Combs
A Love Story
by Anna Hawks
I will admit that I have a comb problem. Not as severe as the scissor problem, but a problem just
the same. I have purchased big combs, little combs, cheap combs, expensive combs, fat combs…..
you get where I’m going with this. And for as many combs that I have purchased, I have tossed as
many in the garbage. Some combs didn’t make it a full week, while others have lasted decades.
One comb never comes out of it’s protective case is so fabulous. Why are combs so important?
You can’t scissor without a comb, you can't fluff up a coat without a comb, combs find hidden little
snarls and they are a wiz at removing crusty eye buggars.
My rule of thumb, before you go shopping, ask yourself what do you need that tool to do? For
instance, something for faces. A small fine tooth comb will be useful under the eyes and with tines
(comb teeth) short enough to not cause injury to the dog or the eyes. A combination comb can
also be used around faces. Starting with the medium side and flipping around to the fine to lift up
the facial hair. This will help achieve that nice even looking finish. Body work needs a medium to
coarse combination comb, starting with the coarse side and moving to the medium side. Coat type
will also dictate the coarseness, tine length and size of the comb. A dense stand up coat needs a
wide tooth ‘Poodle’ type comb. This means that the tines are spaced far enough apart to allow the
comb to pass through the coat to the skin with relative ease and tines long enough to reach the
skin. Large combs are also needed on larger sporting breeds and herding breeds. A comb may
also be the only tool that will work when deshedding some breeds.
Combs come in many shapes and sizes. Some have teflon coatings to help reduce static, some are
made of carbon to reduce static. However, with the carbon combs, they are fragile and are to be
used primarily on a tangle free coat and they can break easily if dropped. Others come
in pretty colors or plain with no finish. If you purchase a comb that has a
colored coating, the color may chip off.