG Member

Oh man, @samflores just exposed all of us today.

samflores27d ago

My old groomer buddy showed me the same thing about three years in. I had this Bernedoodle named Charlie who would come in every 8 weeks with mats so tight I'd just go straight for the base with my clippers. Wound up nicking him once and felt terrible. My buddy watched me one day and was like 'dude, start at the tips, break it up with a comb first, then go deeper.' Now I use a slicker brush to lift the mat away from the skin before even picking up my shears. It takes a little longer but the dogs relax way more and I haven't had a single cut since.

karenb9726d ago

Learned that lesson the hard way myself, never ever skip breaking up mats first it makes all the difference.