Can't wait to see the responses, Caroline! Our two pups shed like mad (double coats-ugh) and I was going to try one of the Furminators, but it seems the vet or groomer or someone said you could actually cut your pet's skin with them. Don't know if that is true. Hope you (we) get lots of good info here!

Are you home again?

ha..nope haven't left yet . I fly out of Atlanta on Sat June 2nd. Go over the night before to stay with DD. Will start pedaling on June 4th with 2 other people. My friend and I have added another woman that expressed interest when she saw our add. She is Canadian and lives right by the start of our ride !! Yeah. Will post more later.

Need info on this cat fur thing !! Help...

I feel your pain, we have a lab and cat who both shed a lot. Heavier shedding at the change of seasons is normal because their coat changes with the weather, but if you know that's not the reason, you might look to its diet and the vitamins he's getting. Some of the higher quality foods with more digestible proteins in them can help as well as supplements.

I have a furminator for our dogs and it works great. Much better than any other brush I have used.

I guess you could hurt an animal with it if you brushed hard enough but it's not something I worry about.

The Furminator is the best thing that's ever happened to my white, excessively shedding bulldog. I love it! She does too (but she also likes being vacuumed, so she is weird). During this time of year, I take her out in the yard about once a week and Furminate her. Yesterday I filled a box about 6" square with white fur in about 5 minutes.

Before you try something so drastic, why don't you give one of these brushes a whirl? We have a long haired cat and brush her every morning with this tool. She adores it, too. Tons of hair comes off.

Here is a link that might be useful: Zoom Groom

luuki he is healthy to a fault LOL! Beautiful coat and very active . I an sure it is the time of year as he wasn't doing this when it was colder out. He seems to hate the hot weather. He refuses to lie down anywhere that there is a rug or sun now...finds the wood floors so much better and especially loves the stairway landing...oops...almost fell over him !

So I will try the rubber Zoom Groom as the least and if that doesn't do it will work up to the Furminator. Target has a knock off of this and I don't know if it is safe. Anyone know if it is the same essentially ? THANK YOU !! c

We use the furminator and would recommend it.

You can get overzealous with it, though. It removes old hair but if you're too aggressive it can pull out healthy hair.

We used to have a long haired Siamese and it worked really well on him. We now own (or are owned by) a ragdoll mix and short-haired tabby. It doesn't work well on the ragdoll but it's great on our short-haired tabby.

Jennifer

Oh well, I know you are health oriented but still thought it worth mentioning. :c)

I use the furminator on our heeler/chow mix and find it makes a huge difference it keeping the house clean. Weather permitting I take him outside and try to do it weekly. During the winter I take him in the basement but less frequently. Follow the directions and you won't have a problem with it - our dog loves it and has never been hurt. None of the other brush types even made a dent in his fur which has the smooth top coat and fluffy undercoat. I also use the furminator when we dog sit my brother's golden retriever and neighbor's hound/lab mix and it works great on their coats, too.

LOVE it!! Use it here on one cat (who is addicted to it LOL!)-- plus a great grooming comb (from the groomer -- don't know the name) But the Furminator really grooms them well!

If you have a Petco, they stock the Zoom Groom. Don't know anything about the Target one.

luuki: not so fast :) I say he is getting all that he needs but then I am sure there is room for improvement. Just because he weighs 18 1/2 # and doesn't seem fat isn't a sign that he is getting all that he needs. We feed him 1 large can of Iam's chicken a day...he gets a tiny amount 4x so he can have time to digest. And he gets one small handful of dry Iams at night to tide him over...otherwise he cries and beats on the door with both front paws LOL !! So what could we be doing better ? This is what our vet suggested. All our other cats in the past 40 years got dry Purina Cat Chow and lived a very long time. We upped the cost spent when we got Meatball as he is our DD's "baby" and she will want him back some day.

Will see about the Furminator knock off at Target then I guess. MB is a short hair cat but it is very very thick. We will be very careful. THANK YOU ! c

I have not used the furminator, but when we had our large cat professionally groomed, they used it on him.

My colleague has a Golden and she said she literally gets enough hair to make another dog.

dlm2000 -

This may sound crazy, but could you post a pic of your heeler/chow mix? We've got a heeler/??? girl who has the THICKEST double coat in the world and a really thick ruff. I'd just like to see what your dog looks like compared to ours. We always thought she was part spitz, husky, or samoyed maybe. It could be Chow, but she doesn't have the black tongue.

