A poodle’s coat is very dense and tightly curled. Thus, it is susceptible to tangling and matting without the proper care and attention. Moreover, poodles lose hair that falls back into their coats rather than onto the floor.
This makes owners think that poodles don’t shed, but they do – the hair just stays in their already difficult-to-maintain coats. This shedded hair actually remains in a poodles coat and can quickly contribute to matts or knots in their coat.
These compacted pieces of hair can pull and irritate the skin around them, putting your poodle in unnecessary discomfort. Your dog might even need to be shaved if the matts cannot be untangled by a professional groomer.
A standard poodle will need to be groomed every two months to ensure that matts and tangles don’t overrun their coats. Taking them to a groomer can cost anywhere from $50 to $250, so many poodle owners choose to groom their dogs themselves.
The good news is that brushing your poodle with a slicker brush every few days can help prevent tangles from causing all sorts of problems and leaving you with a hefty grooming bill.
When it comes to poodles, slicker brushes are without a doubt the best type of brush for their coats. A slicker brush is a wire brush that can tackle tangles and matts with ease.
We have found the 6 best slicker brushes for you to choose from so that you can spend less time researching and more time saving your poodle from painful tangles.
- Pros
- 100% Satisfaction Guarantee
- Pins are bent at a 45 degree angle to not scratch your dog's coat
- Long pins that over 1 inch and will brush deep into a Poodles coat
- Ergonomic handle long handle that makes brushing easy
- 30% more pins than a traditional slicker brush
- Cons
- Only one color choice
- Not self-cleaning
The We Love Doodles slicker brush just released and is one of the hottest brushes on the market. It’s made with 30% more pins, saving you a ton of time when brushing your Poodle. Additionally, the pins are longer (over 1 inch) than traditional brush pins, so you can remove tangles deep in your dog’s coat.
The pins are also bent at a 45-degree angle so it won’t scratch your dog’s coat. You can easily remove all the knots, mats, and tangles from Poodle’s coat. In fact, several professional grooming facilities around the United States regularly use this brush.
The slicker brush also comes with a 100% satisfaction guarantee. If you or your Poodle don’t like this slicker brush, then you can easily return it for a full refund. This is our top choice if your looking for a slicker brush to regularly groom your Poodle.
- Pros
- Bent wires: the wires are positioned at an angle to ensure that your dog doesn’t get poked while being groomed.
- Durable and strong: this brush is made from premium materials to last you for many grooming sessions, year after year.
- Self-cleaning: remove the hair and clean this brush within minutes.
- Cons
- Expensive price point: self-cleaning brushes tend to be more expensive, which is why this brush is slightly more expensive than the others on this list.
Second up on our top six list is the Hertzko Self Cleaning Slicker Brush, with an overwhelming 56,000 ratings – 94% of which are three stars and higher.
This is an amazing reception from prior customers, making it clear to us that this is the best slicker brush on the market for your poodle.
The self-cleaning contraption allows you to clean the brush within minutes after your grooming session, making this seem like a much less daunting task than it once was.
With just one click of a button, the hair can be removed in one go and the germs and bacteria can be wiped away.
The handle is also comfortable for you, with a rubber grip to keep the brush firmly in your hands and a thumb-rest to ensure that you’re always using it in the correct position. This ensures that you always hold the handle correctly to avoid cramping or wrist strain.
- Pros
- Curved slickers: the curved wires allow for a smooth and precise grooming session.
- Non-slip handle: the rubber grips on your handle will ensure that you’re always in control of the slicker brush.
- Coated pins: the bristles feature rubber caps to prevent causing any harm to your dog.
- Cons
- High cost: this is an expensive brush considering the fact that it is not self-cleaning.
Paws Brothers offers a number of slicker brushes for large dogs and small dogs alike. You can find the correct brush on the same advertisement page, depending on the type of poodle you have.
The universal small brush would be ideal for toy and miniature poodles while the universal large brush will work best for standard poodles. Choosing the correct size will prevent you from missing tangles or spending too much time grooming your dog.
These brushes come with coated pins to prevent you from poking or scratching your dog as you use them. These small caps aren’t much wider than the wire bristles and shouldn’t concern the effectiveness of your brush.
- Pros
- Helpful handle: the handle features rubber grips and a hole for easy storage, making using and storing it incredibly easy and convenient.
- Durable bristles: stainless steel is the best and most durable metal for the wires to be made from.
