Know Where Mats and Tangles Form First
Mats form fastest in the high-friction, moisture-prone spots most owners overlook: behind the ears, in the armpits, around the collar, on the belly and inner thighs, and between the toes. Anywhere the coat rubs against itself or against a harness, loose hair gets trapped and slowly felts into a solid pad.
Run your fingertips through the coat before you reach for a brush. A tangle moves and loosens when you tease it; a true mat sits tight against the skin and won’t slide. Knowing the difference matters, because they need different handling. Regular checks are part of a good routine, and our grooming checklist covers the order to work through.
Always assess the whole dog first. If you find several tight mats close to the skin, it’s better to plan the session than to start hacking at the first one you find.
Apply Detangler and Work From the Edge Inward
Mist the mat and the fur around it with a detangling spray or a light conditioning product, and let it soak in for a minute. A dry mat is brittle and drags painfully at the skin; a slightly damp, conditioned mat gives you room to work loose fibres apart.
Hold the base of the mat firmly between two fingers, close to the skin, so every stroke pulls against your hand rather than the dog’s skin. Then pick at the outer edge of the mat with a comb or your fingers, teasing a few hairs free at a time. Never drive a brush straight into the centre of a mat and yank outward. Work inward slowly, and stop the moment the dog tenses or flinches.
Patience wins here. A stubborn tangle that would take one painful rip can usually be feathered apart over a few gentle minutes instead.
Split Larger Mats Before You Comb
For a mat too dense to tease apart in one piece, split it into smaller sections first. Slide the tips of blunt-nosed scissors into the mat, parallel to the direction of hair growth, and make small vertical cuts to divide it into strips. Cutting with the grain, not across it, keeps you from taking a chunk out of the coat.
A dematting tool with curved blades does the same job on the felted core: hold the skin taut and draw the tool through in short, shallow strokes, splitting the pad rather than sawing at it. Once the mat is in ribbons, each strip combs out far more easily.
Keep one finger flat against the skin as a guard whenever a blade is near it. If a mat is welded flat to the skin with no gap to work into, stop and treat it as a job for clippers or a groomer instead.
Never clip or cut blindly over a mat. Skin often tents up into the base of a tight mat, and scissors or clipper blades can slice it before you realise the skin is there.
Choose Between a Slicker and a Dematting Tool
Once a mat is loosened or split, finish with a slicker brush followed by a comb. The slicker lifts and separates the freed hairs, while a fine-toothed metal comb is your honesty check: if the comb glides from root to tip with no snag, that patch is genuinely clear. If it catches, there’s still a knot to work.
A quality slicker earns its place for everyday tangle prevention and finishing; the Hertzko self-cleaning slicker makes clearing the collected fur simple between strokes. Save the dematting tool for the dense felted cores only, because its blades thin the coat if you overuse them on ordinary tangles.
Brush in the direction the coat lies, in small sections, and comb each section through before moving on. Rushing this stage is how a half-cleared coat mats straight back within days.
When to Shave the Mat or See a Groomer
Some mats are past saving at home. If the coat is pelted, meaning the mats have joined into a solid layer against the skin, or if the dog is in pain, has broken skin, or simply won’t tolerate the work, the kindest option is a professional shave-down under proper restraint. A groomer can clip beneath the mat safely where you cannot see the skin.
There’s no shame in this. A short, comfortable coat that regrows cleanly is far better for the dog than hours of painful tugging. For a double-coated breed, be especially cautious, and read why you should never shave a double coat before deciding.
Afterwards, prevention keeps you out of the same spot: brush high-friction areas little and often, comb through after every bath and dry, and fold grooming into your regular at-home grooming routine rather than waiting for the coat to seize up.
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Frequently Asked
Always demat first. Water tightens mats and felts them harder, so bathing a matted coat makes the knots far worse. Brush and comb the coat completely clear, then bath.
Only with great care, and never blindly. Skin often lifts into the base of a mat, so cut only when you can see clear space beneath the blade, ideally splitting the mat with the grain rather than cutting it off in one piece.
High-friction spots like behind the ears, the armpits and under the collar mat repeatedly because the coat is constantly rubbing there. Brush those areas little and often, and check them after every walk and bath.
Yes, on tangles and looser mats. It lubricates the hair shafts so fibres slide apart instead of snapping, which reduces pulling. It won't rescue a solid felted pelt, but it makes ordinary knots much easier and more comfortable to clear.