This is Tango:

We have a very long haired cat and we love the furminator. Now don't report me, but I have also recently started vacuuming her. At first she didn't like it so much, but now she seems to enjoy it (DH still has to have a pretty firm grip on her). That really makes the most difference.

I've also heard that sometimes a change in food can help with shedding.

We have a large dog and a long hair cat. I use the dog sized furminator on the cat (not that I recommend the larger one for the cat; I just didn't want to purchase two furminators) and even though it is a larger size it works great on the cat. I *think* he likes it. DH commented today how relaxed he looked as I brushed him. It def. reduces the amount of shedding when used regularly (once a week or so).

jakebedy - Cajun has a thick ruff, too so I know what you mean! How much does tango weigh? She looks bigger than Cajun and probably has Dalmatian in there somewhere by the markings - have you ever considered doing a genetic test?

We don't get a lot of pictures of him - he's terrified of cameras so I either shoot with my phone or through windows so he can't see me!

Caj does have the purple tongue.

OK...DH says that anyone who wants to come and hold MB while we vacuum him...he will get the video done and sell it ! Really that will never happen...he hates it and I can never find him when I am using it.

OK the fulminator seems to be the winner....I will keep you posted. My truck won't start arrg. Has never happened before...ever...1998 Chevy. So tomorrow we tow it and I will ride my bike to Petco...sigh...

dlm2000 -

Cajun is a handsome boy! Tango is about 40 pounds. She is VERY stout compared to my Aussie/Border girl who is taller but is built like a bird and doesn't weigh much more. I think the spots are consistent with blue heeler, which has some dalmation in the foundation stock. We've talked about doing the genetic testing. I'm just afraid it would be "inconclusive" across the board!

When I read this thread earlier it encouraged me to brush and bathe Tango. I used just a regular slicker brush and got So much fur off of her. She is blowing her coat right now and loved being brushed. I think she even enjoyed the bath, because she stood pretty still and was then prancing around after.

Anxiously awaiting your impression of the furminator. Is Meatball amenable to having something that makes a sound to groom him? Our guys (cats) would scatter in an instant.

With the dogs, we have yet to find anything short of a summer shave, to effectively cut down on the hair in the house.

We've purchased just about every advertised product advertised (within reason) over the past 25 years, LOL,. With the labs having two coats, we brush them at least once a day, but it only seems to stimulate more shedding particularly at this time of the year. At the moment, I am brushing and vacuuming 2x per day. We are using an undercoat comb as well as the regular top coat brush on everyone. The problem is, the weather has gotten very hot, very quickly. When that happens, everyone starts shedding like mad.

Hope you'll come back and rate the furminator, trail!

I love my furminator! I actually posted about it here last year, but I can't find the thread anywhere!

wip...it makes a sound ??? Hm..I didn't watch the video and DH didn't comment on that. I doubt that MB will let us near with something that buzzes or is loud LOL. He is a very sensitive guy :) I guess I will go and watch the video.

Truck is at the shop...probably the fuel filter but the tow guy says they will likely say it is the fuel pump..more money ...sigh.

MB raced out the door this AM...probably knows I am doing this research..he is strictly an indoor cat..sigh again ! c

We use a Furminator here also, with two lab/shepherd mixes.... one seems to have some husky-type genes because she has that soft, thick undercoat. Her hair comes out in little tufts this time of year, and I've never had anything work as well as the Furminator. When it first came out they were quite expensive, so I didn't rush out for one right away - I figured it might be another of those made-for-TV-hype products. Then my vet recommended it - raved about how well it worked on her lab - and I absolutely trust her judgement. She was right! The first time I brushed my two girls, I almost filled a garbage bag with hair!

Was at Petco today and took a look at the Furminator. No way I would use that on cats. I typically comb and brush, but decided to try a Zoom Groom. They both loved it! It does make a mess ... fur goes everywhere. Keep that in mind when using.

I'm glad they loved the Zoom Groom! Our cat rushes to the drawer we keep it in when it's time for her brushing. If you keep it close to their bodies and use round strokes, it will make less of a mess. It develops a static cling after a while and most hair stays on the brush. I do the circular massage and then brush in both directions.

we didn't end up with anything except a rubber tipped brush with longer bristles from Target. We didn't get to Petco. Will get the Zoom groom when i get home . Sounds safest. Thanks for all the reports.