Golden Retriever Shedding and Grooming: Brushing, Mats, Ears and Hot Spots

A Golden's coat is a dense, water-repellent double coat with feathering on the legs, chest, belly and tail. It sheds all year and blows out twice, in spring and autumn, in quantities new owners find hard to believe. You will not stop it. You can move it from the sofa to the brush, and you can keep the skin underneath healthy, which is the part that matters.

Brushing

Two or three times a week, daily during the moult. A slicker brush for the body, an undercoat rake for the moult, a metal comb for the feathering. Ten minutes in the garden with treats. Watch the three mat zones: behind the ears, under the armpits, and the trousers on the back legs. Mats form there first, pull the skin, and hide hot spots. If you find one, work it out with a comb and conditioning spray; don't cut it with scissors, and if it's tight against the skin, let a groomer clip it.

Never shave

The double coat insulates against heat as well as cold and protects the skin from sun. A shaved Golden overheats faster, burns, and grows the coat back patchy and wrong, sometimes permanently. A professional tidy every six to eight weeks keeps the ears, feet and trousers neat without touching the body coat.

Bathing

Every six to eight weeks, or when they've rolled in something, with a gentle dog shampoo, rinsed until the water runs clear, then dried properly with a towel and, ideally, a dryer on cool, especially the ears, armpits and belly. A damp Golden is a hot spot waiting to happen.

Hot spots

A wet, red, weeping patch that appears overnight, usually under the ear, on the cheek or on the hip, often after a swim or a wet walk, and often started by a flea bite or a mat. They spread fast and hurt. Keep it dry, clip the hair around it if you can, and see the vet the same day; most need a wash and a short course of treatment. Prevention: dry the coat after swims, check the mat zones, flea prevention every month.

Ears

Heavy flaps over warm, damp canals. Dry the ears after every swim and check them weekly with a light and your nose. Head-shaking, scratching, smell or dark discharge is a vet visit for the right drops; repeated infections almost always mean an allergy underneath, which is common in the breed.

Nails, feet and teeth

Nails every three to four weeks; clicking on the floor means too long. Trim the hair between the pads monthly so mud, ice and grass seeds don't collect. Teeth brushed most days with a dog toothpaste; a dental clean by middle age is normal. The health by age guide covers what to watch as the coat, and the dog, gets older.