Do Golden Retrievers REALLY need grooming? Oh, “FUR” sure ! I remember the first day a Golden Retriever came in for a groom. Within an instant, I fell in love with those affectionate eyes, the dangling tongue and that goofy tumble into my arms. Later, I also remember the explosion of fur when it was time to blow dry the coat of my Golden Retriever buddy.
Throughout my years of grooming, most of the Golden Retrievers visit about 3 to 4 times a year. I tend to find that there’s moderate shedding throughout the Winter and Summer. However, Golden Retrievers seem to shed more during the Spring and Fall.
Nevertheless, regular grooming can help manage the shedding storm.
Do Golden Retrievers really need grooming?
To illustrate, here is a photo taken after just 5 minutes of brushing a Golden Retriever:
The cost of grooming a Golden Retriever:
On average, expect to pay about $100-$150 for a full groom. This usually entails a deshedding bath, brush out, trimming all over , nail clipping and ear cleaning. In my experience, Golden Retriever grooms take between 3 to 4 hours. The brushing is usually the most intensive. It involves 3 sessions of heavy brushing – before the bath, after the bath and during the drying.
How to keep a quarterly grooming schedule:
To keep a grooming schedule of every 3 months, I always recommend for owners to book a Furminator groom. This involves a special deshedding shampoo and Furminator conditioner that helps release shedding hair. It removes about 70%-80% of any current shedding hair. Regular shampoo will not remove nearly as much as that.
PRO TIP: If you prefer to bath your Golden Retriever with the deshedding shampoo, I suggest only buying the Furminator conditioner and not the Furminator shampoo. From experience, it’s the Furminator CONDITIONER that makes the biggest deshedding difference. Use a gentle oatmeal based shampoo to wash out any grime or dirt.
To keep a 3-month grooming schedule, I also recommend medium to short trimming all over. As an example, here are two photos to illustrate:
This haircut keeps the hair easier to brush and maintain. In addition, this also helps thin out thickened areas of fur – especially around the bum and belly. This helps reduce the amount of shedding and collection of debris.
This haircut keeps the hair easier to brush and maintain. In addition, this also helps thin out thickened areas of fur – especially around the bum and belly. This helps reduce the amount of shedding and any collection of debris.
Regular brushing at home is also important to keep up with a 3-month grooming schedule.
Otherwise, your Golden Retriever will have to come in more often for grooming. A Golden Retriever should be brushed out at least once a week. However, daily brushing is the best to avoid matting and knotting – especially around the bum and tail area.
PRO TIP: you can also book a 30-minute brush out with your groomer. This is especially helpful when life gets busy. On average, these brush outs can cost anywhere between $15-$25.
Do Golden Retrievers need home grooming ? “Fur” sure!
The 4 main brushes needed to keep up with grooming Golden Retriever at home:
1. Undercoat rake:
Golden Retrievers are double-coated breeds and it’s tricky to remove the lower layers of shedding hair. Therefore, I recommend using an undercoat rake that can reach deep into the fur and remove handfuls of loose hair. This tool has curved blades that also help loosen and remove tangles and knots. The blades are inside the metal curved teeth of the tool. This means that the curved part slides off the dog’s skin without grazing the ski
It can be used on dry and wet hair. Therefore, this is a great tool to use while bathing your Golden Retriever.
As an example, here is a photo of the handful of hair that an undercoat can remove in just 5 minutes:
2. Furminator brush:
This tool is a straight blade with tiny serrated teeth. As a precaution, be careful with using excessive force as this tool can graze the skin. As a result, skin irritation such as brush burn can occur. However, it is a very effective tool that helps remove a lot of the shedding hair on the top and middle layers of the coat.
PRO TIP: always test the Furminator on your arm to feel how much force to apply. For example, if it’s scratching your skin red, then too much force is being applied on the tool.
PRO TIP: Make sure to purchase size LARGE for your Furminator brush. Consequently, it will cover more surface area when brushing.
Here is a photo of the clumps of hair that a Furminator can remove in 5 minutes of brushing:
3. A slicker brush:
A slicker brush has a head full of thin wire bristles. The hooked edges grab onto hair and helps pull apart thick mats and knots. As a result, this makes it easier to comb out matted or knotted areas afterward. This brush may irritate the skin if it is used with excessive force.
PRO TIP: To effectively use this brush, use a pat and pull method. This allows the thin wired teeth to grab and straighten out tangled hair.
4. A comb:
I recommend a metal comb with both wide-tooth and fine-tooth parts. Different sides work better on different parts of your Golden Retriever. For example, the fine tooth side can help pick out debris and sometimes even fleas or insects from the coat. Alternatively, the wide-tooth side is very effective at combing out tangles from the wavy part of the coat.
Either way, a comb reaches deep to the skin and root of the hair. As a result, a comb is able to pick up the finest tangle or knot embedded in the coat before it becomes a bigger knot.
After any brush out, I always recommend combing the entire body of the Golden Retriever. This is the most thorough way of checking if any tangles or knots are still left in the coat.
Final thoughts on grooming your Golden Retriever:
Finally, if you are unsure about the effectiveness of these tools, book a brush out with your groomer. They can usually brush your dog out for 15 to 30 minutes with these tools and you can decide if it made a difference. As a result, you should notice a softer coat with less shedding over the next few days.
-By Nikita King, Certified Professional Groomer
Learn how to trim Golden Retriever paws with this guide:
Trim Golden Retriever paws: A step-by-step Guide
How to Shave Your Dog’s Bum (with Photos)
How to Find a Good Groomer near You
