Grooming a Golden Retriever with hotspots

The right grooming tools depend entirely on coat type — a slicker brush perfect for a Spaniel is useless for a double-coated Husky, and the wrong deshedder can actually damage a coat. For a dog with recurring skin issues, the stakes are even higher, because aggressive tools can break the skin barrier, spread bacteria, and trigger a full hotspot flare-up before you've even finished grooming. What breed is your dog, what's the coat like, and what are you mainly trying to do — deshedding, detangling, general upkeep?

That slicker brush could absolutely be a contributing factor — slickers have fine wire pins designed to grab and separate coat, and if you press even slightly too hard on already-inflamed skin, you're essentially abrading it. Behind the ears and around the neck are classic hotspot zones for Goldens partly because those areas trap moisture and partly because they're groomed the most. Before I point you toward anything specific, a couple of quick questions: are the hotspots active right now, or are you mainly trying to prevent the next one? And is her coat on the thicker, wavier side or more flat and dense?

Good — working preventatively is exactly the right approach, because mats compress against skin and create the warm, airless conditions hotspots thrive in. The tool I'd point you to is the Chris Christensen Oval Pin Brush. It has longer, rounded stainless steel pins with smooth ball tips, so it moves through a thick wavy coat like a Golden's without scraping or scratching the skin surface. It's genuinely gentle — no sharp edges, no excessive tension on the coat — and it's specifically designed for longer, flowing coats rather than the kind of raking action that aggravates sensitive skin. Use it in the direction of coat growth, keep your pressure light especially behind the ears and around the neck, and it'll do the job of preventing mats without giving her skin anything to react to. Pair it with thorough drying after baths — trapped moisture under that thick chest coat is often the real trigger.

For a Golden with recurring hotspots, yes — I'd avoid the Furminator entirely, or at least keep it well away from the problem areas. It has a serrated edge that cuts through the undercoat, and on healthy skin used sparingly it's fine, but it's very easy to over-use it, and on skin that's already prone to irritation it can cause what's called 'Furminator burn' — basically micro-abrasions that compromise the skin barrier. If you do want to address shedding, a wide-tooth undercoat comb used gently after a bath and blow-dry will pull out loose undercoat without the same risk. But honestly, for a hotspot-prone Golden, consistent brushing with the pin brush three or four times a week will do more to prevent problems than any deshedding session.

You'll find it on Amazon UK — search 'Chris Christensen Oval Pin Brush' and make sure you're getting the original rather than a copy, the quality difference is noticeable. It's not cheap but it'll last years and it's the one tool that's genuinely safe to use regularly on a sensitive-skinned Golden. Good luck with her — consistent, gentle grooming really does make a difference to hotspot frequency.