Anti-shedding tips

Our reader Suzette had pity on our fur-saturated household and wrote in with a suggestion - the FURminator! She reported on her experience using one on her dog, Bella. Now Bella is short-haired in the extreme, but Suzette thinks Daisy could benefit, too. She told us:

You would be shocked at the hair from the second coat below that comes up. It reduces shedding by 90%. It is pricey and can be found at Pet Smart, Pet Express, online, etc. I got the medium size and it was $49 but well worth it. I brushed her with the normal brush I bought for her that had bristles on one side and wire on the other. Not much came out.

Then I used the Furminator and I got half a bag full of fur!

The description on the FURminator web site says it grabs undercoat hair and leaves the lovely top coat pristine. At first read it sounds dangerous -- be gentle, it warns, and watch for the redness and irritation that deep brushing can cause. But the lady in the demo video isn't holding back. You can see why they suggest that it's best to brush in a place you can sweep -- or better yet, have a vacuum with a fresh bag handy. Best of all, though, this product promises to get rid of our household's "cleanliness problems." Wow!

Fur flow overwhelms household

Yup, it's shedding season. That means we're navigating drifts of fur pressed up the walls, mashed into doors, covering whatever clothing we happen to have on. Tom bought a special, high-powered vacuum just for this occasion, but there's no keeping up with the fur flow. Now and then we'll try to brush some of those thin, sticky fibers off Daisy's person but it's really a 24-hour job. So out with the lint brush and on with the grubbies. It's best simply to put a "do not disturb" sign on the door to discourage guests and just wait it out.