[Warning, this is far from my most interesting post.]
There's no question that the Furminator is amazing at removing large quantities of dog hair. The problem is that the Furminator is a row of hard, sharp metal teeth that is pretty harsh for most dogs.
Can we hope to achieve anywhere near the Furminator's fur-removing capacity with the far gentler, dog-friendlier Zoom Groom? To find out, I enlisted Lamar, whose thick white undercoat blankets my house in fluff every few days if I don't stay on top of things. Lamar also dislikes our Furminator sessions with a passion.
On Lamar's right side, I brushed with the Furminator for 2 minutes. On Lamar's left side; I used the Zoom Groom for exactly 2 minutes.
The results? Clearly, the Furminator is superior in fur-removal power.
[Good God, did she really just post a picture of two piles of dog hair?]
At the same time, however, Lamar reported that the Zoom Groom was a far more pleasurable grooming experience than having his sensitive skin raked over by the unforgiving Furminator.
What's YOUR favorite fur-removal device?
We furminate, but I thought the zoom groom was just for short haired doggies? Finn went from HATING the furminator to now just dealing with it. She lays down and I supple her with treats while I brush.
ReplyDeleteI love the Zoom Groom - it's something that I recommend to obedience class students all the time. I grew up horseback riding, and everyone with a horse knows how effective a curry comb is - a Zoom Groom is just a curry comb for dogs! If you have a very sensitive dog, they make a version with very soft, wiggly teeth that also works well (I know they sell them as Grooma Groomers for horses, I presume there is a similar version just for pups.) I tend to use the Zoom Groom first, then follow with a few sweeps of the Furminator or a regular comb to pick up the loosened hair. The big benefit of the Zoom Groom over the Furminator, to me, is that when used properly (in a circular motion, like gentle polishing) the ZG promotes healthier skin and a shinier coat. The rubbing/massaging action increases circulation and helps to spread the dog's natural skin oils into the fur, resulting in a shinier, softer coat that is more dirt/water repellent as well! (Same is true for horses and curry combs - that's why they say that good food and elbow grease = shiny pony!)
ReplyDeleteTruthfully the best grooming tool is usually my hand. I will take them outside and just pet them, sometimes I can see where the tuffs of fur are looking to come out (usually by the butt) and then I just tug them.
ReplyDeleteOh and you made me LOL with the "did she really just post a picture of two piles of dog fur."
at least you didn't post pics of two piles of dog poop, right? :)
ReplyDeleteWe use the Furminator, which works wonders for Hurley. Not as necessary to use it on Maggie & Sadie, who don't have much in the way of a thick undercoat. I use bristle brushes, regular people combs, undercoat rakes and pin brushes. A regular old comb works best on Sadie, undercoat rake with Maggie & Furminator with Hurley. And they usually all get finished off with the bristle brush to promote shiny coats. And Sadie loves the massaging action of the pin brush. My 3 adore being groomed so I usually have 3 dogs jockeying for my attention once I break the tools out.
We furminate when we need a lot done but zoom groom when we're in a hurry. We LOVE the zoom groom!!
ReplyDeleteAROOOOOOF!
Boondocks & The Love Shack Pack
we kind of moved on to the shedding blade, which despite its name is less harsh than the furminator (in our opinion) though all our dogs seem to thoroughly enjoy the rubber curry (aka zoom groom)
ReplyDeletewe might have to try that soft brush
ReplyDeleteBenny & Lily
love the zoom groom and shedding blade - both remnants of my horse days.
ReplyDeleteGosh you could make a stuffie with all that fur! ;) Really like that Zoom Groom. Now I not only get brushed butt massaged at the same time too! :D
ReplyDeleteWaggin at ya,
Roo
I got a Furminator free when I adopted Boo. He is a Lab/Catahoula Leopard mix and so is shedding a lot. So far no matter how many times I use the Furminator on him (per use) he still sheds. I wonder if a million times using it (per use) would do the job! ;)
ReplyDelete