Grooming tools for Greyhound and Bichon Frise

You've got one of the most opposite coat combinations possible under one roof — a Greyhound's paper-thin single coat and a Bichon Frise's dense, curly double coat need completely different tools, and using the wrong one on either dog can cause real problems. The right grooming tools depend entirely on coat type: a slicker brush perfect for your Bichon would be far too harsh dragged across your Greyhound's delicate skin, and a deshedder designed for double coats can actually damage a finer coat. So before I point you anywhere, tell me: what are you currently using on each of them, and what's the main thing you're trying to solve — is it the Bichon matting, general maintenance on both, or something else?

That makes complete sense — the bristle brush is fine for Biscuit actually, Greyhounds genuinely don't need much. A soft bristle or a grooming mitt a couple of times a week is all he needs and you can keep doing that. Dolly is a different story entirely. Mats behind the ears and in the armpits are classic Bichon trouble spots, and the reason she's hating it is almost certainly because you're going straight in with a brush on top of the mat, which pulls and hurts. Before the brush even comes out, you need a detangling comb — specifically a fine/coarse combination metal comb — to work through those mats section by section from the tip inward. Once the knots are out, a slicker brush maintains her coat between grooming sessions. Can I ask: are you brushing her wet or dry, and how often?

That's the cycle — the less you brush, the worse the mats, the more she hates it, the less you brush. Once a week on a Bichon is just too infrequent for that coat type; they really need a quick daily run-through to stop knots forming in the first place. Here's what I'd actually recommend getting: the Andis Steel Comb. It's a dual-sided professional metal comb with a fine end and a coarser end, and it's the standard tool groomers use on curly and woolly coats like Dolly's. You use the wide end to gently work through any tangles before they become full mats, then the fine end to finish and check for anything you've missed. It's durable, it doesn't snag the way cheap combs do, and crucially it gives you control — you can hold the base of the fur against her skin with one hand so you're not yanking the root when you hit a knot. That alone will make the whole experience less unpleasant for her. Once you've got the mat situation under control, a slicker brush for the daily quick brush is your second tool, but start with the comb.

Honestly? Not much. A grooming mitt or a rubber curry brush is a nice upgrade for Greyhounds — it stimulates the skin, removes loose hairs, and most short-coated dogs find it much more enjoyable than a brush, so it becomes a bonding thing rather than a chore. But it's optional. If Biscuit is happy with the bristle brush and his coat looks good, there's no need to buy anything extra for him. Put your money and effort into sorting Dolly's kit first — get the Andis Steel Comb, commit to a quick daily comb-through even if it's just two minutes, and you'll find those mats stop forming in the first place.

That's exactly the right call. Consistency is genuinely the whole game with Bichons — two minutes every day beats twenty minutes once a week, for you and for her. Work from the tips of the hair inward when you hit a tangle, keep a hand at the base of the coat to stop pulling at the root, and she'll start associating the comb with something that doesn't hurt. Good luck with both of them.