A mat is a knot of hair that has tightened against the skin. In a lightly matted coat it is uncomfortable; in a severely matted one it pulls constantly at the skin, traps moisture and urine, hides sores and parasites, and in extreme cases restricts blood flow to extremities.
It is also almost entirely preventable, with about ten minutes a day and one technique.
Some links on this page are affiliate links. If you buy through them we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you — it helps keep this site free. We only recommend products we would use with our own dogs.
Which coats mat
Curly and wool coats — Poodles, Bichons, doodle crosses, Portuguese Water Dogs. These shed very little, which is why they are sold as low-shedding, and which is exactly why they mat: dead hair stays in the coat and wraps around growing hair.
Silky coats — Yorkies, Maltese, Cavaliers, Setters. Fine hair tangles and breaks easily.
Double coats during a blow — loose undercoat that is not removed forms dense felted pads, particularly behind the ears, on the trousers and around the tail.
Short single coats essentially do not mat.
If you have a doodle cross, this article is the one that matters most. A great many are clipped off completely at six months because nobody explained that the coat needs daily work.
The friction points
Mats form where hair rubs. Check these first, every time:
- Behind and under the ears
- Under the collar and harness
- Armpits
- Groin and inner thighs
- Between the back legs
- Under the tail and around the anus
- Between the toes and around the pads
- The chest, where a harness sits
A dog can look perfectly brushed on the back and be solidly matted in all of the above.
The comb test
This is the only honest measure of whether a coat is clean.
Take a metal comb and try to pass it from skin to tip, anywhere on the body. If it snags or will not pass, there is matting underneath, regardless of how the surface looks.
A slicker brush glides over the top of a matted coat and leaves it looking smooth. The comb does not lie.
Line brushing
The technique that prevents matting, and the one most owners have never been shown.
- Have your dog lie on their side
- Start at the bottom — a leg, or the belly line
- With one hand, part the coat so you can see the skin in a horizontal line
- Brush the hair below the parting, from the skin outwards, with a slicker
- Comb that section to check it is clear
- Move the parting up about a centimetre and repeat
- Work all the way up one side, then turn the dog over
It is slower than brushing the surface and it is the difference between a coat that is groomed and a coat that looks groomed.
For a full-coated doodle, expect twenty to thirty minutes daily. That is the actual commitment, and it is worth knowing before choosing the breed.
Tools
Slicker brush — fine bent wire pins. Hold it like a pen, not a fist. Light pressure: enough to reach the skin, not enough to drag on it. Slicker burn — raw red skin from repeated pressure on one spot — is the most common home grooming injury.
Metal comb — medium and fine teeth. The checking tool, used after every section.
Detangling spray — reduces friction and static, and makes brushing easier on both of you. Never brush a dry, dusty coat; it breaks hair.
gonicc Dog Nail Clippers
Not a brushing tool, but part of the same routine — long nails and overgrown hair between the pads both encourage matting on the feet, which is the area owners most often miss.
Dealing with a mat you find
Small, loose mats:
- Hold the hair at the base, between the mat and the skin, so you are not pulling on the skin
- Work from the outside edge inwards with a comb or your fingers
- Use detangling spray
- Be patient. Yanking hurts and teaches a dog to hate grooming
Tight mats close to the skin: clip them out. A groomer, or careful use of clippers — never scissors. Cutting mats out with scissors is one of the most common causes of accidental skin lacerations in home grooming, because matted skin lifts with the mat and you cannot see where the skin ends.
A significantly matted dog: book a groomer and accept a short clip. Dematting an extensively matted coat takes hours, is painful, and leaves skin sore and inflamed underneath. Hair grows back; a dog’s tolerance of grooming does not always.
Prevention routine
- Daily brushing for curly and silky coats. Line brushing, not surface brushing
- The comb test after every session
- Check the friction points specifically
- Remove the harness and collar when the dog is home and unsupervised — constant friction is a leading cause of mats and of coat damage
- Dry thoroughly after swimming and baths, brushing while drying
- Professional grooming every six to eight weeks for coats that need clipping
- Keep the coat shorter if daily brushing is not realistic. A puppy cut on a doodle is a perfectly respectable decision, and a far kinder one than a matted coat
Talking to your groomer
Be honest about how much brushing actually happens at home. Groomers would much rather know than discover a matted coat on the table.
Ask them to show you the line brushing technique on your own dog. Most are happy to, and ten minutes of demonstration is worth more than any amount of reading.
And if a groomer says the coat needs clipping short, that is usually a welfare judgement rather than a shortcut. Hair grows.