- Reaches difficult areas: this brush can reach the underside of the coat to target every tangle and matt it finds.
- Cons
- Small size: might not be the best for larger dogs due to the width only being 3 inches.
Next up is a slicker brush from Poodle Pet. Although the brush has been designed with poodles in mind, it can be used for the majority of dog breeds as well as cats. This brush might be too small to use on extra-large dogs; however, which is why we’d stick to using it on dogs only as large as the standard poodle.
Each wire-bristle of this brush is made from stainless steel, making it the most durable metal to use on a dog brush. These bristles also feature a small rubber cap on each one to prevent you from hurting your dog as you brush them.
The wires are all bent to ensure that they reach the underside of your dog’s coat, allowing them to loosen the hair and make it easier to remove. This prevents matts from forming underneath the first layer of hair, eliminating pain from your poodle’s life.
- Pros
- Innovative designs: enjoy a protective cover to keep the wire pins as high-quality as they were the day you received the brush.
- Good customer service: contact the manufacturer with any questions you have and they will answer them quickly and efficiently.
- Ideal for all poodles: the 4.3-inch width is a good size for a toy, miniature, and standard poodles alike.
- Cons
- Incorrect information: while the manufacturer says to use the comb before the brush, this can damage your poodle’s coat and therefore should not be followed.
The slicker brush from Aibele not only offers a good price but also features the best value for money. Not only are you getting a self-cleaning slicker brush for a great low price, but you’ll also receive a metal comb to use during your grooming session as well.
The self-cleaning feature is a great benefit to have with your slicker brush as it allows you to clean and store the brush within minutes. Many people neglect to clean their slicker brush as often as they should because it takes too long and is too inconvenient, but this feature eliminates the issue altogether.
- Pros
- Easy to store: the handle features a hole to hang your brush up.
- Quick cleaning: the cleanup process could not be easier with this self-cleaning brush.
- Inexpensive: for a self-cleaning slicker brush, the cost is impressively low.
- Cons
- No rubber caps: a few customers found that the wires were able to scratch their dogs due to the absence of rubber caps.
Another slicker brush from Poodle Pet, this design is self-cleaning and therefore much more convenient for you in the long run. Simply press a button to retract the pins and wipe the hair, dirt, and germs away.
The ergonomic handle is something to be admired with this brush as it features rubber grips to ensure that the brush never slips from your grasp. Plus, the shape will fit perfectly in your palm to prevent you from being in any pain.
Best Slicker Brush For Poodles Buying Guide
Slicker brushes are always the best brush to use on a poodle due to their coats, but that doesn’t mean that you can simply opt for the first slicker brush you see on the market.
They all have small differences and some will work best for your poodle more than others.
Here we have compiled a list of the most important information to bear in mind before choosing the best slicker brush for you and your pooch!
Size of your poodle
The most important thing to consider before opting for a slicker brush is the size of your poodle.
There are three main sizes of poodles: toy, miniature, and standard poodles. The size that you have will determine the best slicker brush, and here’s why:
Toy poodle
Toy poodles are the smallest type of poodle and only measure between 24 and 28 centimeters in height from floor to shoulder.
Plus, they only weigh between 6 and 9 pounds, so you can imagine how tiny they are!
This means that you only need a small slicker brush to groom these dogs.
Using a large slicker brush might lead to pulling your dog’s hair and causing them unnecessary pain.
Using a brush that is too big might also mean that you miss large areas of their coats and therefore miss matts and tangles.
Miniature poodle
Miniature poodles are slightly larger than toy poodles, but they are still small compared to standard poodles.
These dogs are between 28 and 35 centimeters with a weight of up to 17 pounds.
While a miniature poodle is a mid-sized dog when it comes to poodles, they are still considered small and therefore require a small slicker brush.
You can use a slightly larger brush for these poodles than toy poodles, but don’t go too large unless you want to risk missing tangles.
Standard poodle
The standard poodle is the largest type of poodle with a height of between 45 and 90 centimeters.
They can weigh between 45 and 70 pounds, so they can get much larger than the other two options.
Depending on the size of your standard poodle, it’s recommended that you opt for a large slicker brush.
You shouldn’t miss any tangles with the larger brush, and using one too small will take you much longer than it should to groom your poodle.
The brush’s bristles
A slicker brush requires wire bristles that are compact and close together to find and work out tangles and matts in your dog’s fur.
