German Wirehaired Pointer Club of America

[obsean3]

Hey folks

My GWP has turned into one big ball of matted hair. We brush him regulary, but can't seem to stay on top of the matts. He even has matts in his beard. I did a search of this forum to see what others have done to fix this problem but I didn't find much info on matted hair inparticular. People talk about "stripping" dogs. Is this what I need to do? If somebody could please help me i would appreciate it, I really don't want to shave him bald in the spring.

[dualgwp]

Matted? You must not be using the corrrect type of brush. I suggest a slicker brush, it is usually plastic and has curved wire teeth on it. That and a good steel tooth comb should keep the coat unmatted. Beard, eyebrows and furnishings should be kept tidy with this also.

You can usually get a decent slicker brush in most pet stores or on line. Go to PetEdge, do a search for slicker brush and you will find a bunch of them.

Keeping them clean (a bath) will help as well. A good stripping once or twice a year will keep the old dead coat removed and a new healthy coat growing in.

There are a couple of good discussions here somewhere on how to strip a wire coat.

[obsean3]

Went out and bought both types of brushes tonight. Both seem to work pretty good, although the stripping comb works the best on the really big mats. Now if I can just get him to let me work on his beard!!!
The hair I'm getting out while brushing him, almost looks like baby hair. Do dogs get a different type of hair as they mature?(like human babies)

Thanks for the advice on the brushes...

[Leadhead]

Sounds like you have a mess on your hands. If your dog is as bad as it seams to be I would clip the dog using a #7 blade, lower head area, body to the tail. A number seven blade will take the hair down to about ¼ inch. Face, chest, and legs I would strip. Hand stripping using a stripping knife can be a challenge, remember you are pulling the hair out. Always pull in the direction of hair growth using your thumb and a wrist flip. Stripping knifes come in two types, fine for the face, underbelly, and tail and course for the body and legs. They also come left and right handed. Hand stripping is the best for the wirehaired breeds. Take you time, work slowly. Thing you will need on hand are Slicker brush, metal come, hand stripping knifes (course & fine), scissors, clipper and blades. Once you have you dog groomed the way you like, full grooming intervals are 8 to 12 weeks with monthly maintenance intervals. If you feel you are not up to this take the dog to a professional and have it groomed telling them what you want. You will be left with the maintenance. The fine hair you are getting is the under coat. Remember do not use clipper on the face, neaten hairs on the legs but do not remove feathering on the back of the front legs. Hope this helps.
Best of luck