If these bristles are not high-quality enough, they might bend or fail to remove the tangles.
Look for stainless steel bristles as these are the ideal middle ground between flexible and sturdy.
You should also notice how many bristles are on the brush head before you purchase it. If there aren’t enough bristles, you run the risk of the brush not finding every tangle or knot in your dog’s coat.
When it comes to slicker brushes, you can never have too many bristles – the more the better!
Finally, the bristles should be long enough to reach completely into your dog’s coat.
If the bristles are too short they won’t reach the bottom layer of hair and therefore miss the worst level of tangles.
Luckily, poodles tend not to have thick coats as they are single layer rather than dual layer, so most slicker brushes work well for them.
However, a poorly constructed slicker brush might still have bristles too short to use on any dog, let alone a poodle.
Ease of cleaning
As you’ll see from our top six picks, we enjoy the concept of self-cleaning slicker brushes.
These include a contraption that detracts the bristles into the brush at the push of a button, allowing you to easily slide all of the caught hair off of the brush face and clean it.
Cleaning your slicker brush is incredibly important so that you can rid it of germs, bacteria, dirt, pet dander, and much more.
While a self-cleaning brush is very convenient and quickens the cleanup time significantly, it is not always necessary.
We have also looked at non-self-cleaning slicker brushes above. These might not be as easy to clean, but they are also cheaper.
So, it’s up to you whether you think the self-cleaning feature is worth the additional price or not. Either way, make sure that you clean your slicker brush properly after every use!
An ergonomic handle
Yes, your poodle should always be comfortable when you’re using a slicker brush on them. However, that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t be comfortable too!
An ergonomic handle can make all the difference between a pleasant grooming experience for both of you, and hand cramps and wrist strain.
An ergonomic handle should be easy to spot thanks to the unique shape.
A straight handle will not be ergonomic and will quickly become uncomfortable to hold, but a curved handle is more likely to comfortably fit into the contours of your hand.
Another thing to consider when it comes to the handle is anti-slip properties.
Slicker brushes are designed to find tangles, and when they do that, they can get stuck. The last thing you want is for the brush to slip out of your hand and you lose control of the brush.
Losing control of your brush can cause unnecessary pain to your dog.
To prevent this as much as possible, you should look for a handle that has anti-slip rubber on the shaft so that you are always in control of your slicker brush.
Rubber caps or no rubber caps?
Some slicker brushes come with rubber caps on the tips of the bristles to avoid them poking and scratching the dog’s skin.
These are considered more comfortable for your poodle, which is why you might consider looking for them.
However, not every slicker brush comes with rubber caps. Some manufacturers believe that they lessen the effectiveness of the brush and therefore should not be used.
If you’re using your slicker brush in the correct way, you shouldn’t poke or scratch your dog anyway. Again, it’s up to you if you decide to opt for rubber caps or no rubber caps.
Conclusion for the Best Slicker Brush for Poodles
All poodles need to be brushed regularly in order to prevent tangles and matts. A slicker brush and a steel comb are the best tools to prevent your poodle’s coat from tangling. We hope that you found a great option today!
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Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to groom a poodle?
The answer to this question depends on where you live and the size of your poodle, among other things.
However, an average price for poodle grooming with a professional groomer is between $50 and $250. Bear in mind that this price could be even higher depending on the skill level of your groomer and how much they want to charge!
This will leave you with an annual cost of between $600 and $1500+, and the number will be even higher if you have to pay someone to remove matted hair from your dog’s coat.
Alternatively, you can groom your poodle at home for a much lower cost.
This will cost around $10 every two months, as you will need to purchase grooming supplies such as detangling spray and shampoo.
Although the initial cost might be higher when embarking on grooming your dog yourself (as you might want to purchase grooming shears, scissors, and other expensive equipment), the overall cost, in the long run, will be considerably less.
Either way, brushing your poodle with a slicker brush can be an extremely beneficial preventative measure to avoid grooming costs becoming too high.
Use a slicker brush on your poodle every two days or so to avoid any tangles from being able to turn into matts.
Garrett loves animals and is a huge advocate for all Doodle dog breeds. He owns his own Goldendoodle named Kona. In addition, he volunteers at the Humane Society of Silicon Valley, where he fosters dogs and helps animals. Garrett enjoys writing about Doodles and believes that dogs can teach humans more about how to live than humans can teach a dog.
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